BSI has assisted the South African automotive parts manufacturer Sintered Metal Products accelerate certification of its localised production to a globally recognised standard, providing the organisation with a ‘passport to business’.
Sintered Metal Products has more than 50 years’ experience producing a diverse range of automotive components for 1st and 2nd tier original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). Based in Cape Town, the business manufactures sintered items, including shock absorber components, sprockets, pulleys and bearings for a large international client base. When Sintered looked for a trusted, strategic partner to help it achieve certification to IATF 16949, which is an internationally recognised Automotive Quality Management System (QMS), it turned to BSI for support.
“BSI’s effort to understand our business and how we do things made our certification journey smooth and efficient,” says Pierre Wentzel, Director at Sintered Metal products. He adds that “BSI’s efforts to establish a network of auditors in South Africa to audit IATF 16949 was commendable. Due to the value-added during the years dealing with BSI, it was concluded that BSI is the correct partner to assist us in achieving our strategic objectives.”
The Benefit
Certification to IATF 16949 is widely recognised across the automotive manufacturing sector as demonstrating a commitment to quality products and services throughout the supply chain. Based on ISO 9001, it provides best-practice when designing, manufacturing, installing or servicing automotive products, a requirement throughout much of the global automotive industry.
Certified
Sintered’s successful certification to the standard, achieved with BSI’s support, represents a major breakthrough. It is expected to help reshape the wider automotive component production landscape in South Africa, where there has been a tendency to rely on imported products.
Achieving IATF 16949 status adds value from continuous improvement via regular external audits. Using risk-based methodology, Sintered has been able to streamline its QMS, driving focused improvement and confidence that paved the way for investment of ZAR7.5 million in new furnace technology.
Sintered attributes recent business success to its certification. Since achieving IATF 16949, Sintered has won business worth ZAR5–million with the potential for contracts worth a further ZAR-10 million. Meanwhile, it has seen a reduction in internal process scrap from 3.5% to 1.5%, a year-on-year reduction in 2020 of 57%.
Client Challenge
Sintered’s biggest goal has been to shift focus towards components produced locally in South Africa, dissuading customers from automatically choosing imported parts. The aim is to help stabilise and grow the in-country manufacturing sector, thus improving the local skills base and reducing unemployment.
Sintered recognised that to successfully create this shift in purchasing patterns, it would benefit from partnering with BSI and further supported by guidance from South Africa’s industry body, the National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers (NAACAM).
Recognising the value added by BSI over many years, Sintered concluded that BSI was the best partner to support its strategic objectives and commitment to continuous improvement and sustainability.
BSI Solution
Sintered welcomed BSI’s work to establish a network of auditors in South Africa to audit to IATF 16949. The standard, published in 2016, places more emphasis on employee engagement and a more holistic approach to the management of risk. It emphasises empowerment of the workforce at all levels to communicate and manage risk, engaging with the audit process and seeing it as a positive tool for improvement.
Download the full case study here: https://www.bsigroup.com/globalassets/localfiles/en-za/automotive/iatf16949/sinter-case-study-aug2020.pdf
Celia Hugo
Senior Marketing Specialist – South Africa
M+27 66 307 1919 T+27 12 004 0728