Seco Tools talks cost reduction to smaller firms

As the company's sales and marketing manager, Julian Adams, told Machinery: "Seco is less about products and more about solutions. There are fewer production engineers within companies and we find that customers not only want a tooling package for a part, but also today, the CNC programs. "We are growing market share with this approach; it is working well for us, not just here but worldwide. Our value [to customers] is in our engineering expertise." And the company is expanding its engineering capability with additional manpower at its Alcester, Warks, headquarters, he underlined. This consultancy style approach has to date been mostly focused on larger companies; the aim of the current tour is to engage with smaller companies that typically buy through distributors and offer them the same service. "Machining strategies are very different from what they were 5 to 10 years ago; I am not sure that smaller companies realise that," Mr Adams observed. Under the catch line "Choose your route", and linked to the SatNav prizes on offer to visitors, companies are being asked to consider whether they will maintain their current approach (route) or whether they will adopt new, more productive techniques ready for the upturn and get ahead of the competition. Seco Tools will be touring the country with its demonstration vehicle, stopping off at distributor premises over 21 dates (see below). Visitors are invited to bring their drawings and CNC files as the basis for discussion. Indeed, underlining the consultancy message, Mr Adams highlighted that the company has actually taken product out of the vehicle to make more space. That said, hardware on board will take in its tool management proposition, Seco Point, plus its shrink-fit tooling system, Easy Shrink. A claimed unique capability for Seco Point is the ability to dispense single inserts. But in addition to the traditional tools of the trade, Seco will also be showcasing its new interactive product-related materials, which have been created with specialist company Oxygen Education, Indiana, USA (www.o2ed.com). The most recent development is so-called 'augmented reality' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augmented_reality). This allows users to interact with a computer to tilt, swivel and variously move a 3D object, using, in the case of Seco, a piece of card below a PC-connected camera. This technology is destined to figure large in future Seco product releases, Mr Adams stressed. Tour dates and locations are: Nottingham - Aug 18 Great Yarnmouth - Aug 19 Littlehampton - Aug 25 Southampton - Aug 26 Bideford - Sept 2 Gloucester - Sept 3Cradley Heath - Sept 7 Stoke-onTrent - Sept 8 Ormskirk - Sept 9 Willenhall - Sept 14 Sheffield - Sept 15 Accrington - Sept 16 Leeds - Sept 17 Stanley - Sept 21 Glasgow - Sept 22 Aberdeen - Sept 23 Bridge of Don - Sept 24 Sittingbourne - Sept 28 Coventry - Sept 29 Wednesbury - Oct 1 Wednesbury - Oct 2 Smethwick - Oct 7