Metalworking Solutions
Metalworking Solutions, a custom sheet metal fabrication company, has built its reputation on precision and efficiency. With a strong focus on innovation, the company is always looking for ways to improve operations and optimize workflow. For Director of HR and IT, Ian Cochran, that meant finding a better way to manage the company’s quoting and estimating processes.
Ian plays a unique role at Metalworking Solutions, overseeing both HR and IT functions. “I used to run information systems at a previous company, so when this position came up, it just made sense,” Ian explained. While he manages HR, his IT background drives the company’s search for more efficient solutions, including the need to improve the quoting process. “I’m focused on helping our team get the systems running correctly,” he said, describing his efforts to streamline operations.
The Previous Quoting Method: Spreadsheets Were Not Enough
Before adopting SecturaFAB, the company relied on spreadsheets for estimating and quoting, a method that Ian quickly realized wasn’t scalable. “We had three people spending a significant portion of their day quoting with spreadsheets,” Ian explained. While spreadsheets were functional, they lacked the visibility and data tracking needed for long-term success. “The spreadsheet works, but you can’t keep track of long-term data,” he said. “If I want to report how many quotes we did for a specific customer, I have no way to pull that information.” The manual nature of the process also made it difficult to gather data, which was essential for making informed decisions about customers and projects.
Leveraging Ian’s IT Background in the Search for a Solution
With his IT expertise, Ian knew there had to be a better way. “We had files like DXF and STEP files, and systems can convert them. So if someone’s spending time doing a repetitive, monotonous job, we look for ways to automate it,” he shared. The goal wasn’t to reduce headcount but to use their team more efficiently. “We have a really good team, and they don’t want to do repetitive things. We want to focus their time on improvements.”
Once the decision was made to adopt SecturaFAB, the onboarding process was surprisingly straightforward. “Our team picked it up quickly,” Ian noted. “We walked through the system, and within a couple of weeks of training, they understood how to use it.” Ian’s team established a “train the trainer” approach, which allowed subject matter experts to guide others through the system.
Faster Quoting and Accessible Data for Informed Decisions
With SecturaFAB in place, the company can now quote much faster, improving both efficiency and decision-making. “SecturaFAB takes maybe 30 minutes compared to a spreadsheet, which could take two or three days,” Ian said. The time savings were significant, especially on larger projects with multiple parts and subcomponents. But the benefits didn’t stop at speed. SecturaFAB provided the data needed to make informed decisions. “The win-loss rate by customer was a big one for us,” Ian shared. For instance, they discovered they were submitting an enormous number of quotes to one customer but receiving very little business in return. “We had to be transparent with them and say, ‘We can’t keep just being another data point for you.’ That saved us time and allowed us to focus on customers who actually gave us work.”
Downstream Benefits: Routing and Integration with ERP
In addition to improving the quoting process, SecturaFAB also had downstream benefits for Metalworking Solutions. “The integration with our ERP system, M1, has been huge for us,” Ian explained. “Routing used to be a very time-consuming, manual task. We’re a custom job shop, so every new part needed to be routed individually.” SecturaFAB allowed the sales team to focus on what mattered most—selling, not data entry. “We didn’t want our sales team spending 30 to 50% of their day routing parts,” Ian emphasized. “Now, SecturaFAB handles that, and the sales team can focus on closing deals.”
SecturaFAB as a Catalyst for Efficiency
For Ian and the team at Metalworking Solutions, SecturaFAB has been a game-changer. With the integration into their ERP system and the improved data visibility, the company is now better positioned to grow and serve its customers efficiently.
“It’s helped us quote faster, make better decisions, and free up our team for more valuable work,” Ian concluded.
