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by Matt Lane,
Director, Consulting Services
Only The Strong Survive – Part II
In my article last month, I discussed how software and solutions for multi-site synchronization and replication can make companies with multiple locations much more efficient and thus able to survive and prosper in lean economic times. This month, I will discuss how companies involved in designed-to-order building and manufacturing can improve their operations by going beyond the basic use of traditional CAD, database and office software and truly automate their design, quoting, estimating and other functions. By automating these operations, companies can:
 | Eliminate repetitive tasks and reduce labor time and costs |
| Better standardize design methods thus reducing inventory costs and improving purchasing, manufacturing and construction efficiency |
| Reduce errors |
| Capture critical knowledge and allow it to be used throughout the entire organization, thus allowing some repetitive work to be done by less costly personnel |
| Eliminate re-keying of redundant information into multiple systems and tie together multiple in-house systems and databases |
With a complete design automation solution of this type, you can automatically produce:
| Sales Proposals |
| Proposal drawings and 3D images |
| Complete engineering drawings and designs |
| Material lists and bills of material |
| Cost estimates |
| Routing sheets |
| Output for other company business systems or databases |
| Any other related documents or data |
Hagerman & Company’s successful design automation projects have allowed:
| A manufacturer of safety equipment to have users fill out a custom input form and then automatically complete assembly and part designs, sheet metal flat blanks, and generate bills of material and pass them to its ERP system, eliminating mistakes and multiple entry of the same data. |
| A manufacturer of refrigeration control valves to develop an automated CAD tool to be sent out to its customers, giving them the capability to configure and draw valve assemblies and place them into their system layouts. |
| The field sales staff and distributors of a manufacturer of moveable partitions for schools, convention centers, churches, etc. to automatically generate proposal drawings and quotes and synchronize all data with the home office. |
| A manufacturer of custom seating systems to cut its turn around time for quotes and submittal drawings from up to two weeks to approximately one hour and its labor time per proposal from hours to minutes, freeing up engineers’ schedules to develop new and better products and systems. |
| Other similar projects have been done for companies involved in the manufacture of fire and rescue vehicles, grain storage and handling, automated door systems and printing equipment, among other things. |