Muller celebrates new quality standard success

Muller Precision Engineering — 18/04/2018

Shropshire-based machining specialist Muller Holdings has become one of the first manufacturers in the UK to secure a prestigious new automotive quality accreditation.

Muller, which employs 90 people at its headquarters in Cleobury Mortimer, has achieved the International Automotive Task Force (IATF) 16949 standard, which is now being used by leading car manufacturers and tier 1s when awarding new contracts.

The new standard replaces the TS approval and is vital to the companys desire to build on the more than £7m of orders it currently has supplying CNC machined and high volume parts for use in heavy duty braking systems, engines, electronics and door brackets.

The process took just twelve months to complete, from initial planning to mobilising the quality team and ensuring that everyone knew what was expected of them to ensure the 21 changes in specification were successfully met.

Stephen Lock, Managing Director of Muller South Wales, said: IATF replaces TS in September and is a lot more risk based, covering risk evaluation and analysis within all aspects of the business.

We recognised the need to achieve certification within a fairly narrow timeframe and set out plans to achieve this by carrying out a gap analysis and introducing new procedures and process controls that bridged the gaps.

Comprehensive training plans were rolled-out to get buy-in across all of the firms sites in the Black Country, Shropshire, South Wales and Worcestershire.

Muller Holdings, which has increased its workforce to 130 people over the last 12 months, specialises in CNC milling, turning, multi-spindle and CNC/Conventional escomatic manufacturing services.

The IATF standard, which is held by all of its four UK sites and the factory in Manesar in India, puts the firm in a perfect position to not only retain existing automotive work, but also explore additional contracts to produce parts for new model platforms in the UK and overseas.

This approach is already paying off, with £300,000 of new orders recently secured with Wabco and THK Germany.

Its a great start to an exciting 2018, a year where we are looking to increase sales past £14m and where we are investing more than £500,000 into new technology.

In addition to its automotive work, Muller Holdings also supplies components ending up in dental products and appliances that keep homes and factories warm.

Pictured from left: Adam Cunningham, Stephen Lock and Paul Bethell, all Muller Holdings.

The relationship between Muller Redditch and ETG continues to flourish as Muller takes it's CNC machine spending to £1m, with the installation of a fourth machine in just two years.

Muller Holdings, which employs 130 people across its four sites in the West Midlands and South Wales, has purchased a Nakumura NTY3-150 from the Engineering Technology Group (ETG) to help it meet increases in automotive work and free-up capacity for new contracts.

The company will use the three turret, twin spindle machine with 3 metre magazine bar feed to reduce the cycle time of a new suspension part by 30 to 40%, after engineers at its Redditch site developed the process within one week of the machine being installed and training being completed.

“This is the fourth Nakamura we have purchased from the Engineering Technology Group, equating to over £1m of investment in the latest CNC technology to help us continue to supply our global customer base with precision parts,” explained Adam Cunningham, Managing Director of Muller Redditch.

“All of the machines have been very reliable and offer excellent cutting performance. The latest one has three turrets and twin spindles that allow us to overlap a number of secondary ops, making the overall process quicker. This approach has now been adopted for other parts and is proving very successful in helping us win new business both at home and abroad.

“The Japanese machines are very reliable and we have a good relationship with ETG’s servicing and maintenance team to ensure that downtime is minimised and any repairs are quickly addressed.”

Muller Holdings specialises in CNC milling, turning, multi-spindle and CNC/Conventional escomatic manufacturing services.

It has recently secured the prestigious IATF 16949 quality accreditation, putting it in a perfect position to not only retain existing automotive work, but also explore additional contracts, starting with £300,000 of new orders with Wabco and THK Germany.

Jon Mannion, Regional Sales Manager at ETG, added his support: “Customers are continually looking at ways where they can speed up processes yet retain the same level of accuracy. The Nakamura range is perfect for doing this, with its three turret, twin spindle capability now making machining faster than ever before.”

The Engineering Technology Group (ETG) brings together the strengths of the world’s most advanced manufacturers of high technology machine tools, automation and workholding systems to deliver highly productive turnkey solutions to customers involved in automotive, aerospace, domestic goods, high value engineering, medical and oil and gas.

Muller Precision Engineering

Muller celebrates new quality standard success

Muller Redditch caps £1m investment with fellow MiM member ETG