Eaton Corporation's Van Wert, Ohio, Facility Receives Certification to New Automotive Supply Chain Standard

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn.--Nov. 4, 2003--Diversified industrial manufacturer, Eaton Corporation, announced today that it's Van Wert facility is among the first facilities in North America and the second at Eaton Corporation to be certified to a new technical specification (TS) published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

Eaton's Van Wert facility, including the Manufacturing and the Central Distribution Facility, has been certified to ISO/TS 16949:2002, a new international standard that, when coupled with customer-specific requirements, defines quality system requirements in the automotive supply chain.

The certification also covers design functions at Eaton's Technical Center in Maumee, Ohio, and several functions at Eaton Hydraulics Inc. headquarters in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, including applications engineering, customer service, marketing, strategic purchasing, and supply resource management.

Also holding the prestigious certification within Eaton Corporation is the Amtec Plant in Rivarolo, Italy.

New Standard Ensures Global Consistency

ISO/TS 16949:2002 was jointly developed by International Automotive Task Force members to address the need for reliable and continuous control of all organizational quality processes in order to ensure global consistency.

It includes all requirements of ISO 9000 and combines AVSQ (Italian), EAQF (French), QS-9000 (North American), and VDA 6.1 (German) automotive requirements. For customers that still honor QS-9000, the new standard will replace QS-9000, as of December 14, 2006.

Aggressive Mindset

Eaton's employees at the Van Wert, Eden Prairie, and Maumee facilities, led by Quality Assurance Engineer, Karen Adkins, and a team of internal auditors, began setting their sights on becoming certified to the new standard five months before it was officially released in April 2002.

Their aggressive mindset to earn certification was driven by the acknowledgement of Eaton's competitive environment, said Don Waggener, plant manager--Van Wert Manufacturing.

"Our success depends upon our willingness to pursue and earn certification to the toughest standards in the industry, which will help drive improvements in our processes and, thereby, in our performance as well," Waggener said.

"We are one of only a few companies in North America to fulfill requirements of ISO/TS 16949:2002 at this time.

"Achievement of the new standard is no easy task, and I am very proud of Karen, our internal audit team, and all Van Wert employees for reaching this high level of performance."

Important Benefits To Result

The certificate will result in important benefits at the Van Wert location, added Scott Etzler, plant manager--Van Wert Central Distribution Facility. "We will benefit from the improved processes and continuous improvement that the standard has commanded within our operations," Etzler said.

"The certification also will create additional opportunities for us within our customer base. Many of our customers are adopting the automotive business model, and others will be requiring this certification in the future."

DNV Confirms System Linkage, Customer Compliance

The Van Wert location earned ISO/TS 16949:2002 certification following confirmation by DNV Certification, an independent certifying body, which verified that Van Wert's quality systems link all functions and fully comply with customer-specific requirements.

The certification included a nine-day location audit in which Van Wert employees demonstrated to a team of DNV examiners results achieved in eight certification clauses that cover such areas as quality management system; resource management; product realization; and measurement, analysis, and improvement.

Eaton Corporation is a global $7.2 billion diversified industrial manufacturer that is a leader in fluid power systems; electrical power quality, distribution, and control; automotive engine air management and fuel economy; and intelligent drive train systems for fuel economy and safety in trucks. Eaton has 51,000 employees and sells products in more than 50 countries. For more information, visit www.eaton.com