The bar is set high. “We don’t just want to meet customer expectations. We want to exceed them,” says the company. And to do that, they produce high-quality custom-built metal and steel structures across 3,000 square meters of floor space, delivering for private clients, public entities, and industry alike.
They call themselves a “manufactory” (not a word you’d typically associate with digital innovation). Yet Aigeldinger is anything but traditional in its approach to technology. Co-owner Regine Aigeldinger, who leads the company with her husband Martin, puts it plainly: “Bringing digital tools into craftsmanship isn’t a trend, it’s a necessity. Although the initial investment is significant, it pays off. Greater efficiency means lower costs and stronger competitiveness.”
Their strategy was to only adopt the digital tools that fit their way of working and actually increase efficiency, whether in recruitment, accounting, or project management.
With Lantek Expert, the running stopped
To manage their sheet metal processes, Aigeldinger implemented Lantek Expert, a CAD/CAM solution tailored for cutting operations, and the impact was immediate.
“Before, welders constantly came into the office asking, ‘Has this part been cut yet?’ Then they’d head back out, searching the shop floor,” recalls Nicole Helbig, from technical product design. Back then, most processes were manual. Similar-looking parts led to constant measuring, mix-ups, and repeat cuts.
“Because our work is custom, even small details matter. If we were adapting something to a sloped wall, for example, we had to cut specific shapes. That meant lots of leftover parts with no clear destination. Our plasma cutter ran daily, cutting to order as needed.”
Nicole herself used to spend a good portion of her day walking the site, carrying printed lists, manually distributing job data to the shop floor.
Since early 2024, that’s over. The company’s entire sheet metal workflow (including raw material stock) is now digital. The turning point was Lantek Expert’s cross-order workflow.
“It views production from the sheet’s perspective,” explains Jens Schamberger, Lantek Sales Manager. “It mixes jobs, optimizes the cut, and then sorts the parts for post-processing.”
Nicole adds: “When new sheets arrive, we log them with a serial number and batch code. The system nests them until fully used, meaning minimal scrap.” If there’s leftover material, it’s tracked. “We have complete visibility now. The software shows what’s in stock, where it is, and we don’t have to physically check the warehouse anymore.”
Color coding simplifies everything
Aigeldinger’s Microstep plasma machine now runs just one or two days per week. It cuts only what’s needed. Nesting plans and reports are generated digitally.
Each job and its related parts are assigned a colour; this means at a glance, workers can identify what parts belong to what job and which box or rack they should go into.
Once a part is cut or processed, it’s checked off digitally. Welders can see, in real time, which components of an assembly are ready.
“Before, they would start a build and only realize halfway through that some parts were missing. Now, they check the system beforehand and only begin when everything’s ready. They work faster and with more confidence,” says Nicole.
Software built around the way Aigeldinger works
Better visibility and smarter material use are only part of the story.
“We pushed the nesting software to its limits to match how Aigeldinger operates,” says Jens Schamberger. He studied their workflow, customized the tool, trained the team, and supported them through rollout, even offering remote assistance when needed. Nicole credits his deep expertise: “Jens brought a lot of knowledge about the machine and how to fine-tune performance with the software. Now I can add drill holes directly, without switching to another 3D program. I can make adjustments on the fly: enlarge holes, sketch directly on the sheet, whatever’s needed.”
A new level of accuracy
For Regine Aigeldinger, the biggest win is precision: “The CAD/CAM software gives us a level of accuracy we simply didn’t have before. Each cut is more exact. That boosts product quality and reduces material use.”
And if there’s ever an issue with a product, the team can trace every part back to its origin: batch numbers and certificates all stored in the system.
“We never had this kind of traceability before,” she adds. The digital shift has been embraced across the company. “Morale has gone up. No one wants to go back to the old way of working.” And because the system isn’t tied to one machine brand, Aigeldinger has the flexibility it needs for future growth.
As Jens Schamberger puts it: “This is proof that even smaller operations can take a big step into digitalization with a single CAD/CAM tool. No need for custom software or complex infrastructure.”
Originally published in Blechnet (Germany): Metall Aigeldinger GmbH: Digitalisierung mit CAD/CAM-Software von Lantek