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January 2008
An ATAC Client Success Story
SEA Wire & Cable Inc. is a leading supplier of wire, cable, tubing, termination sleeves, cable ties, EMI/RFI backshells, mil-spec connectors, and other cable assemblies for the aerospace and military markets. The company is headquartered in Madison, Ala. with offices worldwide, and plans to double the size of its Madison facility over the current year. With training assistance from Auburn Technical Assistance Center and the Alabama Technology Network, SEA Wire & Cable is building its defense and aerospace business on a commitment to quality.
ATAC-ATN training helps firm build bottom line Increased and retained sales each totaling $5 million annually is the kind of bottom line achievement any company would welcome. When that is compounded by an additional $20 million enabled in plant equipment investment, $10,000 in improved software, between $5,000 - $10,000 in cost savings, the addition of 10 new jobs, and $10,000 invested in employee skills training and development, the story is nothing short of a complete success. With training assistance from the Alabama Technology Network (ATN), SEA Wire & Cable Inc. of Madison, Ala. has written this success story by attaining AS 9100 certification and building its defense and aerospace business on a commitment to quality. “This is a success story developed through the joint work of Auburn Technical Assistance Center (ATAC) – one of the ATN’s three four-year university centers – and our sister ATN center based at Northeast Alabama Community College in Rainsville,
Alabama,” said ATAC Director Henry Burdg. “We facilitated the project through the Alabama-Boeing Supplier Development and Training program that we have been a part of since its inception several years ago.” AS 9100 is the quality management system standard for the aerospace industry. Certification builds on the more widely known ISO 9001-2000 quality recognition pursued by manufacturers and other industrial entities. AS 9100 certification is something that Boeing more than encourages its suppliers to attain.
The Boeing Company relies on a cadre’ of suppliers to produce and deliver thousands of specialty parts for its aircraft and defense-related products, says Boeing Supplier Manager Brad Bruce. Supply chain management is a critically important and complex process. “Our customers demand that we have and adhere to the requirements of an approved quality management system to ensure that we produce and deliver a safe product,” Bruce said. “As Boeing increasingly focuses on its core competencies in high-end design, engineering and systems integration, we need suppliers that are highly focused on their own core competencies, continually striving to create additional value in everything they do.” Over the past year, SEA Wire & Cable has partnered with Auburn University’s ATAC and Rainsville’s ATN to conduct extensive employee training for quality assurance and auditing.
“We had to develop some formal structure. Auburn and the ATN had the expertise and resources that enabled us to do this thoroughly and within a desirable scope of time.” -- Marty Clark General Manager “We had to develop some formal structure,” said SEA Wire & Cable General Manager Marty Clark. “Auburn and the ATN had the expertise and resources that enabled us to do this thoroughly and within a desirable scope of time.” As described by the firm’s quality manager, William Thomas, “We focused on improving all processes for quality and efficiency gains, and the AS 9100 push has been instrumental in making those efforts successful.” According to Chris Anderson of the Rainsville ATN center, the project portrays a textbook model. “SEA Wire & Cable already had a good quality system in place,” Anderson said. “The real task was to ensure that it met AS 9100 audit criteria through employee training and development.” With ATN guidance, the company succeeded in only eight months. Shortly after receiving AS 9100 certification, SEA Wire & Cable attained a quality audit score of 96.5. “This kind of training project is a testament to the action and cooperation possible when ATN centers and the private sector come together,” Burdg said. “This is an overall validation that we can meet our customers’ needs.” “It’s a complete success story all the way,” Clark adds. SEA Wire and Cable, Inc. is a leading supplier of wire, cable, tubing, termination sleeves, cable ties, EMI/ RFI backshells, mil-spec connectors, and other cable assemblies for the aerospace and military markets. The company is headquartered in Madison, Ala. with offices worldwide, and plans to double the size of its Madison facility over the current year.
Displaying SEA Wire & Cable Inc’s. AS 9100 banner are, from left, Chris Anderson, Rainsville ATN center; Bob Wills, SEA Wire & Cable chief executive officer; William Thomas, SEA Wire & Cable quality manager; Henry Burdg, ATAC director; Dana Town, SEA Wire & Cable president; Jim Duggan, SEA Wire & Cable national sales manager; Brad Bruce, Boeing supplier manager; and SEA Wire & Cable General Manager Marty Clark. Visit AuburnWorks.org to learn more about training and other services provided by the Auburn Technical Assistance Center and the Alabama Technology Network. Visit SEA Wire & Cable at www.sea-wire.com.
Auburn Technical Assistance Center was established in 1976 and is an affiliate of the Alabama Technology Network and an Economic Development Administration University Center. As an Outreach arm of the Auburn University College of Business, ATAC provides business and technical assistance, customized training, and consultation in implementing value-added strategies to manufacturers and other businesses, not-for-profit organizations and government agencies in Alabama and the Southeast.
Auburn Technical Assistance Center 147 Lowder Business Building Auburn, AL 36849-5350 1-800-446-0386 (334) 844-4659 www.AuburnWorks.org
Auburn University is an equal opportunity educational institute/employer.