Much done, much achieved, much to do: perfection as a daily goal

Just 20 years ago, consistent quality management in many places resulted in a veritable paper war. Important documents were constantly reprinted, then distributed by hand and filed in folders in every department of a company. Quality manager Martin Hainz experienced these times in his first years at RONDA AG in Lausen.

All "Ronda subsidiaries" have been in existence for more than 20 years: Ronda AG has five international subsidiaries with a total of 1400 employees and locations in Ticino, Jura, Thailand and Hong Kong.

Martin Hainz - first production manager, then safety officer and, since 2014, also quality manager of the Basel-based family business - states with satisfaction: "Fortunately, the folders from back then no longer exist. They were replaced in 2009 by the most successful quality management software in Switzerland: IQSoft from Zofin- ger IQS AG.

From stagnation ...
Martin Hainz declared quality management a service for all when he took office in 2014. "Many modules of the Beni Krieger, Texter/Konzepter, die_texter GmbH, Neptunstrasse 20, CH-8032 Zurich www.dietexter.ch software were installed, but were hardly or very little used."

... to flexibility
Today, Martin Hainz is pleased to say, many things have been reorganized: "We are finally using our software for optimization and have gradually gained flexibility. I always strive for collaboration across the board. I coordinate and order, but the solution to almost every challenge ultimately comes from the teams in the individual departments."

Step-by-step optimization thanks to modular software
The digital assistant IQSoft has always convinced cost-conscious users as a modular tool. In addition to the basic software, you only pay for those functions that you really want to use. New releases are free of charge and additional modules can be activated at any time. Ronda AG uses among others:

- – Document and process managementIt contains around 6,000 technical drawings - always up to date and available to everyone as a .pdf file - plus around 1,600 documents (e.g. forms and processes). The managers of the respective departments are responsible for the individual documents.

- – Optimization and improvement managementCurrently integrated are customer requests, for example for exclusively printed data discs. Internal error messages and technical input for improvement. All incidents concerning work safety. Reports to suppliers and reports from Ronda branches at home and abroad and, of course, all suggestions for improvement from employees. 20,000 reports and 40,000 measures are registered. A huge amount of data. For Martin Hainz, it is clear: "The whole thing is an outstanding source of knowledge. However, he explains, it is essential to set up the database cleanly in order to obtain good results: "The IQSoft full-text search is already very useful here. But in our case, for example, part numbers are also entered in order to reach the target." No problem. IQSoft offers free specification fields that the user can define as desired. This ensures maximum user com- fort - not only in the 'Optimization and Improvement Management' module.

- – Test and equipment management: When asked about this topic, Mar- tin Hainz takes a deep breath: "That was a two-year tour de force. We have 1200 operating devices and around 6500 measuring and testing devices. Everything that has to be serviced at some point is recorded. That goes right down to the small drilling machine."

Less paper means fewer errors
Digital session management: "We have many meeting topics based on messages in the 'Opportunities for Improvement'. These messages are currently still printed out and brought to the meetings. And the minutes of what is discussed are then also back on paper. These are error sources! If we do everything digitally, some mistakes can no longer happen: We look at measures and book them right away - without any paperwork. I'm starting on this now in my meeting. This way, my colleagues experience live how practical the application is."

IQSoft as a helper in personnel management
Training ManagementEDUC is currently being used by Ronda AG for the training of department managers and for the planning of training courses on machines. Martin Hainz also appreciates EDUC as proof in questions of work safety: "One click is enough and I can see what has been done. The next step is to develop entire training blocks for new employees and maintain them with EDUC.

And what about employee management with IQSoft? "It's excellent, even with staff changes. Responsibilities can be transferred seamlessly. And if I want, I can also distribute them to different people on a tem- porary basis. IQSoft is a fantastic tool. Nothing gets left undone."

Everything with care, please!
Is there also resistance to IQSoft at RONDA? Hainz: "Here and there, because you have to fill out forms. But the critics haven't noticed how IQSoft suddenly makes life easier.

Martin Hainz advocates a little restraint in data collection anyway: "We don't want to document ourselves to death! There are daily maintenance tasks that can be recorded separately and then reported to IQSoft as a whole.

Used in this way, Hainz experiences his electronic companion as a "very good tool for doing my work sensibly. With today's flood of data, that can't be taken for granted.

Audit Management and that Business Process Modeling (BPM) for visual process planning are not yet being used extensively at RONDA AG. However, the expansion is underway.

Ronda AG & IQS AG: Two that get on well together
Ultimately, any complex software is only as good as the people behind it. Important questions: Does the service provider offer long-term servi- ces? How good and fast are the hotline staff? How does it work with special requests?

Martin Hainz: "We maintain great continuity at RONDA. I experience IQS AG as a supplier of IQSoft in a similar way: I deal with competent people whom I have known for a long time. When I call the hotline, I also get help quickly. In short, I see IQS AG not as a supplier but as a partner.

Can you go any faster? Can you do more?
Martin Hainz still has a lot of plans for IQSoft and would like to expand the use of the software more quickly, but "if it were to happen very quickly, I would have to hire people. Our resources are too limited for that. But the outlook is good! There is a lot to do, but I like it".