Nissan's Top Suppliers Recognized at Annual Event in Nashville, Tenn

On July 26, Nissan North America announced the recipients of the 2007 Nissan Supplier Quality Awards, handed out annually to Nissan's top suppliers.

The annual Nissan Supplier Quality Seminar and Awards event was held Wednesday evening in Nashville, Tenn. Approximately 300 suppliers were represented. In addition to the awards ceremony and recognition of what's dubbed the "outstanding performers," the event gives supply companies the opportunity to network and share their business expectations.

Doug Betts is the senior vice president of Nissan's Total Customer Satisfaction. The press release quotes him as saying: "Nissan has core values related to quality and customer satisfaction, and our suppliers share those commitments. Supplier contributions are a key part of Nissan's success, and that's evident when we launch new models, such as our new Altima Sedan or Altima Coupe. Each vehicle we build represents an important purchase in our customers' lives, and our suppliers help us satisfy their expectations."

After year-long evaluations of the individual suppliers, including their systems and quality, response time and timeliness of shipments, product complexity and performance, pricing and warranty, and Nissan's own vehicle evaluation, the Nissan Supplier Quality Awards recipients are chosen.

The three top companies that received Regional Supplier Quality Awards were the BorgWarner companies in Ithaca, N.Y., and Fletcher, N.C., for timing belts and fan assemblies, respectively; Enkei America, Inc., in Columbus, Ind., for wheel assemblies; and K&S Wiring Systems, Inc., in Aguascalientes, Mexico, for wire harnesses and assemblies.

The three suppliers recognized for making significant quality improvements were Quality Safety Systems Co. in Tecumseh, Ontario, for seat belt assemblies; Bridgestone Firestone North American Tire in LaVergne, Tenn., and Wilson, N.C., for tires; and Yorozu Mexicana S.A. de C.V. in Aguascalientes, Mexico, for front end suspension member assemblies.

Fifty-three suppliers were named Quality Masters for achieving top scores in evaluations done by Nissan's Engineering, Manufacturing, Product Quality, Production Control and Purchasing divisions. Among the qualities the suppliers are rated on are their defect rates, warranties, recalls and responsiveness.

Companies which achieve an annual defect rate of fewer than three parts per million received Zero Defect certificates. There were 152 companies that rose to that level of recognition.

The press release says that Nissan has more than $4.2 billion invested in its three manufacturing facilities in the United States. The plant in Smyrna, Tenn., assembles Nissan's Altima, Maxima, Xterra, Frontier and Pathfinder. In Canton, Miss., the plant produces Nissan's Altima, Quest, Titan, Armada and Infiniti QX56. The powertrain assembly plant in Decherd, Tenn., assembles all the engines for Nissan's manufacturing plants in the U.S.

Press release, Top Nissan Suppliers Are Recognized For Quality; http