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Frequently Asked
Questions
Petersen Precision Engineering, LLC is privately owned by the same two partners that started the company in 1966. We are conservatively managed. We own all our equipment. We are currently debt free. Our buildings and land are part of the same ownership. Our customers are primarily in the high tech area. We serve markets including aerospace, electronics, transportation, machine tools, medical, laboratory instrumentation, cutting tools, among others. The unifying theme is the need for precision, high accuracy metal parts. What kind of parts do you make ? The great majority of our production parts have the following in common:
What is your reputation for quality ? We supply directly to the production lines of Fortune 500 companies and have for 30 plus years. During that time we have successfully passed innumerable customer surveys. We are ISO 9000 compliant in our Quality Systems. Our quality plan for each part is integrated into its engineering/routing master, and is stored in our ERP database. We tailor the inspection equipment, methods, and frequency to the customer needs. Yes, we exchange business data with numerous customers and vendors using EDI (Electronic Data Interchange). This data transfer includes purchase orders, Kan-Ban parts releases, scheduling, and invoicing. We offer EDI banking financial transactions including Automated Clearing House and FedWire Services. Also, we employ EDI subscription services with G.E. Tradeweb, Sterling Commerce, and ESIS-Harmony Order Management. We also support wire communications via modem. Yes, we use our engineering skill, in-house tool design and build capability, and broad variety of equipment to win jobs from across the USA. Over 60% of our shipments go outside California. How do you relate to "global sourcing" ? We do not have any relationships with, or subsidiary plants in Asia. There are four fundamental points to our successful competitive position: 1) We provide parts whose complexity is not available from Asian sources. 2) We supply parts whose defense-related sensitivity is such that they cannot be sourced abroad. 3) We supply parts whose intellectual property content for the customer is such that they must not be placed abroad. 4) We keep ourselves equipped with state-of-the-art machine tools that allow us to take most of the labor out of our production processes. Because we own our buildings, property and equipment, and have no debt whatsoever, we can compete by minimizing labor content, the prime point on which Asia competes. Isn't California too distant and too expensive for cost-effective manufacturing ? Because we produce small to medium-size parts, the cost of transportation is minimal. We are served by all the major companies in the freight business: UPS, Fed Ex, truck and air. The high cost element of doing business in California is the cost of real estate. We own ours outright. Will you inventory for your customers ? Yes, for most of our large customers we ship upon request, within 8 hours, from our inventory. These shipments are made against firm, long-term orders. Our customers use various names for this approach; Kan Ban; releases; demand-pull; supply contract; etc. Why do you use Manufacturers Sales Representatives ? Our current and target customers span the USA. Our representatives provide us with a local presence in the key manufacturing areas of the United States. They are selected for their knowledge of the parts business and their reputation in the territory. All of them represent various complementary lines, for example, castings, bearings, plastic molded parts, powdered metal, MIM, and tooling. We encourage you to call them to consult on sensible sourcing suggestions for your new parts. Shouldn't we concentrate on suppliers close to our plant ? We suggest that your focus should be on quality and delivery. Proximity is a poor compensation for a lack of reliability. The package delivered by UPS won’t tell you that it has traveled 20 miles or 2000 miles. Our many out-of-state customers take advantage of our trouble-free parts supply capability. We do prototype work that leads directly to production work. We are not a conventional prototype shop. We have carefully structured our company to be a production shop. All our contract work is thoroughly documented, tooled, and a quality plan is in place before starting production. If you need 6 pieces in 6 days, we are not your source. If you need 6,000, or 60,000, or 600,000 parts over the next several years, made by the most cost-effective methods, delivered on time, with the exact quality level you request, then we are your source. What kind of metals do you work with ? In addition to using the common types of steel, stainless steel, and aluminum, we have experience making parts from tungsten, titanium, molybdenum, copper, and specialty alloys like nitinol, Elgiloy, Alloy 49, Inconel and Monel, among others. Some of these can be fineblanked; all can be machined and/or ground. Thanks for reading this far. What do you think of our web site? Any suggestions are welcome. They can range from the simple, “change the color on page x”, to the complex, “present your information in an entirely different way”. E-mail us at sales@petersenprecison.com. Last updated: 09/29/2006 |
611 Broadway, Redwood City, CA 94063-3102
Phone: 650-365-4373 Fax: 650-364-2165
Email: sales@petersenprecision.com
Copyright © 2003 Petersen Precision, All Rights Reserved.