Flaro Sibiu - from pens to automotive assemblies (8th of November 2012)

On the second edition of Sibiu Quality Days, Flaro revealed itself to the public of Sibiu. Flaro had been known in Romania mainly as a manufacturer of stationery and school products, as well as a manufacturer of accessories for the textile industry in Romania. Over the past 15 years, the company has reinvented itself, heading for the electrical industry and automotive.

The company’s team has seen a great potential for growth in the automotive industry that requires quality guarantees in particular. “This was the moment when we first started with the ISO 9001 certification that we received in 2006, and then it was not enough: as we entered the automotive industry more intensely, some of the clients required the TS 16949 certification” said Stefan Almasan, the CEO of Flaro. The certification represents the standard for the automotive industry, as explained Werner Seeger, the organiser of Sibiu Quality Days conference, whose company, WSQR, founded in Cisnadioara in 2001, provides advisory services to companies in the automotive industry. “If you are the supplier of an automotive company, you are required to provide this certificate no later than one year afterwards” concluded Seeger.

12 months’ work for Certification

This was also the case of Flaro. “We intended to be certified two years ago and we kept planning it in the activities for each year, but those years, 2008, 2009 and partly 2010, were harsh for the automotive industry as well”, says Almasan. Requirements included an extensive documentation, staff trainings as well as large investments. Tens of thousands of dollars were invested in production, but also in laboratory and measurement and control equipment. Prior to these investments, in February 2010, a pre-audit was carried out. “The people with Seeger told us very frankly where we were”, remembers Almasan. “They were close to getting ISO 9901 (the quality standard at that time)”, adds Seeger. Then, several stages were set: two consultants with Seeger were integrated in the Flaro team and worked with each person in charge of the processes. “The products remained the same, but the processes changed and got improved”, says the head of Flaro. “We worked hard both with people and with mentalities as well”. The process ended in July 2011 with the certification audit that the company passed successfully. “We are now waiting for the actual form that we will receive in the next few days.” What is expected after all this effort? “Certification is good advertisement for Flaro, both for the current customers, as well as for the potential ones”, believes the manager of Seeger.

Sibiu Quality Days

In order to discuss the latest developments in quality, WSQR organised Sibiu Quality Days for the second time after 2006. Participants are responsible for assuring the product quality, and for coming up with new ideas within their companies, following the principle that quality is assured neither by the CEO, nor by the head of the department, but by all people who are daily involved in the production process. Around 30 quality assurance officers in companies such as Continental Automotive Systems, Bosch Rexroth, Wittenstein, Hartmann and Mecanofin attended this conference last weekend. The conference was organised by Werner Seeger Qualitätsmanagement Romania (WSQR), a German company.

Source: www.monitorulsb.ro