MPI Case Study

The company pioneered the concept of a flexible, mobile work force and operates from four main UK locations across Hertford, Newport Pagnell, Telford and Bristol. They have since become the leading supplier of Aerospace labour within the UK and as well as this, MPI are also the main provider of aircraft fuel tank leak repairs, fixed price work and training to the aviation sector.

Having been in business for close to 60 years and with over 70 staff, their expertise is second-to-none with a longevity that is unmatched in their industry, making them leaders in their field.

Exceeding Expectations

MPI boasts an impressive list of major corporations as clients, one of whom is Airbus. In order to put themselves forward to tender for the prestigious Airbus account, MPI needed to prove their compliance to exceptionally high quality products and services by integrating ISO 9001 and AS9100 Management Systems into their organization.

The team at MPI knew plenty about the Aerospace Quality standard as they had initially been certified to AS9110 in 2008. They were then also awarded certification to AS9100C in 2012 and transferred certification bodies in 2016 to IMS, now NQA.

In 2017, MPI was the first company to transition to AS9100D with IMS. With their clients’ requirements and expectations in mind, MPI took this opportunity to completely redesign and improve their quality management system and introduce a number of efficient new processes, procedures and documents to ensure that it complied with and utilised the new standard.

Having the AS9100 standard in place means that MPI are currently the only Airbus approved aircraft fuel tank leak detection and rectification service supplier in the industry, an accolade in which they are extremely proud.

Adam Webb, Commercial & Quality Director at MPI explains, “IMS is now part of NQA but we will continue to work with NQA as our UKAS accredited certification body as we have been able to keep our previous auditor. Michael Venner has proven to be extremely knowledgeable of the standard, the aviation industry and also understands our business.”

How complex was the transition process?

“The transition process from AS9100C to AS9100D occurred in 2017. We worked hard to ensure that our whole QMS was improved through a restructure so that it ran parallel to the new standard, a project which took 2-3 months to complete. To prepare for our assessment, we obtained a copy of the latest standard and worked to understand the key changes and differences so that the actual audit process was as simple and easy as possible.

We were awarded our AS9100D certificate over a year ahead of the deadline. We believe that this reflects our strong commitment to aerospace and defence quality services at an International level through our ability to demonstrate the transformation of core fundamental business practices.”

Implementing the changes to the standard involved the full cooperation of MPI’s senior management to drive change throughout the business and demonstrate their comprehensive understanding of the requirements. In a competitive marketplace, achieving this certification has been part of a strategic drive to improve and enhance their business processes and operational excellence to ensure their services continually meet the requirements of their customers.

As a result of the changes, MPI’s management team are now more aware of the risks and opportunities to the business and closely monitor the measurements set for success.

Nick Wright, NQA’s Managing Director says “It’s fantastic to be working with a forward thinking and proactive company like MPI. They have shown initiative and are continually looking to improve their systems and ultimately their products and services which in turn gives their customers a name they can rely on and trust. Their certification is a testament to their hard work and first-class operations.”

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