Manufacturing prowess meets intellectual depth

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Custom automation and manufacturing specialists MiQ Partners bring imagination to life

When the brightest entrepreneurial minds create world-changing concepts, they turn to MiQ Partners to guide them in all aspects of manufacturing. Specialists in custom automation, contract manufacturing, and build-to-print manufacturing, MiQ leverages over 70 years of engineering and design expertise to meet compelling challenges in complex disciplines.

From life sciences, medical devices and aerospace to consumer-packaged goods and industrial markets, MiQ is a trusted, preferred partner in bringing intelligent ideas to reality.

In 2019, a pair of highly respected legacy firms, Cincinnati’s TSS Technologies and San Diego’s R&3D, were purchased by Resilience Capital Partners and rebranded as MiQ Partners, which stands for manufacturing intelligence. The company uses cutting-edge technology for automation, robotics, machine vision, precision part handling, assembly, testing, inspection, and more.

MiQ’s intelligence resides not just in its state-of-the-art facilities but also in its immersion in the vertical markets they serve. In addition to long-standing clients, MiQ is sought out by startup companies, particularly in the life sciences and medical device industries, where ingenious concepts are typically funded by VCs. MiQ assists fledgling firms from process design, proof of principle and benchtop to mass production while meeting key efficiency and margin goals.

Company headquarters just outside of Cincinnati boast a 100,000-sq. ft. machining and manufacturing facility with clean-room accommodations. A crew of 80 mechanical and electrical engineers, and more, come together to design, assemble, machine, and test products as well as perform final acceptance tests and prototype manufacturing.

As Southwest California has evolved into a hub for the life sciences and medical device industries, MiQ’s operations in Carlsbad have focused much of their attention on serving those booming industries with a 30,000 sq-ft facility slated to double in size later this year.

“We are currently already in the process of doubling the size of all manufacturing in Carlsbad because we're right in the middle of everything,” said company CEO Olaf Tessarzyk. “We have a customer right now that’s been funded by the government to develop a process and machines to produce an implantable device for bone regeneration.

“The patented process provides limb saving options for patients with significant bone loss,” Tessarzyk explained.

MiQ is working with the customer to realize the technology and put it in the manufacturing process. “We start with benchtop assemblies to validate and verify the process to get it FDA-approved, and then we develop the automation to go into mass production and produce the units so they can be shipped into the field wherever the doctors are stationed,” he said.

While other manufacturing companies produce an engineered product and pass it back to the originator, leaving them to find their own way forward, MiQ builds partnerships first, developing the product and its manufacturing protocols with their customers and start their prototype manufacturing.

“Our clients often praise us for how we define and execute partnerships that make us stand out from the rest of the industry,” team member Jeanette McMurtry said. “We have a lot of depth of experience in our clients’ verticals, not just in engineering.”

“Whenever we start a new client relationship, we take time to dig deep to see what and where the problems are. It's like solving a puzzle that’s based on really spending time getting to know the problems and the challenges before we even put together a proposal,” she said. “We form multidisciplinary teams with our engineers and experts across the verticals we serve. We hold brainstorming roundtables to build a multi-faceted approach for creating solutions that increase efficiencies and throughput.”

Manufacturing critical products for the pandemic

The concept of manufacturing intelligence put MiQ on the front lines of specialized manufacturing for COVID-19 rapid test kits. “Manufacturing intelligence means we have our own machine shop, we have our own controlled engineering, and we make most of our piece parts ourselves,” Tessarzyk said.

Vertical integration helps them meet strict deadlines and stringent manufacturing requirements. MiQ was chosen for their proven ability to increase speed to market while maintaining the product quality and integrity needed to maintain accurate diagnostic results.

“We are proud that our people adapted from lockdown to progress, and that so many of our staff that had moved on came back to help us help our communities. This is what makes companies great,” Tessarzyk said.

In addition to being a seasoned professional with a knack for building thriving manufacturing operations, Tessarzyk’s background as a former officer in the German Army, and his love of aviation, underscore his leadership outlook. Throughout the year he can be found piloting rescue missions with the Orange County sheriff’s department as well as SAR teams in Indiana. We suspect his ability to maintain good judgement under pressure may come in handy when putting out the conceptual blazes often sparked in the manufacturing development process.

“When you have development milestones you’re going to get a lot of roadblocks,” he said. “We have a team and a culture that always looks for the best solution because we are excited about what we build with our customers. Very early on the team comes up with ideas so that nobody ever gets frustrated. As much as you might think that’s something that can be governed by leadership, it’s about the team.”

“As a CEO you are on the top of the food chain, you get the strategy, but other than that you are working to support your teams’ success,” he added. “At MiQ, the team develops the ideas because they have the freedom to do what is right because they know what to do with the right tools and the right leadership.”

McMurtry concurred: “(Tessarzyk) builds success from within. One of the conversations  we continually have about his leadership approach is about the whole concept of success coming from employee culture. By building an employee-centric organization your organization becomes customer-centric.”

Tessarzyk’s training as a pilot, first responder, and innovative CEO manifests in trust, intelligent decisions made quickly, clear vision, confidence, and his ability to act is a source of inspiration for MiQ’s brilliant teams.

“We have many lifelong customers because there’s a sense of passion and empowerment and ownership that creates the pride our workforce has; they go the extra mile to take care of their customers and make sure that the product quality is exceptional,”  Tessarzyk said.

McMurtry added “How you take care of your employees transfers to how they take care of customers. With (Tessarzyk’s) leadership this company has gone through major transformations that are all very positive and is set up for continual growth.”

Find out more about MiQ Solutions by visiting their website at www.miqpartners.com.