Unlocking Shop Floor Flexibility 
with a Product Configurator

00:00:05 - 00:00:23 "How we're able to use the configurator is we can configure a single product and then we can copy that product and make minor adjustments to that. The raw materials would still be the same, but having that flexibility to allow us to have 200 very similar products but with minor differences is very important to our business."

00:00:31 - 00:01:08 "Caledonian Plywood Fire Door Division have two UK-based manufacturing facilities that manufacture fire doors for the UK market. We offer a very complex product or a very simple product. Without the configurator, we could not be in the position we are now. Before we started the selection process for WinMan, we timed how long it would take to process a singular door. From a process that previously took us 8 minutes, we're now down to a 2-minute processing time, which is a significant saving on overhead."

00:01:09 - 00:01:34 "WinMan is the only system we use. From an inquiry being received to the invoice being paid, everything is done in WinMan. We use no other third-party software. Everything is encompassed within the system and that is something that we were really pushing for. We felt that any updates or changes were not going to benefit us if we had bolt-on packages; we wanted it all in one place offered by one support service."

00:01:35 - 00:02:08 "Before we went live with WinMan, all our paperwork was manually processed and all the materials were manually selected. In bringing WinMan in, that has allowed us to automate those processes and centralize all our records, which is essential for stock control. Everything that we do is recorded on WinMan Go. All the material usage and all the times are recorded using WinMan Go. Factory labels are all produced in WinMan."

00:02:09 - 00:02:34 "The other thing that we are now using it for is route planning and planning throughout our business in knowing what needs to be done next to ensure that we hit our delivery dates. We're now able to manage more by exception, so we are now managing just the jobs that aren't going well rather than having to try and manage all projects. That's a huge saving within our production meetings."

00:02:35 - 00:02:59 "From using WinMan, we have taken a wider approach to the manufacturing processes which has made significant changes. We're now running a one-piece flow system. We are now able to produce 50% more cores than we were previously able to do. That is the beating heart of our business; if we haven't got doors going through the one-piece flow, we can't CNC them or hang them in frames, so it's critical that that drum keeps beating."

00:03:00 - 00:03:51 "Using the stock control system, we are able to hold less stock on the ground, which keeps costs down. Batch control within WinMan is critical to us because if we ever have a batch recall, we know exactly which doors it's been used on. In terms of sustainability, we have to report our volumes of sustainable material every year. Using the configurator, we're able to work out all the volumes of our products and how much waste product we've produced. Without those, we wouldn't be able to operate within the ISO systems or current UK regulations."

00:03:52 - 00:04:34 "Continuous development is the only way businesses survive. Come 2029, all the certification for UK fire doors changes, and we have to have a system capable of making those changes. We're able to edit the limitations to stop people making non-compliant products. WinMan comes with Microsoft Reporting Services integrated, so I take the information out, write my reports, and upload them straight in. Everybody across the whole business needs to see different things, and I produce reports from the shop floor up to the management side."

00:04:35 - 00:05:11 "One of our biggest supports is a labor transaction report which is a live report tracking where our doors are in the factory as they move through each process. I'm able to know at any point in time exactly where my project is, how far it's off completion, who's worked on it, and what materials have been used. That is critical to me because I know for certification, for sustainability, and for my customer when they are likely to receive a delivery. Those are the three pillars our business is built on."

00:05:12 - 00:05:35 "We're looking to increase our turnover again. It's important that our profitability also increases at the same rate, which means we can't just add extra overhead. It's important that WinMan supports us with that in terms of keeping lean, keeping our efficiencies there, and improving the information we're able to get."