Psymbiosis case - tools industry

The Cutting tools are an integral part of any manufacturing process, even in an advanced machining or drilling processes (aeronautics, automotive), or more traditional manufacturing sector (plastic, wood based manufacturing). In any case, the use of cutting tools is at the very core of achieving the functionalities of the product. NECO, as part of the TIVOLY GROUP, manufactures and commercialize precision cutting tools and thread rolling tools. NECO is an innovative company into the cutting-tool sector, it  wants to move from their current traditional business model into a product-service oriented business model.

NECO, as part of the TIVOLY GROUP, has delivered a diverse portfolio of tools and services around the world. Focusing on taps and industrial customers, NECO aims to achieve several objectives:

• The main objective is to improve time to market, and therefore reduce the time between the first iteration with customers and their order; through collaborative Product-Service development among stakeholders for customers’ requirements collection, tool design, tool manufacturing and process development.
• NECO aims to improve knowledge sharing across product design, manufacturing and product-service lifecycle through the capture of information about tool geometry, quality, tool status, wearout, use, etc. for future designs. This means not only the optimization of the design of the cutting tools offered, but also the enhancement of the manufacturing and provision processes according to the real needs of the customers.
• The final objective is related to the improvement of the sustainability across the entire product- service lifecycle through zero defect manufacturing and extension of the cutting tool life time. Therefore, the trial is focused on the improvement of the efficiency (better quality) of the cutting tools using real manufacturing information.

As a result, new and better product-services will be offered addressing the customers’ needs, which will allow the provision of more competitive offers to the customers, such as threaded holes per tool at a minimum cost, and more innovative services such as daily control and provision of the stock.

The scenario promotes the offering of a new and improved product-service offerings addressing customer needs, which is often a missing point currently in the industry. The cutting-tools Product-Service bundle is based on the collection of customers’ requirements in order to offer high quality and more competitive services, such as threaded holes per tool at a minimum cost. Additionally, the industrial trial aims to change from a traditional business model to an advances product-service approach with the implementation of advanced services such as zero complains, zero stock, and zero defect services.