Q: Tracey, tell us a about your role at Northpoint. What is it and what does it involve?
I carry out all the administration (with the help of my account manager Kerry) of the functional coatings. This covers the pipe department, the sheet metal line, and the wet paint booth. I help to organise the production schedule to ensure customers deadlines are met. I also complete quotations for the coatings ensuring that we can meet customers specification and I plan deliveries of goods to and from our customers.
Q: What is your favourite part of your job? What are the main challenges?
Because my role is so varied, I love how each day is different. I do love a challenge and when deadlines are met and the job has been delivered, I feel a great sense of pride in the team of what we have all achieved. I like seeing a job go from the quotation stage, through all the planning and then seeing the delivery of a complete job. Especially when they are more complex and really get us thinking.
Q: How do you prioritise your tasks on a daily basis?
My day starts with a quick look through my emails in case anything urgent is waiting for me. I will have a walk through the departments to make sure everything is running smoothly. Next, I will raise any orders that have come in that morning or the previous afternoon and add them to the production schedule, and a chat with the section supervisors to discuss what’s happening that day so we can keep on top of it all. Quality packs are sometimes produced for customers so you may find me typing up certificates of conformity or gathering inspection sheets and transferring the data to a document of compliance.
Q: You recently celebrated a work anniversary. How long have you been working for Northpoint? What makes Northpoint a good place to work?
I started working at Northpoint in April 2011. I was looking for some work experience while finishing my studies and over the years I have had the opportunity to learn and grow within the business, which I am very thankful for. Northpoint is like a family; we all try to look out for each other and support each other as best we can. We encourage each other everyday to do our best at our jobs, which is highly rewarding.
Q: Northpoint understands quality assurance is key to their customers. What impact do you think quality has for Northpoint? How do you make your clients feel confident in your work?
The pipe department has ISO 9001 accreditation, so quality is extremely important to me and the team. We have a regular catalogue of returning customers, some who have been with us many years and they know how important quality is to us. Currently, we are also in the process of obtaining ISO 9001 on the sheet metal line. Keeping our customers happy and making sure goods are completed to a high standard and on time is very important to Northpoint. our recent customer feedback questionnaire asked what keeps returning customers coming back to Northpoint and the majority said Quality. Making sure that our customers are 100% satisfied is the key to Northpoint’s success, as well as investing in key players with training which keeps the employees up to date and on the ball.
Q: You mentioned you work closely with the sheet metal line. Tell us more about this part of the job.
I have worked within this line since it was installed. Alongside Kerry we manage the administration duties, the customer accounts and, and the planning of the production schedules.
On this line we can coat multiple items that require not just an aesthetic coating but also functional coatings. Powder coating is a dry finishing process created by an electric charge that causes a dry powder to fuse to the surface of the metal, baked in a curing oven to achieve the desired finish. This creates a hard finish that is stronger than conventional paint.
We have successfully coated numerous backing flanges for the water industry. Some items are blasted in our wheelabrator and then hung on the line and other items go through the pre-treatment process prior to being sprayed. We coat parts for the emergency services sector, shop fittings, water industry and many more. Great care is applied to each of the jobs that go down the line to ensure our customers are getting excellent quality.
The line is currently being audited for ISO 9001 accreditation which will add onto our already accredited pipe department. Recently we upgraded our colour kitchen on the line which offers better quality to the finish of the colours.
We strongly believe we put our customers first and offer an exceptional service in price, turnaround, and quality. Some items can be coated in as little as 24 hours with preplanning and good communications with our customers.
We have a team of highly skilled sprayers/operatives who go above and beyond for our clients. We have NACE 2 and 3 inspectors on site every day to ensure all relevant checks and inspections are passed prior to dispatching goods to the customer. As a team we strive for perfection and are always aiming to achieve deadlines, complex colours and ensuring we make our customers goods look exceptional.
Recent Comments