Frederick Machine & Manufacturing is a contract manufacturer of precision-machined components for customers in defense, oil & gas, automotive, chemical, food, and pharmaceutical industries. The company, founded in 1945, started out as a machine repair business. Today, the third generation of the Frederick family are operating the company, which is registered as a woman-owned business enterprise. Their capabilities include large part machining, fabricating, water jet cutting and welding. The company has consistently invested in facilities and equipment upgrades, expanding their capacity and meeting the needs of their growing customer base.
SITUATION
The Company decided to upgrade their Quality Management System (QMS) from ISO9001:2015. This offered the company a unique opportunity to improve internal quality systems. Frederick Machine was determined to attain AS9100D certification in order to better serve their customers and expand into new markets.
SOLUTION
Utilizing Insyte Consulting’s trained and certified quality systems resources to support the upgrade, the company began their pursuit of AS9100D QMS certification in June of 2024. The project began with a review of the existing ISO 9001:2015 QMS and then determining the processes and documents that needed to be upgraded to meet the AS9100D requirements. Procedures and work instructions and the quality manual were revised accordingly. The new system and changes were reviewed with all personnel, and they began to use the new QMS and perform internal audits. The audit findings were reviewed on a regular basis, and corrective actions were implemented.
RESULTS
The AS9100D certification audit was conducted in February of 2025. With only one minor finding identified, Frederick Machine was recommended for certification. This recommendation, along with the export controls ITAR registration, which is required in order for a company to handle defense-related products, has brought in dozens of new quote opportunities and new orders from an array of customers. As a result of certification to AS9100D, Frederick experienced a financial impact of approximately $100,000.
“Achieving AS9100D has been critical with customer retention. AS9100D has also provided new opportunities with existing customers and has allowed us to explore new markets and opportunities.” – James M. Kelly, Vice President
