When it comes to building a partnership you can rely on every time you need custom, high-quality metal-stamped products or services, finding a company that provides the required capabilities isn’t all you should consider. The right provider will have the technical expertise to back those capabilities and truly elevate tool and die manufacturing.
Automation Tool & Die's highly trained team of technical experts offers problem-solving support and precision products that are delivered reliably, on time and within budget. While many tool and die manufacturers employ some skilled technicians, at ATD 21% of employees and 78% of tooling personnel are State of Ohio Journeymen. In addition, our company president is a tool and die maker by trade.
This makes tool and die the foundation of everything we do. Our team of technical experts relies on this core competency to make informed decisions, solve problems and meet our customers’ needs — which is why ATD has achieved a 100% customer retention rate over the last decade.
In addition to technology training, ATD also invests in continued training and professional development for all employees, including trade shows, new technology and software innovations and management courses. The goal is to offer career growth opportunities to retain our team of experts long-term.
For our customers, partnering with a manufacturer that is this highly skilled offers several distinct benefits.
1) The Opportunity for Technology-Driven Innovation
When you have access to the technical skills, in-house expertise, equipment and a range of services your company needs, you’ll avoid quality issues, delays and other costly inefficiencies. ATD uses the latest software to program directly from a native CAD file, saving programming time and eliminating potential translation errors. We also use modern technology, such as robotics, to ensure high quality and maximize efficiency. Also, our equipment is a key component of our innovation and the ability to meet the needs of customers, providing versatile and efficient solutions for producing high-quality metal components.
2) Nearly Guaranteed Precision
ATD’s skilled technicians help ensure no details are missed and that every angle, cut and measurement will align with a customer’s specific requirements. By understanding tooling and the concepts behind it, our team’s fundamental knowledge helps ATD build highly manufacturable and maintainable tooling that provides a more consistent and superior product.
We believe the best approach to meeting customer needs starts up front, and that our entire team understands the holistic goal. By performing collaborative and advanced quality planning upfront, ATD can pinpoint potential problems and course-correct early on, if needed. Having the right people at the table means our customers can rely on our longevity and technical backgrounds to ensure timeliness and superior quality.
3) Improved Problem Solving
Technical expertise allows our team to be nimble in implementing changes, as well as continuously improving products and processes. Whether for ATD’s tooling transfer process or our other capabilities and services, our employees understand and further the goals of reducing the cost of a part by making it more manufacturable, saving the customer money and giving them a better part while eliminating quality concerns.
ATD pulls together cross-functional teams to look at projects of all sizes in order to get the right people in the room. This ensures that from the moment that we start working on your project, we’re ensuring a well-rounded team of technical experts is there to make sure that all facets of the project are considered.
4) Superior Quality Control
Having an engaged, highly-trained team that fully understands internal processes ensures quality control right from the start. Our rigorous quality system sets us apart: ATD is IATF 16949-certified, meaning our quality management systems meet the automotive industry’s rigid standards. We carry over this best business practice to other industries, therefore benefitting all of our customers. While the standard IATF certification is required every three years, ATD chooses to be audited every six months.
5) Better Collaboration and Communication
A collaborative approach in tool and die manufacturing services can result in more reliable metal-stamped products and substantial cost savings. Since ATD is involved from the beginning of each project, we can provide innovative engineering at a lower cost, all while bringing products to market faster.
In addition to our early involvement, whole-team approach, and advanced quality planning, ATD also regularly communicates with customers. We do this by performing customer visits or inviting them to our facility; holding virtual meetings to answer questions or address concerns; and showing customers examples of similar parts or prototypes.
ATD’s commitment to training and professional development means that in-house skills contribute to custom solutions that are delivered with a human touch. We retain these skills by having our most experienced team members continuously train less experienced employees.
Since 1974, ATD has invested in our team of experts, equipment and the latest technologies to become the supplier of choice for companies seeking reliable stamped metal products, value-added services and support. To learn more about our collaborative process, request a quote or contact us today.
