Superior Uses MQ1

To visit Superior Air Parts, which supplies PMA piston engine parts and which makes the Vantage and XP engines, is to be struck by the lack of paperwork at the employee workstations and the relatively clean desks of managers at the Dallas, Texas firm.

A big reason is the company's use of the computerized MQ1 system. That's an abbreviation for Maximum Quality First. The company purchased the system from Michigan-based CEBOS, a company that specializes in business process automation document systems that, as the company says, "Offer significant time savings while providing the assurance that your company is in compliance with industry and government regulations."

The evolution of MQ1 at Superior shows that the process is more complex than that.

"We were looking for a document management system," said Superior's information technology manager, Michael Martin. "CEBOS did a lot of work for the automobile manufacturing industry, and with modification, we felt the software could be applied to our operation."

Darryl Harlos, vice president of operations at Superior, said, "We were looking to fix a weakness in our paper document management system."

"Copies of engineering drawings and technical data were everywhere," he said, and it was critical to make sure all production and manufacturing personnel were using currently approved version. It was also necessary to archive previous editions, as the evolution of the design from one drawing to the next was an essential part of the audit trail examined by Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors.

"We evaluated several systems, and we liked what CEBOS had to offer," Harlos said. "We were the first aviation company to buy their software."

"I'll admit there were growing pains, and there were things we had to build into the system, but overall it has been extremely beneficial to us," Harlos said.

Audit Trail

About 20 changes were made to the software to tailor it to the unique needs of the aviation industry. As opposed to the automobile industry, traceability is key in aviation. That is, the ability to trace back every design change that's made.

"Today, all of our engineering design data is in the MQ1 system," Harlos declared.

In practical terms, what this means is that a change request to alter a drawing has to be entered in MQ1, and all the details - be that dimensional or material - have to be indicated.

The drawing is then routed in the computer system (via e-mail) for approval and, after it is approved, the drawing is activated and the predecessor drawing is archived.

"This provided positive control of our technical data and prevents the use of wrong data in manufacturing," Harlos explained.

"Every part in the Vantage engine is documented on drawings in the MQ1 system. These approximate 200 Vantage engine part numbers, which may be featured in over 400 drawings," he said.

"For example, you have a crankcase casting drawing, then a crankcase machining drawing, and then a crankcase assembly drawing. The information is all in our system," Harlos said.

Since Superior obtains all its parts from suppliers, the tracking of the parts and supplier quality is essential. The MQ1 facilitates this process as well.

If an issue is identified with any part or product, a nonconforming item ticket, or NIT, is generated. NITs are then forwarded to a Material Review Board (MRB) for disposition. From the MRB disposition, a corrective action request (CAR) is generated and sent to the appropriate supplier. "This is a critical path with regard to supplier control. We want a short-term action--within 30 days, and a long-term corrective action--usually 60 days," said Harlos.

The process is facilitated and documented by the MQ1 system.

"The time saved has more than paid for the MQ1 system," Harlos declared. "Before, we held weekly meetings. Now, managers are no longer sitting around a table for two hours or more each week," he explained.

The system also documents personnel training.

"We are a production certificate (PC) holder, and hundreds of hours of PC related employee training are recorded in the system," Harlos explained. Training is documented for each employee in terms of what is required, and what the individual has actually received. The system provides not only summary training reports, but assignments to training for every employee.

Harlos claims that the system has made it easier for the FAA to audit Superior. FAA officials would not comment on the MQ1 system, under the apprehension that they might be perceived as endorsing the system.

Versatility is Key

Bob Herdoiza, chief executive officer of CEBOS, said his company focuses on smaller companies like Superior, those with 5 to 2,000 people per plant. Superior's facility is on the lower end with approximately 50 employees.

"Superior had a manual system with formal processes," he said. "With MQ1 they have automated and optimized the process."

Four years ago Superior bought version 5 of MQ1 and they are presently transitioning to version 7. "The user interface is now very simple," Herdoiza exclaimed. "Everything is drag and drop and double click."

About 25 percent of CEBOS' business is now with aerospace companies like Superior. Another 25 percent is with companies manufacturing medical devices. Some 35 percent is with the automobile industry, and the final 15 percent of business is with general manufacturers, to include a food supplement company.

Although customized to Superior's needs, Herdoiza said the core MQ1 system has universal applicability. "Many businesses have documentation to control, they have projects, they all need to train their employees, and they need to be able to audit themselves," he said. Tools like MQ1 meet that need.

In fact, Superior recently had a supplier's conference, at which Herdoiza was invited to give an MQ1 presentation. "There was a lot of interest," he said.