Automotive Sorting,
Rework and Sequencing
Lotus is an automotive contract manufacturer in Canton, Michigan, offering third-party sorting, electrical test, containment and rework for automotive suppliers. Send suspect parts to our 300,000 sq. ft. facility. We sort, test and rework them to your control plan, keep them apart from certified stock, and ship good parts on to your customer's plant.
When Parts Can't Go to the Line as They Are
Most sorts start with a part number and a description of what's wrong. Tell us that and where the parts are.
Suspect Parts on Hold
A defect has turned up and your customer wants every part checked. We take the stock off their floor and yours, sort it to your defect criteria, and send back only the parts that pass. We have 100% inspected more than 200,000 display modules after an OEM quality issue.
An Engineering Change on Finished Stock
The change came in after the parts were built. We rework in-process and finished-goods inventory to your change documentation, with inspection records for every lot.
Parts That Need to Arrive in Order
For programs that run longer than a single sort, we can set up kitting and sequenced delivery, with parts packed into numbered racks in the order your customer builds.
Built on Tier-1
Automotive Work
Lotus has inspected and tested rear-seat entertainment screens in production, kitted and packed instrument clusters and wire harnesses to GM service-parts requirements, and built prototype and PPAP-stage assemblies for global Tier-1 suppliers: seating electronics, connectors, interior lighting and consoles. That work shaped how we handle drawings, inspection and production records today.
A sort or rework job at Lotus runs to your control plan, work instructions and defect criteria. Every lot is logged in and out, and parts that fail are kept apart from parts that pass. The Canton facility is ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 certified.
- Production inspection, testing and kitting for global Tier-1 suppliers
- Prototype and PPAP builds for Tier-1 engineering teams
- Sorting, electrical test and rework to your control plan
- ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 certified
- 300,000 sq. ft. facility in Canton, Michigan
Sorting, Test, Rework and Delivery in Canton
Sorting, testing, rework, storage and delivery all happen in Canton, so your parts don't move between vendors.
Sorting, Inspection and Electrical Test
Visual and measured inspection to your defect criteria, plus electrical and functional tests on electronic parts, off your customer's floor and away from your line.
Rework and Engineering Changes
ECN rework, repair and relabeling of in-process and finished-goods inventory, to your instructions.
Prototype and PPAP Builds
Prototype, pre-production and PPAP-stage builds in several variants, with supplier selection and coordination, procurement, assembly and testing.
Service Parts and Warranty Returns
Returned modules tested to your criteria, no-fault-found units separated from real failures, displays repaired in our cleanroom, firmware reflashed and good units repacked to your service-parts rules.
Kitting
Parts picked, bagged and labeled as kits for your line, a service line or a field campaign.
Sequenced Delivery
We can set up sequenced delivery for your program, with parts packed in build order into numbered racks and delivered to your customer's plant.
Your Control Plan, Our Floor
You keep the decisions. We do the work and keep the records.
Stays with your team
- The control plan and defect criteria
- What happens to rejected parts
- Contact with your customer's quality team
- Scrap and return decisions
Lotus takes on
- Receiving and logging every lot
- Sorting and rework to your instructions
- Holding suspect stock apart from good parts
- Labeling certified parts
- Sort counts and defect records for every lot
- Shipping good parts to your customer's plant
From the First Call to Certified Parts
Every sort follows the same six steps.
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Tell Us What's Wrong
Send the part number, the defect, the quantity and where the parts are. A photo of a bad part helps. We agree the method and the inspection criteria with you before anything ships.
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Receive and Segregate
Parts arrive at one of our 12 truck wells. Each lot is logged and moved into a caged area, apart from any certified stock.
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Sort and Inspect
Every part is checked to your defect criteria and work instructions. Parts that pass and parts that fail are counted and kept apart.
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Rework or Hold
Failed parts are reworked to your instructions, or held until you decide what happens to them.
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Label and Ship
Certified parts are marked the way your customer requires and shipped to their plant or back to yours.
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Report and Close Out
You get counts, defect types and lot records for every part we handled, so you can close the issue with your customer.
