The Challenge
J.T. Fennell, a third-generation family business, was at a crossroads. Their reputation for quality in custom steel fabrication was solid, but their future growth was limited.
Customer Pressure: ISO 9001 certification had become a prerequisite for bidding on a growing number of major projects. Without it, they were locked out of new revenue streams.
Operational Silos: With two plants in Chillicothe and Peoria, they risked developing inconsistent processes. Integrating them into one seamless QMS was a complex logistical and cultural challenge.
The Need for Buy-In: They needed more than just documentation; they needed their dedicated, long-term employees to genuinely adopt and believe in the new system.
Going after the certification was for the future of the company, with the marketing potential for new business clearly in mind.
Russ Snyder
Project Manager
J.T. Fennell
The Solution
President Ty Fennell had a clear philosophy: "It is better for a company to achieve without being directed or steered by an outsider. More ownership."
This made the 9001Simplified DIY Toolkit the perfect fit. We provided more than just templates; we provided a complete implementation framework trusted by thousands of organizations, pre-configured for the multi-site challenge J.T. Fennell faced, and addressing their core challenges by:
Unifying Two Facilities: The toolkit’s multi-site feature provided a single framework for essential, company-wide processes while allowing each facility to manage its own relevant procedures. This hybrid model replaced disconnected silos with an integrated yet locally adaptable system.
Driving Cultural Buy-In: The included staff and manager training provided a common language and understanding across both plants. This, combined with employees seeing how the new, efficient processes simplified their work and improved quality, turned initial skepticism into genuine commitment.
Enabling Confident Self-Sufficiency: With unlimited expert support and a clear roadmap, their team could build a system they truly owned, using our consultant for validation rather than direction—exactly as they wanted.
The Implementation
A 7-member, cross-functional team, personally led by President Ty Fennell, took ownership in late 2019. This visible commitment from the top established ISO 9001 as a strategic priority, not a side project.
The team moved quickly, using the toolkit's online employee and manager training to conduct a coordinated rollout across both facilities and generate employee buy-in. Empowered by praxis-oriented training and step-by-step guides, the team built a unified QMS in just three months. They used the multi-site templates to ensure critical processes were consistent between locations, while decentralizing certain controls for local operations. This balanced approach eliminated procedural silos without creating bureaucratic red tape.
Seeing how the new system made work easier and more reliable, the initial skepticism of the long-term workforce turned into genuine engagement.
True to their goal of self-sufficiency, the team used their assigned consultant only for brief validations. Their commitment was proven when they stood up a fully functional internal audit program within the first quarter, training four internal auditors from within their ranks. These audits were immediately used not for compliance, but as a powerful diagnostic tool to drive continuous improvement, embedding quality into the company's culture long before the official certification audit.
The Certification Audit
In September 2020, J.T. Fennell faced a rigorous 5-day audit from global registrar DQS Inc., covering both Chillicothe and Peoria facilities. The result was a resounding, first-attempt success. On September 23, 2020, they officially achieved ISO 9001:2015 certification, validating their ownership model.
The audit was a five-day event at our two locations. The auditor liked our system, commenting on the depth of it and the effort put into it.
Russ Snyder
Project Manager
J.T. Fennell
Keys to Success
When asked about advice for other companies beginning their ISO 9001 implementation, the team had three important insights to share.
"Get in the trenches with your team"
"It's natural in a family business like ours, but I think that any business leader should really get involved in ISO - and make sure everybody notices it," Ty Fennell suggested. For them, this meant President Ty Fennell and Senior Project Manager Russ Snyder personally spearheading the implementation, which signaled its importance and built invaluable trust and buy-in across both facilities.
"Treat multiple sites correctly"
"If your company has multiple locations, you need to consider local differences when building your QMS," emphasized Senior Project Manager Russ Snyder. Using a toolkit that's pre-configured for multi-site operations not only gave them the correct blueprint from day one, its clear rules for centralized processes and local adaptations also helped to achieve broad staff buy-in.
"Let them learn on their schedule"
Russ credits the toolkit's online training for part of their success starting ISO 9001 on the right foot. "Rolling out training without disrupting business is always a challenge, especially if you have multiple locations," reminded us Russ, "so on-demand training is the way to go."
The Results
Achieving certification immediately opened doors to new bids and major clients that were previously inaccessible. The business impact was direct and undeniable: within months, J.T. Fennell saw significant sales growth and an expanded customer base, with the return on investment clear and swift.
Beyond revenue, the true victory emerged in their operations. The implementation process itself spotlighted strengths and weaknesses across both facilities, leading to tangible refinements. Production sequences were streamlined from end to end, cutting delivery times and embedding quality into daily workflows.
Their approach built the foundation for long-term success. By choosing in-house, DIY implementation, J.T. Fennell proved a core truth: ownership drives accountability. They didn’t just earn a certificate; they forged a self-sustaining culture where every employee champions quality, securing their competitive edge for the long term.
Ready to Replicate This Success?
J.T. Fennell proved that with the right tools and internal drive, achieving ISO 9001 certification is a powerful business investment, not just a compliance task.
J.T. Fennell Co., Inc.
1104 N Front St, Chillicothe, IL 61523, USA
https://jtfennell.com
