ProNest software delivers concrete savings to leading construction industry producer
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The company and products
Construction Products, Inc. (CPI), of Des Moines, Iowa, is a division of EFCO Corporation. The company manufactures concrete forming systems, serving a worldwide customer base that spans most major industrial segments.
The problem
Due to dramatic increases in global mild steel sheet metal and plate pricing – the primary materials used by CPI in its product fabrication – a decision was made to evaluate approaches to managing costs and maintaining profitability. As part of this process, CPI completed an extensive evaluation of nesting software as a means to help improve material utilization, increase efficiency, and ensure the greatest return on investment.
The solution
CPI selected Hypertherm’s ProNest® software as their nesting solution for programming on all cutting machines, including plate and rotary tube cutting. ProNest’s intuitive interface design made it easy for CPI’s staff to quickly learn and use the program, allowing the company to smoothly transition away from their existing, less efficient software. Today, CPI has trained each machine operator to use ProNest, and programming is done while the machines are cutting, using workstations on the shop floor.
The benefits
Stacy Gatch, CPI Manufacturing Engineer, has been impressed with the results of the new software. “Thus far using ProNest, we have experienced a savings of 5% across the board in material utilization which translates into an annual savings of $50,000 in material alone. Using ProNest and with Hypertherm’s assistance optimizing the installation, we streamlined our programming operation to save an additional $31,000 in labor costs annually.”
Overall CPI’s investment in ProNest has delivered a return on investment many times over, and as material costs continue to climb, promises to offer even greater savings in the future.
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