Glass Industry Biz News 

December, 2000

    Safelite Glass Corp. is pleased to announce that its Enfield, NC manufacturing facility has been awarded ISO-9002 certification. The ISO-9000 certification process is an evaluation of a company’s quality system measured against a set of international standards developed by the International Standards Organization (ISO). The ISO, headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, works in cooperation with the American National Standards Institute in the United States.

    Safelite’s Enfield facility has achieved ISO-9002, which means the facility’s quality management process exceeded 9000 standards.

    Safelite’s certification effort began 18 months ago, when the Enfield facility instituted the Safelite Manufacturing System, based on the ISO-9002 Standards for Quality Management and Quality Assurance. The management and associates of the Enfield facility implemented numerous procedures to address the 20 elements in the ISO Standards, including Document and Data Control, Product Identification and Traceability, Process Control, Inspection and Testing, and Corrective and Preventative Action. All elements in the standards help an organization like Safelite create an effective quality management system, which in turn can serve as a framework for continuous improvement.

    A third-party ISO registrar, Det Norske Veritas (DNV) Certification Inc. reviewed the Safelite Manufacturing System and recommended the Enfield facility for certification. Safelite’s Wichita, KS facility was certified in 1995.

    Just as important, the company has submitted its windshield products to a third-party testing laboratory approved by the Automotive Manufacturer’s Equipment Compliance Agency Inc. (AMECA) for comparison to products made by original equipment manufacturers. The laboratory tested compliance to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards for adhesion, clarity, impact and penetration, and stress resistance. In all cases, the Safelite windshields performed as well or better than the samples from original equipment manufacturers.

    "We are very proud of the hard work put forth by our Enfield manufacturing team," said Doug Maehl, Senior Vice President of Manufacturing at Safelite. "This ISO-9002 certification is additional proof of the quality of our manufacturing process – and the quality of our Safelite windshields. We will extend our policy of continuous improvement in both plants – to continue to create original-equipment equivalent products at a very competitive price for the retail and wholesale auto glass markets."

    Privately held Safelite Glass Corp. is the nation’s leading manufacturer, distributor and installer of replacement automotive glass. The company operates two manufacturing plants and distribution centers, 76 warehouses, and serves more than 80% of the driving public with in-store and mobile service. The company’s headquarters are in Columbus, OH.

source: Safelite Press Release