What Is Ace Gold Certification?

The term ACE is an acronym for Achieving Competitive Excellence and is a quality program inspired by Yuzuru Ito, who worked for both Panasonic and United Technologies (UTC) as a quality manager. The program was developed by UTC employees and is unique to the company. There are four levels of ACE that a department within the company can strive for: qualifying, bronze, silver, and gold --- with gold being the highest level of standard with certification determined by the quality manager.

Streamlined Processes

When a department has been certified for ACE Gold, it means that they have listed, mapped, measured, improved, and streamlined all of their processes. All business or manufacturing processes have become efficient, automated (where possible) and mistake-proof.

High Rate of Customer Satisfaction

An ACE Gold certified department has received top scores in the area of customer satisfaction. Both internal and external customer customers must be completely satisfied.

Engaged Employees

An ACE Gold department is one where all employees are engaged in continuous proactive improvements. All levels of employee are aware of the ACE philosophy and have been trained in certain areas of ACE skills. It is an environment where employees are empowered and motivated to make changes and improve the business.

References

• United Technologies: Quality
• ReliabilityWeb.com: Road to Gold

Resources

• United Technologies: Supplier Gold Program Guide