Innovative Manufacturing Services: Enhancing Conveyor System Development with DraftSight Professional
Technology Category
- Functional Applications - Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES)
- Sensors - Electrical Conductivity Sensors
Applicable Industries
- Electrical Grids
- Electronics
Applicable Functions
- Logistics & Transportation
- Product Research & Development
Use Cases
- Leasing Finance Automation
- Material Handling Automation
Services
- System Integration
About The Customer
Innovative Manufacturing Services, Inc. (IMS) is a provider of high-quality manufacturing, material handling, and automation system solutions to customers across a range of manufacturing industries throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Founded in 2003, the company became the master North American distributor for Swedish conveyor systems manufacturer Carryline AB in 2006 through the establishment of IMS’ Carryline USA Division. IMS has a background in project management, mechanical design, electrical design, and controls engineering. The company designs and builds conveyor systems, with some touching on automation, and is committed to doing almost everything in 3D using solid modeling.
The Challenge
Innovative Manufacturing Services, Inc. (IMS) was in need of a more efficient and cost-effective 2D design solution for developing electrical schematics and accessing legacy 2D files. The company had been using SOLIDWORKS 3D mechanical design software for creating custom manufacturing and automation systems, but continued to use AutoCAD 2D software for accessing legacy design files and creating electrical panel schematics. The challenge was to find a solution that could seamlessly integrate with their existing SOLIDWORKS implementation, provide access to legacy 2D data, and support the development of electrical schematics in a more cost-effective manner.
The Solution
IMS found the solution in DraftSight Professional 2D design software. The software was added to the company's existing SOLIDWORKS implementation due to its ease of use, seamless integration with SOLIDWORKS, and its ability to provide access to the software’s Toolbox. The Toolbox is a library of industry-standard hardware that can easily be inserted into drawings. DraftSight Professional also drives the company’s CNC mill and supports legacy users and automation routines. With DraftSight Professional, IMS engineers can easily create new 2D factory floor layouts for its conveyor, automation, and manufacturing system implementations, as well as open and modify legacy designs that were created in AutoCAD, at a fraction of the price of maintaining the company’s legacy system.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
Case Study missing?
Start adding your own!
Register with your work email and create a new case study profile for your business.
Related Case Studies.
Case Study
Remote Temperature Monitoring of Perishable Goods Saves Money
RMONI was facing temperature monitoring challenges in a cold chain business. A cold chain must be established and maintained to ensure goods have been properly refrigerated during every step of the process, making temperature monitoring a critical business function. Manual registration practice can be very costly, labor intensive and prone to mistakes.
Case Study
Hydro One Leads the Way In Smart Meter Development
In 2010, Ontario’s energy board mandated that time-of-use (TOU) pricing for consumers be available for all consumers on a regulated price plan. To meet this requirement, Hydro One needed to quickly deploy a smart meter and intelligent communications network solution to meet the provincial government’s requirement at a low cost. The network needed to cover Hydro One’s expansive service territory, which has a land mass twice the size of Texas, and its customers live in a mix of urban, rural, and remote areas, some places only accessible by air, rail, boat or snowmobile. Most importantly, the network needed to enable future enterprise-wide business efficiencies, modernization of distribution infrastructure and enhanced customer service. To meet these needs, Hydro One conceptualized an end-to-end solution leveraging open standards and Internet Protocols (IP) at all communication levels. The utility drew upon industry leaders like Trilliant to realize this vision.
Case Study
Selling more with Whirlpool
Whirlpool wanted to add connectivity to appliances and transform the company's relationship with customers. Traditionally, Whirlpool interaction with customers was limited to purchases made once every ten years. Connected washer and dryers provide exciting new features like remote management of start times and inter-machine communication.
Case Study
Predictive maintenance in Schneider Electric
Schneider Electric Le Vaudreuil factory in France is recognized by the World Economic Forum as one of the world’s top nine most advanced “lighthouse” sites, applying Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies at large scale. It was experiencing machine-health and unplanned downtime issues on a critical machine within their manufacturing process. They were looking for a solution that could easily leverage existing machine data feeds, be used by machine operators without requiring complex setup or extensive training, and with a fast return on investment.
