Happy Birthday Columbia Tech!
Celebrating 20 years!
1992 – 2012
Nora Leonard
Executive Assistant

We perform more process audits than any other type of audit here at Columbia Tech. Process audits are just what they sound like – an audit of the processes occurring on the work floor. Regular weekly visits to each work cell, internal and external, to review documentation, equipment, materials and workmanship provide a window into how well our quality systems carry down to the production floor. Audit findings are immediately reviewed with the area supervisor and an audit will not close until any or all issues are addressed to our satisfaction. We audit our quality system at Columbia Tech; not the person. I have never met a single person who woke up in the morning and said, “I’m going to work today to do a bad job”. Therefore, if through an audit we find a problem, it is usually a process, not the associate who is deficient. Our Project Managers, Manufacturing Engineers, Quality Engineers, Calibration, Training and Environment, Health and Safety folks, to name a few, work very hard to help our manufacturing associates build the best products possible in the safest environment.

Supplier Quality audits are performed regularly at our Tier 1 and many of our Tier 2 process material suppliers. The VP of Supply Chain Development and the Audit Manager schedules supplier audits to key suppliers at least once per year. New suppliers, or suppliers who might be having quality issues, may be added to the schedule at any time throughout the year. If any supplier has a corrective action cited in an audit, they will be visited on a frequent basis until no further findings are noted. We prefer to have our suppliers ISO certified, as this evidences a fully documented quality system. But in the end, whether or not the supplier is ISO certified, we audit to verify our suppliers have systems in place to guarantee that Columbia Tech receives quality product today, tomorrow or six months from now in accordance with provided specifications. We look at how they control customer documentation, how “quick turns” and frequent changes are handled and how they provide Columbia Tech with the quality product we require to meet our customers demands.

There are six major categories of internal quality system audits at Columbia Tech: Customer Review, Customer Satisfaction, Production, QMS Review, Procurement and Materials. These audits take place throughout the year and cover every element of the ISO 9001 and 13485 standards – multiple times! Each audit takes approximately one month to complete and focuses closely on the interaction of all the processes of our quality system. When these audits are completed, we know without a doubt how well our systems are performing as a unit.

Last but definitely not least, “walk-around” audits are performed daily. Auditors are always in audit mode when we go to the floor. We check to see if everyone has their ESD straps on, their badge on, if the work cell is neat and orderly, if documentation is present, and if a safe environment is evident. We look to see if tooling is adequate and within calibration date, whether associates are using chemicals properly and within their shelf-life. We check to see that each associate has what they need to do the quality work for which Columbia Tech is known.

Auditing never stops at Columbia Tech. Even on weekends auditors are known to walk the floor to be sure our associates are safe and have all the documents, equipment, materials and help they need to do a quality job. Our goal is to give our customers the product they expect, time after time. Great quality and workmanship are keys to customer satisfaction. Auditing helps us to realize our goal!

Gerry St. Jean
Columbia Tech Audit and Training Manager

It’s Spring!!

What a great winter we’ve had – for those of us who don’t enjoy skiing, snowmobiling, snowboarding, ice skating, and cold weather! The birds are out now chirping us awake in the early morning, the daffodils are coming through the ground, and the unseasonably warm weather is upon us. What a beautiful time of year!

Get out your walking/running shoes and get some fresh air, exercise and plenty of Vitamin D! Vitamin D is a nutrient that supports the absorption of calcium and it also supports breast, colon and prostate health, while contributing to the maintenance of a healthy mood. So while you are outside, you will be happier and healthier – which makes for a happy, healthy, Coghlin Companies employee!

See you outside! Happy Spring everyone!

Nora Leonard
Executive Assistant

Take for example our New Product Introduction (NPI) Process. Cogmedix follows a well-documented, ISO driven NPI process. During the formal NPI process, all aspects of the product launch are reviewed including drawings, BOMs, schematics, assembly documentation, quality requirements, regulatory requirements, packaging and labeling, fixtures, testing requirements and more. In addition, NPI is also the phase where we perform a product’s risk management assessment in accordance with ISO 14971. We work with our customers to meticulously define the Device History Record (DHR) requirements in alignment with our Quality Management System, as well as any special equipment or processes required for test, assembly, and inspection. We have also proven the NPI process to be an effective tool in managing customer initiated changes such as new product features or changes to the manufacturing environment. Following a structured, detail oriented NPI process helps to ensure that product requirements and our customers’ expectations are met. This results in regulatory compliance from day one and it enables Cogmedix to produce high quality, reliable products – consistently.

