FEATURE FASTENINGS & ADHESIVES
FLEXIBILITY AND QUICK RESPONSE TIMES ARE KEY
Having robust and responsive supply chain and manufacturing processes, with the ability to adapt and respond quickly to customers’ requirements in response to the evolving
Coronavirus emergency, has became critical in recent months. Operating with a skeleton workforce under the Government
advised guidelines, Lewis Sutton, sales manager for Wixroyd, explains how they did exactly that, whilst still being able to meet customer demands and deliver
I
n these unprecedented times, the Coronavirus pandemic has meant
everyone has had to adapt. Manufacturers across our industry
are facing challenges never seen before, balancing the need to protect their staff through the implementation of strict new guidelines, including social- distancing measures, adopting increased hygiene regimes, home working and staggered working shifts to name a few, against the economic pressure of maintaining business as usual. Based in Chichester, West Sussex,
and established since 1951, Wixroyd is one of the UK’s leading suppliers and manufacturers of engineering components, supplying circa 40,000 standard and specialist parts to a variety of industries including Automotion, Defence, Food and Beverage, Medical, Manufacturing and Aerospace. As an independent, family owned business, its reputation has been built on Technical Expertise, Quality, Reliability and Service Delivery. Working with large corporations, smaller SME’s and Independent Design Engineers, Wixroyd have developed a loyal customer base over a number of decades.
COMPONENTS FOR VENTILATORS Back at the height of the Coronavirus epidemic in April, when the Government announced the need to increase the production of ventilators for the NHS, we were approached by a number of existing customers, who had orders to produce ventilators and urgently needed small components such as spring plungers, nylon bolts, screws and shafts.
12 MAY 2020 | DESIGN SOLUTIONS Having both the ability to supply
from stock or to manufacture in-house through our specialist machines allows us to be versatile and adapt to meet our customers’ needs. Our in-house manufacturing runs 24 hours a day
and palm grips which are used in adjustable tables for the fabrication of the ventilator base. We provided a prototype to meet the specification and, anticipating this would progress to an urgent order, worked with our supply chain to get material quickly. Despite this planning, the quantity required still exceeded our customers initial expectations so our Technical sales team worked with them to look at similar models which still met the specification but had stock availability to meet the urgency of the order. We managed to meet demand and despatch ahead of customer expectation. Another customer required a bespoke,
special shoulder screw and made us aware that not only was this deadline
“With our technical expertise, the dedication and flexibility of our staff and our supply chain, and through out robust in-house processes, I am proud that we were able to adapt quickly to respond to our customers’ needs and to play our part in assisting in the national emergency”
including weekends. In response to the crisis we have manufactured special parts, including adapting variations to our current standard range to meet the needs of medical applications for ventilators and Covid- 19 testing equipment.
A CUSTOMER FOCUSED APPROACH One customer urgently needed some star
Having both the ability to supply from stock or to manufacture in-house through its specialist machines allows Wixroyd to be versatile and adapt to meet its customers’ needs
tight, but more importantly it was needed for ventilator production. The manufacturing team worked tirelessly to re-arrange manufacturing schedules to accommodate this job, without jeopardising existing customer orders. This resulted in the order being expedited to a 48 hour turn around instead of the usual 10-14 days for custom parts. These are just two examples
of how we were able to adapt to meet the demands of our customers in response to the Covid-19 crisis. Through adaptability, flexibility, working cohesively across internal departments and with our wider supply chain partners, not only has it challenged our thinking and tested our working practices, but it has strengthened our customer relations and provided a blue print for operating in a crisis situation. This has reinforced our commitment to delivering the best product to the market and our customers.
Wixroyd
www.wixroyd.com/en
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