Mission Critical
The Weekly Report – April 4, 2022
Managing manufacturing through the use of the ISO system leads many to sustained profitability.
For those of you managing your business using ISO or EOS, you know the work is a long process and is never complete. Yet the rewards are significant. Enterprise Minnesota believes in it so much that we are an ISO certified consulting organization ourselves. We’ve been using the system for almost ten years.
If you are considering employing such a system or are looking for business solutions to navigate this year’s hyper-competitive and ever-changing marketplace, feel free to call on us with any questions you may have.
One of our clients, All-American Engineering and Machining in White Bear Lake, was already a certified ISO company, yet the co-owners were facing a quarterly audit without a quality manager to lead them through it. You may read more about it in the Spring 2022 issue of Enterprise Minnesota® magazine. In An Important Pivot, Keith Gadacz, one of Enterprise Minnesota’s ISO experts, helped All-American Engineering and Machining successfully navigate their audit and come out stronger on the other side.
This is only one example of many. Our ISO experts have been as busy as the manufacturers they are working with, and we recently welcomed another ISO consultant to our ranks.
James Thomas brings over 19 years of industry experience working as a quality and management systems director for large and small manufacturers. He is InterTek Lead Auditor Certified in ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, ISO 13485:2016, AS9100 Rev D, and IATF 16949: 2016.
“I’ve been with Enterprise Minnesota since January and love being in this role. So far, I’ve been working with an aerospace manufacturer on their AS9100 certification and have helped several others conduct their ISO 9001 internal audits. I encourage all manufacturers to become ISO certified, not only because it can really improve business operations, but also help them break into new markets,” said James.
In addition to James, our other ISO expert consultants, Keith Gadacz, John Ihrke, and Greg Langfield, understand the time and resources it takes for small and mid-size manufacturers to achieve ISO certification. Whether you are new to ISO or are certified and want to continue improving your business management system, feel free to reach out to your local business developer, and they will be more than happy to answer any questions.
Learn more about ISO services on our website
Upcoming Events
April 26 – Investing in Your People to Create Leaders at All Levels
Talent & leadership manufacturing workshop. Exclusive to manufacturers. Online via Zoom
May 10 – State of Manufacturing: Grand Rapids
Open to all manufacturers and supporters of manufacturing. In-person at Rapids Brewing Company.
May 19 – Profiting from Revenue Growth
Strategy & revenue growth workshop. Exclusive to manufacturers. Online via Zoom
May 25 – A Model for Manufacturing Excellence Using ISO 9001
ISO 9001:2015 manufacturing workshop. Exclusive to manufacturers. In-person in St. Cloud.
Industry News
Local manufacturers gather at Lake Superior College to address labor issues.
March 30, KBJR6.com
Sen. Klobuchar’s staff conducts workforce listening session in Detroit Lakes.
April 2, Detroit Lakes Tribune
Harbor Freight Fellows Initiative presents awards to Bemidji Career Academy students
April 2, Bemidji Pioneer
SunOpta’s new Eden Prairie HQ cements transition to Minnesota
April 2, Star Tribune
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