Quality in Electromechanical Distribution, The Marine Air Way

December 9, 2009

When your customers are satisfied, your business relationships thrive. This has been proven true throughout the history of commerce. Customer satisfaction, however, is an increasingly complex issue. It is no longer enough to develop strong relationships with individuals. Many business customers now measure satisfaction at the organizational level using documented Quality Management Systems. These are objective, statistically based, and don’t care how pleasant your salespeople are.

The prevalence of statistical quality analysis, particularly in the aerospace and power generation industries, means that distributors must not only keep buyers happy, but must deliver consistency and quality with every customer order.

Consider the following example:

A customer places two orders with you in the month of January. The first consists of 10,000 OTTO military spec switches, 2000 Eaton aerospace relays, and 500 E-T-A remote control circuit breakers. The second order is for 1,000 Electroswitch rotary switches. Both orders are due by March 15^th. Now assume that the 10,000 military toggle switches are delivered to your customer two weeks late, while all other items are on time. Perhaps you misquoted the lead-time, or the customer’s required delivery date was never reviewed. Regardless of the reason, the switches are late! You call the buyer to apologize, and by the end of the conversation it is clear that there are no hard feelings. However, what this conversation does not mend, however, is your quality record with your customer.

Let’s assume that the two orders are the only orders that your customer has placed this year. Now let’s examine how your customer might measure your On-Time-Delivery (OTD) rating. Of the two purchase orders delivered, one was late. Perhaps your customer assigns a 50% OTD rating to your company. Or it may be that your customer measures quality and delivery on a per-piece basis. In that case, of the 13,500 electromechanical components you delivered, 10,000 were late! Your OTD rating is 26%!

If your customer considers vendor OTD ratings when comparing quotes, you will lose future business despite a strong relationship with that electronics buyer. And keep in mind that the only way to improve your OTD rating is to win more business in the electromechanical market and deliver on time.

So what should you do?

In addition to developing and maintaining relationships, your sales and marketing team must focus on consistency and thoroughness when reviewing and agreeing to customer requirements. This may mean implementing a Quality Management System of your own. Doing so not only helps you deliver high quality products and services, it can often help you do so more efficiently. It is equally important that you demand from your vendors the same quality and consistency that you strive to provide to your customers. After all, you cannot serve your customers’ needs if you are not well supplied.

Here at Marine Air Supply, operational efficiency is mission critical. We distribute electromechanical components to more than 3,000 customers. They’re involved in a wide range of industries, including aerospace and commercial aviation, commercial and military vehicle manufacturing, industrial equipment manufacturing, power generation, national defense, medical electronics, commercial and military electronics and more. Regardless of industry, our customers demand and receive high quality products, consistent and reliable service, and competitive pricing. Marine Air Supply’s Quality Management System and strong partnerships with major suppliers such as Eaton Aerospace and Master Specialties, Eaton Vehicle Controls, OTTO Engineering, E-T-A Circuit Protection, Data Display LED’s and many more, enable us to deliver on all of these demands. The result is completecustomer satisfaction – happy buyers, outstanding quality and delivery records, and competitive pricing thanks to our operational efficiency.