EDX Electronics inc. has a long list of repeat customers due to its dedication to quality control.

The goal of EDX Electronics Inc. is to “be the standard by which all other distributors are measured.” As a result, the company tells its customers to ask one question before they choose a distributor: “How do I know if a company is a good distributor?” EDX says the answer is easy.

“All our customers have to do is ask for a distributor’s quality control procedure,” says Harry Greene, director of business solutions. “If a distributor can’t get that to them within five minutes, we tell our customers to look elsewhere.”

In its goal of setting industry standards, EDX has put forth extensive efforts to ensure quality control in its distribution of electronics. The company has implemented kaizen techniques and provides frequent training to its people working in its warehouse; Greene says EDX has people who are familiar with handling electronics, but it wants them to gain as much experience as possible in the company’s quality standards.

Additionally, the company recently became a certified member of the Independent Distributors of Electronics Association (IDEA), which provides distributors with an inspection process guideline checklist. The list covers 59 basic steps that should be met, as well as 13 best-practices steps.

Recently, Manufacturing Today spoke with Greene about EDX’s commitment to quality and how that guides its business.

Manufacturing Today: EDX has said that building and maintaining partnerships is a key to your success. How does the company do this?

Harry Greene: The key to anyone’s success in business is what makes you different than the competition. We have to show customers why they should go with us and why they should stay with us. We maintain a long list of customers through service. We are an independent distributor, but we still do business like the former franchised distributor we used to be. We offer the same quality and services as a franchise distributor, but we also offer additional services that franchised distributors are unwilling or unable to offer.

We start with quality. The biggest concerns are to be safe and not have any counterfeit products. We worked with IDEA to establish a set of quality control measures that is unparalleled in the industry. To even join the group, you have to be ISO certified and have a fixed structure on how you process components. This is the most stringent quality control process in the industry, and we established our internal policy to be more stringent than IDEA. Quality is the No. 1 thing anyone has to provide to maintain relationships.

Our success is also due to IT. We live in a global world and our components are sourced and sold globally, so IT has to help us manage this. Five years ago, we had custom software written and continue to maintain it internally – this program, Xtrade, is the most sophisticated sourcing software in the industry. It has many functions, but one of the main ones is that it tells us who is a reliable distributor to work with – it rates 500 distributors around the world. This helps us to take problems out before products even get to our customers.

In terms of the service we provide to customers, we are one of the nation’s most prominent consignment operations. We maintain inventory for our customers and help move their inventory back into the marketplace. The sales people working for us have an average of 11 years in the industry, which makes them extremely knowledgeable about what to do. As a result, most of our customers are Fortune 500 or Fortune 1000.

Manufacturing Today: EDX has also said that it is driven by cost-saving initiatives. Can you give me some examples?

Harry Greene: We recently started offering MRP analysis as one of our services. Our customers don’t have time to review their MRP comprehensively, so we analyze it for them and flag costs savings that are available.

Manufacturing Today: What are you most proud of about EDX?

Harry Greene: Our people – they are exceptional. They have extensive experience in the industry and a true dedication to quality. There is a quote I heard once that has stuck with me, “If you have good quality practices in place, you don’t need to spend time apologizing later.” That sums us up pretty well. We would rather lose a sale than send a risky part to a customer.