Quality Inspection Services, Inc.

Filling a need┬áKeith Regan learns how staying ahead of technological trends and a focus on training has kept Quality Inspection Services growing.  Few industrial enterprises, manufacturers or construction companies today can avoid the need to closely monitor, test and document their work. The quest for ever-increasing standards of quality, insurance carrier requirements for safety checks and regulatorsÔÇÖ demands have all made testing a top priority at a wide range of industrial and commercial enterprises.   That rise in the demand for compliance testing, especially the type of nondestructive testing that is less intrusive on the processes being measured, has helped Quality Inspection Services post some dramatic growth rates in recent years, including a greater than 30 percent expansion in revenues during 2007 alone. The firm was founded in 1987 primarily to provide testing services to Westinghouse Nuclear and soon began to expand its range of quality assurance services to companies near its home base in Buffalo, New York. ÔÇ£We saw a need in the marketplace at that time for consulting services in the quality assurance area, and pretty soon we saw that need was even bigger than we first thought,ÔÇØ says president, CEO and founder John Sisson. ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs really a verification type of business. We provide services that assure the end users and owners of construction companies and projects that those items are being made to recognized standards. We built our business on being able to do that better than anyone.ÔÇØThe growth trajectory of QIS tells the story of how successful that quest has been. The company has grown from two employees to around 300 and now has 16 locations in places such as Florida, Connecticut, Texas, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Ohio. During its history, it has made two small acquisitions, but most of the growth has been organic, from existing customers turning to QIS for more services and from picking up clients in new industries as well. QIS has expanded its menu of services to include engineering assistance aimed at helping industrial plants with shutdown or turnaround services. QIS provides the certified inspectors as well as other services such as heat treating, NDE, and both lab-based and field verification of civil construction techniques such as landfill construction monitoring, soil and asphalt testing, weld testing and concrete placement testing. One key to the growth has been the way QIS embraces new technologies. The company has stayed on the cutting edge of technological advances in the use of nondestructive testing methods, such as ultrasound, x-ray and radiography, eddy currents and magnetic particle measurements. ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs technology thatÔÇÖs continuously evolving,ÔÇØ Sisson says. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖre doing a lot now with computerized digital radiography.ÔÇØ The firm worked closely with Kodak to develop that companyÔÇÖs digital radiography systems, for instance. In fact, QIS operates several research and development centers that focus on advancing and enhancing existing technologies. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖve taken the position that it behooves us to partake in that kind of investment in our future. WeÔÇÖre always trying to provide the end user with more substantial data so they can make better business decisions.ÔÇØ Complementing technology is QISÔÇÖs human resources. Sisson says finding qualified workers has been a challenge from the outset. Starting a generation ago, the US faced a shortage of experienced welders, he notes, which helped spark the rise of robotic welding machines in a range of industries. Similarly, the pool of people capable of inspecting and testing such work is also strained. QIS has responded by aggressively beefing up its in-house training regimen, dedicating managers to overseeing training and recently opening a division within the company that provides training services to third parties on both welding techniques and nondestructive testing methods. Companies can send employees through QISÔÇÖs course in order to obtain OSHA-mandated training, for instance. The economic slump is of concern to Sisson, who knows that many companies that are concerned about their bottom line may be tempted to cut corners on training, testing or quality assurance. ÔÇ£Usually the first thing to go is compliance services, even though thatÔÇÖs a very near-sighted approach,ÔÇØ he says. Still, the long-term outlook remains robust. QISÔÇÖs deep roots in the power industry mean it will have a role in monitoring and testing the upgrades being planned to the countryÔÇÖs aging fleet of power generating stations. QIS has been in talks with venture investors and other backers about the possibility of a cash infusion to help the firm grow through additional acquisitions as well.  ÔÇ£The model down the road would be to grow more that way,ÔÇØ Sisson says. ÔÇ£We know we have a business that can be successful on a much larger scale. A number of industries really need the services we provide to meet their compliance, insurance and quality goals.ÔÇØFor instance, QISÔÇÖs internal quality assurance program is designed to be in strict compliance with industry and safety regulatory standards in a number of industries, such as ASMEÔÇÖs Quality Assurance Program Requirements for Nuclear Facilities, the International Standards Organization ISO 9000 quality standards and the Automotive Quality SystemÔÇÖs QS-9000 program. Many companies invest heavily internally in order to meet the documentation and inspection requirements of those programs, while QIS can often quickly help a company comply. Sisson says the company believes its field testers and supervisors are all part of its sales force, and he preaches doing jobs to meet or exceed expectations with the belief that going the extra mile in the near term will pay off in the future. ÔÇ£We donÔÇÖt focus on short-term gains because we know our reputation is on the line each time we go out to do a job.ÔÇØ While other companies have begun to focus on the testing and assurance area aggressively, QISÔÇÖs history is a strong competitive advantage, Sisson argues. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖve got the technology and experience to help our customers meet all the requirements and improve quality,ÔÇØ he adds. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖre positioned to help them become better companies.ÔÇØ┬á