ITW Sexton Achieves Zero Parts Per Thousand Quality Standard Using Synergy 1000

“What we are known for is our high quality standards in manufacturing two-piece high pressure aerosol cans as well as deep-drawn metal filters,” said Brandon Johnson, Filter Manager for ITW Sexton. The deep drawn filter shells are for oil filter use. At the Decatur plant, ITW Sexton makes shells up to 12 inches in length and 5 inches in diameter.

“With the help of the Synergy software, we have established our company as a leader in providing high quality products.”
– Brandon Johnson, Filter Manager for ITW Sexton

ITW began looking for a Statistical Process Control (SPC) solution because the operators were using paper and pencil to plot the quality of the product they were manufacturing. “We were looking to establish a real-time SPC data collection process that would allow us to become predictive in identifying potential non-conformances in the work place,” explained Johnson. “Since our business unit implemented the Synergy software, we have seen a large reduction in the amount of errors for SPC data entry.”

Johnson likes the fact that the Synergy software is user-friendly and provides a visual monitoring system for their data entry. Johnson likes that they can attach or display ISO work procedures or visual displays of the gages used for measuring the product. ”If there is a measurement out of specification, it will alert the operators immediately so that the corrections can be made in a timely manner,” Johnson added. Over the last couple of years, Johnson estimates they have saved approximately 2,000 to 3,000 man hours in data entry.

”The software has allowed our workforce to recognize potential non-conformances and eliminate defects before they occur,” said Johnson. For the last two years, their business department has maintained a zero parts per thousand quality standard with their customers. “With the help of the Synergy software, we have established our company as a leader in providing high quality products,” said Johnson.

According to Johnson, Synergy has helped ITW Sexton achieve its top initiatives of ensuring the accuracy of the SPC data entered, the production of a high quality product, and the satisfaction of its customers. “Our business is now capable of eliminating defects before they occur and make it to the end user…our customers,” explained Johnson. “The Synergy software gives us the capability to provide visual work instructions for the parts we are measuring. With the Synergy software in place, we have more process control of our daily production activities.”