The Role of Cam Software

We often talk about how innovations in machinery, like fiber lasers, can boost productivity for fabricators. But what about all the processes your shop goes through before the parts even hit the shop floor? There’s a lot that needs to be done and done effectively prior to production starting. This is where CAM software comes in; it can drive major productivity from the front office to the shop floor.

Integrate CAM Software with Manufacturing Software to Save Time

One of the best innovations in manufacturing software is the integration between CAM Software and other applications like ERP and MRP. Linking these powerful tools together has an incredible effect on time, production efficiency, accuracy, and ultimately the number of parts you can cut per day or week.

Cutting out steps to get the job done faster

With new CAM integrations you’re eliminating manual steps in the process of getting the order to the shop floor. Typically your front office would bring in the orders and use their MRP software to generate the production orders for the week and someone would manually input them to CAM. A time-intensive process for many shops. Consider the effect of linking your CAM software directly  to MRP. This allows CAM software to seamless import the production files. You’re effectively taking a two or three-step process down to just one. It is possible to import the production instructions directly from the MRP application into the CAM and automate the nesting process without manually inputting quantities or material information. Machine code is generated seamlessly and available on the shop floor much faster.

Cam Software Eliminates human error

If cutting down the number of steps wasn’t a time saver on its own, think about what it could mean to take the possibility for human error out of the equation. This is especially helpful for shops with large numbers of orders being processed every day. One small error by the tech inputting the code could mean huge amounts of time wasted to fix it and potentially the quality of the end product. Neither scenario is great for your bottom line. Taking out that human interaction between step two and three, and the floor, mean you can get to your cutting faster and with greater accuracy.

Get your quotes out faster

In addition to reducing time and increasing efficiency for generating the production order, software innovations are also helpful for boosting productivity right from the quoting process. For sheet metal contractors that need to answer quote requests quickly, or large volumes of quotes, that process can eat up valuable cutting time, delaying the timeline from order-created to payment.

Reducing that turnaround time can have a big impact on your bottom line.

Enter quoting software like almaQuote. This type of software is amazing for basic and elaborate quotes. Not only is it simple to use, it interacts with your information system, including ERP, CAD and CAM, for seamless processes from quote to production.

How much time are you saving with integrated CAM software?

We have seen amazing productivity results from software like AlmaCAM. The time you save will depend on your company. Once you understand the features and how the integrations can work for your shop, do the internal calculations. Ultimately, the more parts you make the more time savings you’ll have – and more opportunity to increase your bottom line.

CAM software that integrates with other manufacturing software, like AlmaCAM, can be a powerful tool for fabricators everywhere. No matter the size of your shop, there may be time savings to be had. With the opportunity to boost productivity and reduce costs even before your orders hit the floor, why not add new software to the team?