We are international, and not only because we have a physical presence in more than a hundred countries and provide support in almost twenty languages, but also because our desire to assist clients as they move toward a Smart Factory leads us to strive for uniform and standardized processes from the outset so that machines can collect information and data of value in a correct and more reliable way. This is why we have worked and invested in R&Di to develop universal software. And we made it happen. We are the Android of machine tools for cutting sheet metal, tubes and profiles.
All Lantek solutions (CAD/CAM, MES and ERP) are compatible with other software and are adaptable to any manufacturer. We adjust to client needs to ensure that their machines operate optimally and achieve maximum performance. For example, it is not surprising that, due to the acquisition of different cutting or punching technologies that operate with a range of software, companies encounter setbacks that translate into a lack of agile responsiveness, needs for more personnel resources and more training. As such, universal programs are used that can be read by any manufacturer and software to make the work operation more efficient.
In this respect, collaboration with machine tool manufacturers is very necessary. In that journey together, we put into practice the concept of extended innovation to know firsthand the demands of users and provide them with ad hoc solutions. Because it is not only about exploiting technical and business synergies, but also of innovating jointly and exceeding the limits that separately would not be possible to achieve. This way of working allows us to design a joint, integral and advanced offer to deliver improved solutions for increased productivity and efficiency levels in the shortest possible time and incurring less costs.
This process of machine/software understanding starts with the technical dialogue between Lantek’s professionals and the manufacturer’s technicians. In this phase, the needs of the required features are established and several demonstrations are presented to them so that they can appreciate what is available to them to operate their machines and how they could be integrated more fully with their equipment. Once the features have been detected and a prototype of the software has been made for that manufacturer, the latest version of the software is developed, which will be the one to be marketed and implemented.
It should be pointed out that, depending on the market, the program shall have to be translated into the corresponding language in each case: Korean, Japanese, Russian, etc., since manufacturers want to work with the software in their native language so that they can handle it correctly and understand the interface properly. For years, Lantek has been implementing technological solutions in different markets in numerous countries, each with specific needs and with unique problems, guaranteeing the correct operation of the software and the provision of support in any location. Our versatility allows us to adapt to the particular aspects of each market and in this way we can get to know our clients, better understand their needs and offer adjusted solutions that solve their problems.
We have the firm commitment that each client becomes one of the companies in its sector with better automated processes, interconnected and managed in order to make its business more competitive and efficient and generate differential value. In other words, moving toward the Smart Factory.
In our opinion, a factory that fulfills these premises marked by Industry 4.0 must be a company with an advanced manufacture in which machine sensorization makes the data flow that the software is registering and analyzing in real time to make it easier for people to make better decisions. For this to be possible, the information must be stored and managed from the cloud platform.
Therefore, our mission and strategy are focused on helping our clients become smarter companies. We have gone from developing integral software solutions for the metal, sheet metal and profile transformation and deformation market to becoming a multinational whose goal is to help in the digital transformation of companies in the sheet metal sector.
In mid-March, when lockdown had only just started in many countries, we were writing about the digitization of supply chains to place value on the importance of using Industry 4.0 enablers (Digital Factory).
Material waste and a lack of agility in nesting or the nesting of parts are two of the most common problems faced by metal processing companies which slow down the company’s response time for its clients and make the process more expensive. This is due to them not using the appropriate technology in order to fully exploit each piece of sheet metal during the cutting process and/or the fact that this process is completed manually or using slower solutions. Equally, the work of the production engineer mustn’t be knocked as they are experts in the optimization of nesting and machining; the maximization of the margin for each production order received depends on their intervention.
The digital transformation process brings with it a lot of uncertainty. How do I know what tasks and changes I need to carry out in my organization to transform it? It’s impossible to know beforehand. How do I know where I will end up in my transformation process once it is finished? It’s impossible to have a clear idea at the beginning.