Collaboration - Case Study
Cutting Tools (CTOOLS) established in 1980, is a manufacturing SME and is a tool maker for industry, providing cutting services for customers. The company has expertise in the use of state-of-the-art cutting blades that stay sharp, precision dies and punches, and make use of the best carbide tools. The company has several patents for innovative cutting products, such as the rotary cutting process, creasing process, plus a novel skin cutting process for making skin shapes for skin grafts in the medical industry.
CTOOLS is often required to custom design and build custom tools or cutting patterns for the clients, their design innovation and communication process has always been passed through a communication chain: client-sales team-designer-production (and vice versa). This cumbersome practices has traditionally meant long lead times and design phases for custom tools which inconveniences the clients and isn't cost effective for CTOOLS.
CTOOLS used the ExtremeFactories platform in order to better communication and collaboration, they set up online spaces where special groups would be created for each custom order. These online spaces allow direct communication between the clients, designers, production team, suppliers and any other relevant departments allowing them to discuss problems and generate innovative solutions to ensure the product meets all the client requirements.
This has meant that lead times for custom designed products have been shortened, decreasing costs for CTOOLS and increasing client satisfaction. Also, have staff communicate directly with the clients has allowed for relationships between client and CTOOLS to be built in a way that wasn't possible before - thus increasing customer loyalty and providing CTOOLS with another selling point and competitive advantage in this niche market.
Encouraging our designers to directly interact with our clients via ExtremeFactories to develop innovative solutions for their needs has bettered our understanding of the market, increased client loyalty and company efficiency.