In addition to the many disciplines employed by Cogmedix, we have built in continuous feedback mechanisms in the form of weekly conference calls, customer dedicated work areas in our facility, structured quarterly business reviews, and customer satisfaction surveys. We employ technology in the relationship process to maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of the information flow. We never lose sight of the fact that in the end; business comes down to people doing business with people they enjoy, like and trust. When you provide customers with the highest quality products, meeting or exceeding their requirements, at a competitive price – you are off to a good start. When your customers refer you to their friends and business colleagues, you are walking down the path together. When your customers know how much you care and how much you are willing to put into the relationship to ensure their success – you’ll have customers for life.

Project Manager,
David Keeler

He then reached into the box and pulled out a bag of small marbles and proceeded to pour them into the jar. As they moved down into the jar they filled in all the spaces left in between the golf balls. Once it was clear that the jar could not hold any more marbles he asked the class for a show of hands again as to who thinks the jar is full, to which this time most raised their hands.

He then reached into the box and pulled out a bag of sand and proceeded to pour the sand into the jar. He would stop every now and then to shake and tilt the jar so that the sand filled every cavity left over by the marbles. He then asked the class for a show of hands about the jar being full, to which all the hands in the class went up. He then reached into the box and opened two cans of beer and proceeded to pour them into the jar.

The moral of the story is that if we fill our jars (lives) with the smaller things first then there will not be enough room for the bigger, more important, things. This also holds true for our company projects and objectives. By staying focused on the larger issues such as customer satisfaction, overall commitment to quality, and total regulatory compliance; we address the core fundamental reasons reflecting what Columbia Tech is all about and the traits that made Coghlin Companies an industry leader for more than 125 years. Production improvements, cost cutting exercises, and ongoing employee training would represent the next level of important things which support the larger objectives. Everything else is the sand that holds it all tight.

As for the two cans of beverage; in every project there is always room for a couple of cold ones at the end of another successful product launch for our loyal customers.

John Georgian
Quality Engineer

Early Stage Development
Most companies today follow some kind of stage-gate product development process from Discovery to Concept to Feasibility to Development to Pre-production and finally to full-scale Production. Start-up companies as well as R&D organizations within large companies are generally adept at utilizing their core competencies to evolve new ideas into tangible product concepts and building lab-scale units to demonstrate their feasibility.

The focus of early-stage development effort is to prove that the concept meets the target (scaled) performance specifications. In parallel, the Marketing team typically estimates a hockey-stick growth curve with an attractive Return on Investment (ROI). The implicit assumptions are that this product will penetrate the market at a given price point with a manufacturing cost structure that allows attractive margins. This enables the development team to get additional resources from investors or upper management to continue the product development project. Life is good……..so far.

The Development Chasm
Now the development team is challenged with evolving this POC into a manufacturable and cost-effective design and prototype that can be transferred to volume Production. This is a different type of development effort often requiring different skill sets and experience that are likely to be outside the core competence of the original development team. It may not be efficient or even possible or simply not professionally rewarding for the same team to continue the development all the way to Production.

This is the point at which good POCs can fall into the development chasm, unless there is a smooth transfer to a team that can focus on Design for Manufacturability (DFM) and Cost Reduction to create the entire package comprising the total system and associated documentation that can be transitioned to volume production.

Consider the example of a typical thin-film deposition process used in semiconductor wafer manufacturing. The early stage development of a new deposition chamber for larger size wafers with improved uniformity and throughput, may involve a team of Ph.D.s doing computational fluid dynamics and testing the results on a flexible lab-scale system. Continuing this development to Production will involve a team of mechanical and electrical equipment design engineers to develop the individual sub-assemblies such as wafer transport, gas handling, deposition chamber, heater, exhaust and power distribution, as well as their integration into a robust system that meets performance, cost and schedule requirements. The engineers will also have to develop a complete documentation package that can be handed off to manufacturing.

DCI can help
The new team to bridge the development chasm is best made up of professionals both internal and external to the company. The benefits of an external partner such as DCI are:
• Certainty and speed: reduced time to market
• Access to a team with broad equipment design experience across multiple industries
• Leverage core strengths of the internal team across a larger, on-demand resource
• Reduced fixed costs
• Reduced risk
• Access to a global, quick-turn and cost-effective supply chain
• Seamless transition to contract manufacturing at Columbia Tech

