Lantek responds to Covid induced evolution

By Lantek Systems Ltd
schedule13th Aug 21

Solutions Sales Manager at Lantek UK, Shane Langston, examines how Covid has changed the sheet metal business.

The immediate impact of Covid was the need for staff to work from home, if possible, which meant programming machines and preparing quotations needed to be quickly made operational from home. About 40% of our customers needed this capability as soon as lockdown started. As Lantek had already done work on remote access in the operation of its Lantek Expert software, we implemented floating software licences for the customers.

The sudden change in the work environment caused manufacturers in the sheet metal industry to re-evaluate their business structures and strategy. The disruption raised questions about whether new and more efficient procedures could be implemented to bring long-term benefits. Once the initial problems of home working had been resolved, managers had more time to look into these questions.

Working from home stopped day-to-day interaction, so it was more difficult to coordinate activities and quote preparation. There is evidence from our users that accurate quotation speed has a direct correlation to winning business. The solutions in Lantek’s MES Manager and Quoting modules are designed to resolve this, enabling the team to know when a job has been completed and accurately find costs from their remote environment.

Many customers realised the importance of moving forward with Lantek MES and Integra towards a smart factory. More manufacturers are looking at traceability for their products as part of their strategy to improve business. With Lantek, companies can create a unique identifier for each part, tracking the processes and machines used, right back to the material batch it came from. This capability is a key differentiator giving manufacturers improved access to customers and markets.

As part of Lantek’s Integra software, quotations, CRM, stock and manufacturing control all provide live information about sales, the status of manufacturing, the source of material, its availability and its price – essential information not only for production efficiency and profitability but also for traceability. By moving along the path to smart manufacturing, companies will get far more control of business KPIs.