Stay on track with CAD+T

Are you still relying on barcodes to optimise your manufacturing processes? With CAD+T’s fully customisable RFID parts tracking software solution, manufacturers can now benefit from contactless parts tracking and real-time workflow with no manual intervention.

Launched at Interzum and LIGNA 2023, CAD+T’s digital network lends itself to improving efficiencies across the board.

Centred around strategically placed gateways that track every item that enters the production cycle, parts can be tracked from the moment they enter the factory to the moment they leave – offering manufacturers real-time access to their complete production line, its performance and the exact status of each part in the factory from their computer, laptop or mobile device.

“Compatible with all machinery makes and models and easily retrofitted onto existing production lines, our RFID software tracks every part automatically – leaving no room for human error,” says Martina Schwarz, CEO of CAD+T.

“In the past, barcodes were a go-to option when looking to track production parts but they still leave room for error. After all, if an operator scans 15 pieces but there are 16 that need to be machined, you will still only have 15 pieces on your system. This won’t happen when using our RFID software because it isn’t reliant on manual intervention. Instead, it uses antennas that are situated around the workshop to scan RFID tags or labels placed on each piece. Each time a part passes an antenna, its position is logged, allowing it to be tracked through the production cycle and other areas of the business. This takes away any human error or the possibility of lost items.”

It also offers a greater insight into the production’s efficiencies and can foresee production problems. Martina explains, “Every aspect of the operation can be measured – from machinery running times to material usage. The software gives you a live look into your company’s workflow – offering simple, measurable solutions to improve efficiencies. We also install quality control stations throughout the production line to guarantee no pieces fall below par. Inspections can either be completed manually or measured mechanically before being accepted or rejected and a replacement requested.

“There are huge cost savings to be had when using our RFID system, especially when you consider the cost of shipping incorrect or incomplete orders, labour costs and missing parts. It quickly pays for itself. It’s also proven to reduce losses within the factory, simplify procurement and stock checks and improve customer service.

“Whether you want an allencompassing tracking system that tracks parts throughout your entire production cycle or want to track specific areas within the business, CAD+T works with you to create the most effective solution. The level of tracking is unique to you and CAD+T’s specialists are here to help you create a digital network that is specific to your production facility. To make it even more simple for you, we supply you the software and hardware.”

Furniture & Joinery Production spoke with Lee Darby, Nordfab UK Regional Sales Manager about the company’s current position in the very competitive ducting arena, and also what news and ideas he could offer for customers looking to invest in an extraction system.

What’s the company’s position is in the market and what the outlook is moving forward?

Over the last 18 months, Nordfab as a company in the UK has gone from strength to strength. We’ve enjoyed solid growth of 58% from 2021 to 2022. A key part of that was a substantial kitchen manufacturer project which – but discounting that, we were very close to the previous year’s performance for base business, so we feel we’ve got a little bit more market share.

We are a relatively young company and we are developing at a healthy and sustainable pace at the moment. Whilst not being complacent, we’ve got a good number of projects coming up so we are not seeing any decline or any issues with Brexit at the moment. So yeah, everything’s really positive at the minute.

What supports that market confidence?

One of our company’s mantras is that we should be ‘fast, friendly and reliable’ – I have been in sales for over 10 years and I think you learn a lot in that time. So it’s about listening to customers’ needs, reacting and being proactive, innovative, and thinking of new ideas – we’re always thinking of ways to make profitable ideas and concepts for Nordfab’s customers.

In my opinion, building up relationships is done more by actions than words, so we implement what we’re telling customers and when we say we’re going to deliver this, we follow through. But sales tools are a big part of that as well and in that regard, Nordfab is well-resourced. For instance, we have online quoting tools where customers can generate their own quotation, and because that doesn’t impact our internal resources as much, we can keep our operating costs lower than they might otherwise be, and our customers will benefit from that.

We typically deal with people who know what they’re doing in terms of understanding what they are looking for, and how they want it to work – usually, they’ve got hands-on experience. A lot of the larger suppliers want to deal with a manufacturer direct so we can speed the process quite a bit using this system. We’re certainly finding that these online quoting tools have helped us free up some time and create additional efficiencies.

We have recently introduced a new 3D design tool called the Quick Fit Visual Design Tool. This is available now for all of our buying customers in the UK and in the EU.

In simple terms, a customer makes a drawing and takes a PNG image file to it and uploads it to the webpage. Then customers select the flow speed, and then you can start to build the entire system.

You just draw the lines using a mouse and then press the 3D button, and you see it your drawing visualised in 3D in one minute. Then everything is calculated – entire bondings, air pressure losses, clamps, hangers and that’s all directly fed into our system to create a bill of materials before an order. It’s an amazing advantage for our customers to conceive, visualise and create a 3D plan for their ducting, saving time in the process.

You don’t have to have any AutoCAD experience, it creates pressure drops in the system, and it then gives you a bill of materials that feeds the information to our online quoting tool. So within 10-15 minutes customers can have a fully-detailed ducting quote in 3D. The Quick Fit Visual Design Tool is a game-changer and it’s available for all of our buying customers in the UK and in the EU.