News
Managing Quality Control
Consistent quality is integral to the Flexiteek 2G and Wilks production process. One that we try hard to maintain throughout the many stages of our product production. One crucial factor that determines the quality we achieve is the teamwork amongst the different departments across the business. The people here are essential to our company, from sales to installation and every department in between.
Attention to Detail
Each unique Flexiteek 2G profile differs in terms of tolerance, cooling methods, packaging and the method used to ensure consistent quality throughout each and every order. Frequent checks during its production with a real eye on the details are vital every time.
After an order is placed and processed, it is added to the schedule to be developed efficiently. This is in order to get it to our customers as quickly as possible. The production lines are set, started, and overseen by our setters. One of their primary responsibilities is to ensure that orders are started at a high level of quality. This starts right from the very first coil.
A metre of decking is taken over to the linishing department to allow for quality checks on size, thickness, graining, and colour. If the requirements for that profile are not fulfilled, the metre is recycled or reused. Then the machine is adjusted to improve the quality and checked again.
Once the extrusion process has started, our Production Operators then start their observations for any slips in quality; this includes any lumps or inconsistencies. If there are any, these are flagged to the setters to correct it. Small samples are taken after every coil to be measured and compared to the master sample, a piece deemed the optimum standard.
Metre checks are conducted every hour and more frequently for more complex products to confirm that our expected quality stays the same.
Transportation and Communication
Production operators also protect the coil during its cooling period and its short journey over the road to our second building to be finished. This is done by inserting cardboard so that the coils on top do not perch on the lower ones, resulting in potentially warped coils.
Another way that we ensure coils are undamaged is by ensuring that all coils are lined up and in a uniform layout on the pallet.
These checks are communicated to other departments, and a ‘Quality Report’ is used to increase accountability. The Quality Report confirms if the coil has been checked and to what extent. It also allows for notes for potential concerns to be passed on to people further down the production journey.
Finishing the product
Once coiled, decking profiles are sent to the ‘linishing department’. This is where our expert Linishers sand the product to create the wood-like graining that is present on the finished product.
It is also where every coil is checked multiple times in a variety ways. For example, we measure the width, the caulking and the lip and match the colour to master samples. We also undertake checks to see if there is an appropriate level of wood grain and if the liveliness is maintained.
And Out They Go!
The last stage of the coils journey is in the stores department. This is where the final visual checks happen, and where the product will be packaged carefully. High-quality packaging enables our product to travel to warehouses, boat manufacturers and distributors worldwide through our global distributor network.
As you can see from the sheer number of checks completed during the production process, we take the production of Flexiteek 2G products, very seriously. But we are, without a doubt, proud of the results.
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Contact Information
For Press enquiries, contact Steve Moore at [email protected] or call on +44 (0)1621 869609
For Media enquiries, contact Phoebe Maxted at [email protected] or call on +44 (0)1621 869609