Defining Quality Standards at Every Stage

In consistently seeking ways to better serve customers and elevate Lindsay above the competition, we have enhanced the Lindsay Quality System (LQS) through our Supplier Quality Assurance (SQA) organization. Our quality policy highlights the commitment to achieving total customer satisfaction, with product performance and services through continuous improvement and innovations. Our quality processes enhance the design, manufacturing, shipping, field experience, supplier and factory quality areas of our business.  

LQS establishes a common global language related to quality and provides a set of standards used by all our global manufacturing locations. These standards help measure each of our manufacturing facilities using seven core criteria. Our Global Operations Certification team evaluates factories’ performance within these seven criteria with the goal of providing our customers with a world-class quality experience with our products. The Supplier Quality Assurance (SQA) team works with suppliers to drive quality standards for every product we secure, thus enhancing the overall customer experience. 

“Supplier quality is an inherent part of LQS,” said Eric Windeknecht, Director of Global Quality. “We hold our suppliers accountable for what they provide us, but we also want them to grow with us.” 

The overall goal of the SQA team is to ensure our suppliers are capable of providing us quality products and services that are consistent and timely. 

“We work proactively with suppliers and develop relationships that are valuable to both sides,” said Toni Herrera, Global Manager for Supplier Quality.

Industry standard processes and tools such as supplier qualification, supplier auditing, Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) will be used by our Supplier Quality Assurance professionals.

“Identifying these steps and clarifying processes will help us react to current scenarios, understand where our suppliers are, and help them to refine their own processes,” Herrera said. 

Working with our suppliers in this way will enable us to enhance our internal quality processes as well. We all perform better when we understand what is expected of us. This underpins our Supplier Excellence Handbook and Code of Conduct, guidelines which set the stage for suppliers about not only what Lindsay expects, but also what we and our customers need. These processes and documents help us better define a common purpose and guide suppliers toward achieving excellence for Lindsay’s supply base. This proactive approach is aimed at developing and encouraging suppliers, preventing potential issues and enabling us to be agile and maintain high product and service quality for our customers.

Along with safety and ethics, quality is an expectation at Lindsay. To learn more about our culture and values, visit: https://www.lindsay.com/usca/en/about/who-we-are/