Manufacurer, Fabricator or Shaper?
Posted By: Robin in Industry News | Other markets | Universal Arches | Windows and tagged arches, curves, fabricator, Frames, manufacturer, PVCu, shaper, UPVC
Leon Day, managing director of Universal Arches discusses the position of the bending sector within the glazing industry. Some companies may see themselves as shapers of PVCu window profiles, but he believes the expertise could be far wider.
It’s often difficult to define a company’s perception of what they do, but sometimes it’s a relatively easy answer. Directline sell insurance, Apple sell innovation but companies such as Tesco sell, well just about anything! In the glazing industry the trade fabricators will sell relatively generic designs of windows and doors, but in the bending sector do we just sell odd shaped frames?
I would suggest not and I would also go on to propose that leading trade fabricators are professional manufacturing facilities. Capital equipment, materials and expertise are combined to help produce finished goods for the trade. The difference in the bending sector is that we are not producing mass products, as each order is very much a bespoke product.
Within the bending sector there are a small number of players capable of manufacturing arched heads, circular windows, angle heads and gable frames for conservatories, among other more unusual designs. We also provide arched and gothic heads for vertical sliders and at Universal Arches we’re even been able to work with Rehau to form and shape cable management systems. As a sector we should be looking far beyond the realms of PVCu windows and doors and into other PVCu building materials in the retail, trade and commercial sectors.
The very fact that we are specialist manufacturers, places added emphasis on the sales and order intake department, through manufacturing and onto logistics and concluding with customer support. In such a specialist environment it is important that as individual companies, that we have the expertise to support our customers whatever their requirements. Our own foray into live interactive 2-way HD support through the web, goes some way to show the importance of customer support in our sector.
All orders placed for shaped frames need to be assessed and processed by people with experience and expertise, though technology is playing an ever more important part of the process. The relatively recent adoption of 3D computer modelling has taken much of the manual template element out of our industry and helped moved it forward into the 21st century.
There is no reason why the entire bending sector can’t look to process over 90% of orders using modern technology and with it remove the potential issue of human error in preparing manufacturing templates. The system also helps improve operational efficiencies and defines remakes a near distant thing of the past. Producing bespoke window and door shapes within a few millimetres of tolerance is a world class benchmark and something that gives added confidence to everyone involved in the sector including surveyors and installers.
It’s also important that the logistics element of our respective businesses is considered, as products need to be carefully delivered on time and in good condition. We need little reminding of the way couriers treat parcels and packages as our own experience as consumers will highlight. While no one is yet delivering nationwide with fully owned vehicles, it is something that the sector needs to aim for, to provide greater confidence in what we do.
When considered in the context of manufacturing expertise, alongside other engineering sectors for example, it’s the processes and procedures that set many companies apart from industry players to experts and there’s a clear difference. Carrying internationally recognisable standards such as ISO 9001:2008 is an independent audit and certification of operational standards and processes.
Whatever manufacturing environment you consider, it’s the people that can help put the processes and customer service first. Staff training and development programmes are important, as is the ability to retain your very best staff.
Finally it must also be considered that the best manufacturing environments are those that invest in new capital equipment as a continual process. Simply patching up old and obsolete equipment in the short-term is no long-term business strategy. In the bending sector we can’t boast fully automated lines of production due to the nature of our products, but new bending tables and welders will add to product quality, while new and extended vehicle fleets will deliver products on time.
So how do we see ourselves? It may be a question of perception, but I see enough in the bending sector and in the larger window fabricators to suggest we operate expert manufacturing facilities. At Universal Arches we’re already seeing the opportunity to shape all types of PVCu building products first hand.
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