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Polo: A Quality Driven OEM Partner
This pulls excerpts from our podcast, Inspiring Innovation Ep 30: Leaders in Manufacturing featuring Tom Kluesner. To watch our podcast episode, please visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BUDdfjxR4Y or subscribe to our channel on your favorite podcast platform.
When you manufacture products that will be used in hospitals, military environments, aircraft, fire stations, or high-demand industrial settings, one thing matters above all: the product must work every single time. For OEM buyers, procurement managers, engineers, and quality leaders, selecting a reliable supplier isn’t just a purchasing decision—it’s a risk management decision.
This philosophy is at the center of Polo Custom Products, and it’s why the company continues to earn the trust of major OEMs across medical, defense, aviation, safety and powersports markets. In a recent episode of the Inspiring Innovation podcast, Polo’s Quality Manager, Tom Kluesner, shared an inside look at how the company engineers quality from the very beginning of every project—not as a final inspection step, but as a culture.
As Tom puts it, “Quality is quality, right? It doesn’t matter if it’s a wearable medical device or a saddle bag for a motorcycle. Someone depends on that product—we treat them all the same.”
A Culture of Quality That Starts Day One
Many manufacturers rely heavily on end-of-line inspection to determine whether a product passes. Polo takes the opposite approach. Quality is involved at the earliest stages of design and material selection, well before a product reaches the production floor. Tom and his team support engineering through PFMEA and DFMEA processes, risk analysis, prototyping, and first-article validation to ensure problems are eliminated before production ever begins.
This early involvement protects customers from the hidden costs of poor quality—scrap, rework, delays, late deliveries, field failures, and design flaws that surface only after launch. For procurement professionals and quality managers, that means fewer surprises and a smoother path to production.
Testing Real-World Uses, Not Just Lab Results
Polo serves customers whose products must perform in demanding environments, so standard lab testing isn’t always enough. The Monticello, Iowa facility includes precision equipment such as tensile testers, leak detectors, calipers, micrometers, and other inspection tools. But when a customer’s product needs to be tested in a way that goes beyond conventional methods, Polo builds custom testing protocols—or partners with accredited third party labs—to make sure the device performs exactly as required.
Some of the methods Tom discussed on the podcast are more like field trials than lab tests. For example, Polo once manufactured ballistic plates and validated each production run at a rifle range. Another product was designed to be fire-retardant, so the product development and quality teams purchased model rockets and spent days trying to burn through different material options. For a heavy-duty cargo strap rated for tens of thousands of pounds, the team watched it undergo destructive load testing on a machine the size of a bus. And sometimes, when a customer reports an issue that can’t be replicated in a lab, the quality team will simulate the real environment—like driving over a sewn component to test impact and durability.
The goal isn’t just to pass a test. The goal is to prove the product performs as expected in the field.
Built for Regulated, High-Risk Industries
Unlike many contract manufacturers, Polo works across multiple regulated industries—medical devices, aviation, defense, fire and safety, and powersports OEMs. The company’s quality system aligns with major standards and regulatory bodies including ISO 9001, ISO 13485, the FDA, the FAA, and military specifications. Polo manages full documentation, traceability, compliance protocols, and customer-required audits, which gives OEM procurement teams confidence that the finished product will meet every requirement.
For buyers and sourcing managers, it’s a major differentiator. You’re not just choosing a supplier—you’re choosing a partner that reduces risk and protects your brand.
Continuous Improvement that Reduces Cost and Lead Time
Another strength of Polo’s quality culture is its continuous improvement mindset. Tom described how small observations from operators, engineers, and maintenance staff often lead to process changes that reduce labor time, improve manufacturability, or prevent scrap. Sometimes the quality team identifies issues with customer-specified materials and works with the customer to qualify an alternative. Other times, engineering proposes fixture or tooling adjustments that speed up production without compromising performance.
These efforts often go unseen by customers, but they directly impact what matters most: reliability, cost, and delivery.
Quality + Efficiency = Products that Perform
Maintaining frequent communication between engineering, production, quality, procurement, and warehousing. Daily cross-functional meetings ensure everyone understands material status, deadlines, upcoming risks, and corrective actions. Weekly corrective action reviews keep issues contained before they reach production. And because quality is embedded throughout the process—not isolated at the end—the company is able to deliver products that meet both compliance requirements and on-time delivery goals.
This matters to OEM buyers. A product that fails in the field damages a brand, hurts end-users, and costs far more than it does to prevent the issue in the first place. That’s why Polo treats every project the same, whether it’s a medical device that touches a patient or a heavy-duty component mounted to a piece of industrial equipment.
Why OEMs Partner with Polo Custom Products
Across every industry Polo serves, customers consistently rely on the company for:
- Products engineered to meet demanding real-world conditions
- Reliable quality management and documentation
- Support with regulatory and compliance challenges
- Creative problem-solving and material expertise
- Cost-saving improvements and manufacturability insights
- Fast response when issues arise
- Testing that proves products perform where it matters most
As Tom explained during the interview, “We’re not the bad guys. We’re here to make sure everyone is successful—the operator, the customer, and the end-user.” That mindset has helped Polo become a trusted OEM partner for products that simply cannot afford to fail.
If you’re a procurement manager, product developer, buyer, or quality leader searching for a supplier that treats reliability as a requirement—not a talking point—Polo Custom Products is ready to help. To learn more or request a quote, visit www.polocustomproducts.com.
