NEWBERRY, Mich. (WLUC) - The face of business in the U.P. may be changing thanks to companies like Northern Wings Repair. This company is able to provide services to global companies from right here in Newberry.
Trying to wrap your head around what exactly this company does can be a bit challenging but Chris Burger, the company’s sales manager, does a good job.
“We act as a solution to some of the largest companies in the world for their purchasing needs along with our capability to manufacture short run product,” Burger said. “Prototype materials and things of that nature.”
But the main focus of the company is probably on quality control above all else. In particular, quality controllers on the products they find for other companies.
"We provide inspection, validation and then certification for those products and what that does is that once that material arrives on our customers dock, they know that it's immediately ready for use." Burger said, and seeing as how many of their clients are entities like the Department of Defense and NASA, assuring the quality of the products that reach those clients is of the utmost importance.
Approximately 23 percent of the products that arrive at Northern Wings Repair are found to be defective and not safe for use. It's only through the diligent inspections and rigorous testing methods that this company employees that this number drops down to zero percent when material is shipped out of Northern Wings.
A.J. Downey is an assistant operations manager at the company.
"We have to operate at zero mistakes. People's lives depend on it. The warfighter's lives depend on it. People in the field that require this stuff,” Downey said. “At the end of the line when someone has to pull the trigger and their life depends on it then there is no room for error on our side."
And that is where a company like this benefits from the work ethic of those living in Upper Michigan. Richard Wos is a quality systems manager at the plant who sees than benefit every day.
"There is a sense of pride that I think we all share of getting it right the first time,” Wos said.