Stainless Design Concepts (SDC), located in Saugerties, NY, is a manufacturer of UHP Chemical & Gas Delivery Systems. The company serves many high-tech industries, including semiconductor, nanoelectronics, biotech, energy, and aerospace---just to name a few.
Over the last few years SDC, in conjunction with their parent company, has focused on expanding and diversifying their customer base to position the company for long-term growth and profitability. A first step was to streamline processes and information across the entire organization via implementation of software upgrades to the company’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. A second step – in which SDC approached WDI for assistance - was to ensure all staff were properly trained on these new programs.
The goals of the upgrades are to keep SDC competitive and position the company for an easier expansion down the road. By fully implementing a new engineering application into the existing ERP system, SDC will ultimately increase the efficiency and accuracy of the engineering and production team’s work. Time saved will also allow SDC to get products to market sooner, ultimately servicing the customer’s needs more effectively.
More than half of SDC’s employees were trained on the new software as well as two other new applications. The company reports that employees who participated in the training developed the skills needed to properly use the software and work more effectively. They also anticipate the new skills will improve accuracy and reduce costs. Finally (but importantly), positive ancillary effects of the training were improvements to the workplace via boosted employee morale. Employers take notice - investments in training have multiple payoffs!
