• Digital Transformation

Interview with Adam Ball, Solutions Sales Manager at Lantek UK

  • Advanced Manufacturing
Adam Ball is the Solutions Sales Manager at Lantek, succeeding Rob Powell, who retired after 24 years at the company. With over two decades of experience in service, applications, and sales for sheet metal machinery companies, Adam has held senior roles, including Commercial Director at MBA Engineering Systems, and spent 12 years at Bystronic. His expertise ranges from machine tools for laser and waterjet cutting to strategic leadership. Adam’s return to Lantek is fueled by exciting prospects, showcasing his dedication to driving growth and introducing innovative solutions.

Business Intelligence: accessibility, agility and knowledge to lend continuity to business

  • Advanced Manufacturing
The raison d’être in industry is the transformation of raw materials into suitable products that satisfy people’s requirements and, by extension, those of the market. The quantity of processes performed and the parties that have to intervene to make this transformation possible vary depending on the sector or the purpose of the product. Coordinating all of the above is complicated as it generates data which is both ample and extremely diverse and to which other variables are added, such as the market, external factors, the competition... the information keeps on growing! Knowing how to process it to find out which type of data we have and which can truly add value, streamlining processes, identifying trends, reducing uncertainty, making forecasts and being able to react in time is critical for any sector’s industry.

Which cutting technology is the most suited to your plant?

  • Nesting
Thirty years ago, the global distribution of sheet metal cutting machine-tools was dominated by the oxycut variety (large thicknesses) and, to a lesser extent, the plasma variety (small thicknesses). There was a niche for punching machines along with water jet and laser machines. The latter were aimed at thicknesses less than 5mm and were expensive. Since then, the trend has shifted, shrugging oxycut in favor of other technologies according to thicknesses.