To enhance customer satisfaction, Eltek, a world leader in high-efficiency power electronics and energy conversion, wanted to improve their repair cycle time on rectifier products for customers in North America without further adding staff or expanding facilities. When the company reached its capacity to repair the rectifier products in a timely way with its existing staff and facilities, it turned to Advanced Technical Services (ATS).
After an initial pilot project was successful, Eltek challenged ATS to reduce the repair cycle times and component scrap rate of another third-party repair firm Eltek was using that was not meeting expectations, according to Jeff Carlson, Eltek Director of Service Support, North America.
“Compared to another third-party repair firm we were using at the time, ATS was able to reduce repair cycle time from 45 days to 10 days,” says Carlson. “It was also able to reduce the component scrap rate from 60% to 10%, which reduced our cost under warranty and our customer’s cost out-of-warranty. Their repair processes identified the failed part down to the component level, instead of merely swapping circuit boards. Their willingness to work with us throughout the process helped to make this possible.”
“They have earned more business from us as they’ve proven themselves capable,” says Carlson. “They have, since 1999, become a trusted partner for repairs in the Eltek North American market, handling a significant portion of our total returns. ATS handles both current and legacy product models for us and helps ensure we achieve our service targets.”
According to Carlson, ATS has taken on more responsibility for repairs and they have stocked more Eltek product at their facility to help expedite the process.
“To support our customers, they’ll often do advanced product exchanges with our customers from our consignment inventory,” says Carlson. “Upon our request, they will;
receive, repair, and warehouse the returned product. They track modules by part and serial number and transmit repair data to us daily, so we can track reliability and improve quality. They’ll test the product under environmental loads experienced in the field. Then they’ll repackage the product and ship it directly to our customer.”
ATS is very responsive, and repaired product is rarely returned, which speaks to the quality of repair, according to Carlson.
“They’ve come through for us and have become a valued partner in ensuring the quality of our customers’ experience,” says Carlson. “Recently, when I asked them to complete a job by next week, they finished the job in two days,” says Carlson. “That’s the kind of response you want from a partner who supports your end customers.”