NEWS NEWS NEWSTWENTY YEARS ON AND LINEAR IS STILLIN LOVE WITH PSL DATATRACK!Linear Precision Engineers Ltd was set up byprecision engineers Andy Allan and JulianParsley over 30 years ago, reaching thatmilestone in 2018. Over time the Addlestonebased company has grown into a highlyrespected precision engineeringsubcontractor. Linear Precision operates outof what was originally a WWII parachutefactory and offers its services to a range ofcustomers within industries as diverse asaerospace, defence, packaging, safety,printing and photographic equipment. Withone landmark anniversary out of the way,April 2020 marks 20 years since the companyfirst invested in PSL Datatrack productioncontrol software. “It is one of the bestinvestments we ever made,” commentsAndy Allan. “We have added to the originalmodules as our business requirementschanged plus we get all the upgrades andgreat support from PSL Datatrack.”Amongst Linear Precision's businessobjectives is to ensure a reliable service fromquotation to invoice, maintaining an allroundhigh standard of customer service. Itwas harder to achieve that twenty years agowhen the administration associated with thegrowing business was undertaken manuallyand started to become unmanageable. Thebusiness partners' wives wereassisting by typing invoices;manually filled-in route cardswere created for parts' productionprocesses and orders andconfirmations had to be faxed tosuppliers and customers.The company even developedits own Access customer databaseto assist in managing the business.It was functional when it came tochecking historic customerinformation but not so whenplanning the next day's runthrough the workshop in a waythat would keep deliveryschedules on time and fulfilpromises to customers.“I knew there were systemsout there to help us but it was PSLDatatrack who came up with thesolution that really met our needs.We started with the sales modulesand since then have added othermodules as we needed them –Purchase Orders, Goods Receivedand Component Stocks have beenadded over the years,” says Andy.Linear Precision is ISO9001:2015 accredited whichreflects the company'scommitment to quality andcontinuous improvement. Thereis a fully calibrated inspectionsystem and the company is involved in themanufacture of precision components forglobal use. “PSL Datatrack is essential tomaintaining our accreditation, providingauditors with all the information they needinstantly,” says Andy. “Our customersrequire traceability within our productionprocesses and PSL Datatrack provides a fulltraceable history of all the parts we produce.”Indeed, the facility to trace anyinformation about a specific part, customeror order on a daily basis is a major benefit.Within PSL Datatrack, Andy can click on aworks order and immediately identifypurchase orders, delivery notes and otherrequested information relating to that job,saving time as well as providing essentialmanagement information. “Whenever wehave an ISO Audit or a company comes tovendor rate us they are always impressedwith PSL Datatrack’s ease of use and logic oftraceability throughout the system,”comments Andy.PSL Datatrack has also responded tospecific requests from Linear Precision forcustomised reports which are designed toensure that the company is achieving its KeyPerformance Indicators (KPIs). When a userhas a specific question regarding the system,PSL Datatrack’s support team is only a phonecall or email away.As one of PSL Datatrack's longest servingcustomers, Linear Precision fullyunderstands the benefits of working with aprovider that specialises in the subcontractengineering industry and has a very highlevel of confidence in the software'scapabilities. This is so much the case thatover the years Andy has recommended thesoftware to other companies on the sameindustrial estate, including AC Engineering(Byfleet) Limited and Cresdrive EngineeringLimited who have in turn also becomeestablished users of the system.“Linear Precision is very much into longtermthinking and planning,” says Andy.“We have acquired a number of state of theart CNC milling and turning machines whichare at the heart of our engineering business,yet we still run a Herbert Number 1 Capstanlathe which is ideal for batches up to around100 off. It's the same with PSL Datatrack – theoriginal modules still do a great job and wewill continue to adapt and develop withthem as we go along,” concludes Andy.Tel: +44 (0) 8456 345931Email: sales@psldatatrack.com34 Manufacturing Machinery World, April 2020
Manufacturing Machinery World, April 2020 35
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