In Canton, Close to the Plants
Lotus is in Canton, Michigan, about ten minutes from Ford’s Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne and within an hour of most assembly plants in the Detroit area. Parts can come to us instead of being sorted on a crowded plant floor.
Sorting, rework, warehousing and assembly all happen in Canton, with no handoffs between vendors. Your quality engineers are welcome to visit and review the work.
- About ten minutes from Ford's Michigan Assembly Plant
- 12 truck wells for receiving and dispatch
- Sorting, test, rework and storage under one roof
- On-site reviews with your quality engineers
- 31 years of manufacturing in Michigan
Display Modules 100% Inspected
Sq. Ft. Facility
Years in Michigan
Industry Partners
Our automotive work combines experience with Tier-1 supplier programs, documented quality processes, and a permanent manufacturing facility in Canton.
Send the part number, the defect, the quantity and where the parts are now.
Tier-1 Supplier Experience
Production inspection and testing of rear-seat entertainment screens, kitting of clusters and wire harnesses for GM service parts, and prototype and PPAP builds for global Tier-1 suppliers.
A Local Point of Contact
Your quality engineers can meet our team in Canton to review the work, inspect samples and settle questions in person.
Records for Every Lot
Sort counts, defect types and lot traceability under our ISO 9001:2015 system.
The Capabilities Behind This Program
Manufacturing & Assembly
Build-to-print assembly, rework and specialty builds.
See the capability3PL Warehousing & Distribution
Storage, kitting and dispatch for parts programs, from 12 truck wells in Canton.
See the capabilityDepot Repair & Reverse Logistics
Returns testing, repair and refurbishment for warranty and service-parts programs.
See the capabilityAutomotive Sorting and Rework FAQ
When a supplier ships parts that may be defective, their customer can require someone other than the supplier to check the parts before they reach the line. A third-party containment provider takes the parts in, sorts them to agreed criteria, reworks or rejects the ones that fail, and records the results. Lotus does this work at its facility in Canton, Michigan.
Usually not. The IATF's own certification rules treat sorting, inspection, kitting, warehousing and sequencing as services, not manufacturing. For suppliers of those services, IATF 16949 starts from an ISO 9001 quality system unless the customer requires more. Lotus is ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 certified, and the work runs to your control plan. If your customer's requirements go further, tell us and we'll review them with you before any work starts.
Some automotive customers keep their own list of accepted third-party providers for Controlled Shipping Level 2. Tell us which customer put you on controlled shipping, and we'll confirm whether Lotus can be used before any parts move. For sorts your customer or your own quality team asks for outside controlled shipping, we can start from your defect criteria and part numbers.
Send the part number, a description or photo of the defect, the quantity and lot numbers, where the parts are now, and where good parts need to go. Add the work instruction or control plan if you have one. For rework, include the engineering-change documentation.
Sorting and rework take place at our Canton facility, where parts are received, held and shipped from our own truck wells.
Kitting, yes. We have kitted, labeled and shipped instrument clusters and wire harnesses to GM service-parts requirements. We can also set up sequenced delivery for your program, with parts packed in build order into numbered racks for your customer's plant. We agree the setup with your team, including how build orders reach us.
Yes. We test returned modules to your criteria, separate units with no fault found from real failures, repair displays in our cleanroom, reflash firmware and repack good units to your service-parts rules, with a report on what failed. If repaired units go back out as your customer's service parts, that customer may need to approve the process. We review that with you before any work starts.
Lotus has inspected and tested rear-seat entertainment screens in production, kitted and packed instrument clusters and wire harnesses to GM service-parts requirements, and 100% inspected more than 200,000 display modules after an OEM quality issue. We have also built prototype and PPAP-stage assemblies for global Tier-1 suppliers, including seating electronics, connectors, interior lighting and consoles.
Canton, Michigan, about ten minutes from Ford's Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne and within an hour of most Detroit-area assembly plants. Your quality engineers can visit to review the work and inspect samples.
Planning your next program?
A few quick questions, about two minutes. We'll be in touch within one business day.