The following are specific areas where DCI can help to successfully cross the development chasm:
1. Design for Manufacturability(DFM): Starting with the POC drawings and schematics, DCI engineers will develop alternative concepts for the mechanical and electrical sub-systems and their integration. DCI will jointly select the optimum concept with the client based on feasibility testing, risk assessment and manufacturability. To facilitate ease of assembly, careful attention is paid to manufacturing methods (poka-yoke), modular designs (standardized interfaces), design rules (tolerance stack-ups), materials of construction (metal vs. plastic), fixturing and tooling.
2. Design for Cost: A substantial portion of a product’s cost is determined by design decisions. Right from the Concept Phase, DCI will assess off-the-shelf commercial versus custom fabricated components and sub-systems and create a costed Bill of Materials (BOM). The BOM is refined through the Design phase with joint exploration of lower cost design alternatives. The Coghlin Companies maintain a Best in Class, tiered network of suppliers of commercial and custom parts to get the best price, delivery and quality.
3. System Integration: In the earlier example of the thin-film deposition process for semiconductor wafer manufacturing, the client’s IP is in the deposition chamber. However, to enable successful product development, DCI can assume responsibility for the design of the supporting sub-systems such as power distribution and gas handling and their integration with the deposition chamber.
4. Prototyping: DCI’s skilled engineering technicians can assemble alpha and beta prototype systems based on engineering-level documentation to enable field testing and get feedback to incorporate into an iterated design. This provides valuable validation of the new product with early adopters before product launch.
5. Documentation: A key deliverable from DCI is a complete documentation package that can be handed off to Columbia Tech for manufacturing. It includes the BOM, specifications, solid drawings of each sub-assembly, assembly drawings, electrical schematics, PCB Gerber files and cable drawings. It may also include operating procedures and test plan.
6. Change Management: Changes are inevitable in a development project and DCI can provide guidance on their trade-offs with schedule and cost. DCI’s rigorous Engineering Change Order (ECO) process maintains traceability of changes and ensures that all relevant documents are appropriately changed and manufacturing has the most up-to-date documents.
With DCI as a valued partner, client companies can successfully cross the chasm and develop a manufacturable and cost-effective design and prototype that can be transferred to volume Production.

Percy Chinoy
Director of Business and Customer Development

Recently, the kind, compassionate, caring employees came through during a deeply troubling time for one of their own. A wonderful woman and her two children lost their husband/father to cancer a short time ago. While he fought a very hard battle to stay alive for his family, he ultimately lost. Sometimes we don’t know these people who touch our lives in some small way, and sometimes we do. It doesn’t matter. When one is hurting and in trouble, we come together. We don’t always need to know the person who is in trouble. We just need to be kind, compassionate and caring.

A few weeks ago the Coghlin Companies held a food drive to benefit the Pernet Family Health Services in Worcester. The food boxes put together by Pernet will go to the “poorest of the poor” in the Worcester Community. Whatever is left over will go into their pantry for future distribution. Also, for the next few weeks, we are holding a coat drive in conjunction with the Grafton Lions Club. Thanks to the kind, compassionate and caring Coghlin Companies associates, many people will have food on the table at Thanksgiving, and a warm coat for the cold winter nights.

Remember those in need during the holiday season!

Happy Thanksgiving!

How do you reduce cost and not tarnish Quality? You must partner with suppliers that share your same commitment to quality or else all the effort you put forth into manufacturing a quality product goes out the window. You don’t want to find yourself anxiously awaiting the receipt of a part only to find that when it finally arrives, it doesn’t meet the specifications sending you into panic mode and a costly financial and/or reputational challenge. We understand that customers don’t care to hear excuses about poor quality or late delivery. They want what they want, when they want it! So sweat the details and get things right the first time!

Details, details, details. You must continually question “WHY”. Do not jump to the easy or the obvious as the solution. Most times that is only a symptom and not the real reason “why” or “root cause”. You might improve your process short term but you might not permanently correct a problem. Many times the solution is obtained by diving deeper into the details and asking “WHY” over and over. It has been shown that by the time you ask your 5TH “WHY” you are at the real cause and have a clear understanding of the details.

So get it right the first time and keep it right. Every company should Sweat the Details while setting a goal to literally WOW their customer with a positive experience. Work to create an experience that delights the customer far beyond their normal expectations. The “out-of-box experience” is as important – or more important – than the product itself.

Good luck and have a Quality Day.

Richard Schulman,
Vice President Quality

An EVPL network runs on fiber-optic and is revolutionizing the telecommunications industry. Compared to conventional copper wire, optical fibers are:

• Less expensive – Several miles of optical cable can be made less expensively than equivalent lengths of copper wire.
• Higher carrying capacity – Because optical fibers are thinner than copper wires, more fibers can be bundled into a given-diameter cable than copper wires.
• Less signal degradation – The loss of signal in optical fiber is less than in copper wire.

What does this mean to the business? Well, nobody likes outages! No email, no Internet, no computer access is just not acceptable in our lightning fast environment. Fiber is less prone to outages and much faster which will give the Coghlin Companies the edge over others and enable seamless, accurate transfer of large data files and other online correspondence at warp speed.

Mike Barry
Information Technology Manager
Data Security Coordinator
Columbia Tech, A Coghlin Company