You may think that concluding an installation or commissioning a turnkey project means that the job is over. You may even think that, at this point, the teams that designed and implemented the technological solutions to successfully overcome the client’s production challenges will pack their bags and say goodbye. Nothing could be further from the truth.
The industrial sector is a very demanding one, and you need to leave the door open to updates, adaptations and maintenance. Tasks like these help to extend the life of facilities and secure the client’s production capacity. They can even mark a “before and after” in their competitive capacity.
The people responsible for this vital mission to maintain links with Aritex’s clients are the members of the after-sales service, led by Mikel Arrese at Loxin. In this article, he’s going to take us deeper into the role played by this department and what it does. Get a first-hand picture about an essential service that ensures that our clients’ facilities last and keep their cutting edge with all the quality and safety guarantees they need. Don’t miss it!
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Multidisciplinary team with a collaborative spirit
Since its beginnings in 2013, the Aritex Group’s after-sales department has worked to achieve the best results in developing client relationships after project delivery, generating some very valuable know-how along the way.
Organisation and action need to be perfectly balanced when providing the best after-sales service, and that’s why Aritex made a quantum leap in professionalising this activity, incorporating members who work solely on managing and developing the after-sales department. The team working in the office, all of whom have a technical background, is to respond to client requests, while the field technicians apply their multidisciplinary skills in automation on-site and implement modifications to machines and facilities.
At the same time, other departments such as Operations and IT are available to collaborate with the after-sales team and provide specific assistance, from assembly to back-office support. In situations like these, Mikel Arrese sees a clear need for collaboration as the key to success in after-sales:
“Right now, it’s just not feasible to get all the support required from back office and have a team of assemblers in the after-sales department, and that’s why coordination and collaboration with the Operations team is essential to carry out our department’s projects. What’s more, there’s almost always someone who worked on the original project and he or she can help with specific details”.
The after-sales team collaborates with other departments and can also rely on profiles in the automation department to offer an optimal and totally client-oriented service for clients.
Client relationships as the focal point of after-sales services
Personalised service is essential for Aritex’s after-sales phase to work effectively. During the warranty period (usually 2 years), the project team gradually disconnect from the project and the after-sales team take centre stage, so that at the end of the warranty period they are familiar with the project and know about the processes in the original solution and the interlocutors with the client.
This enables the team to be available to confidently suggest changes or improvements that provide value to the client. This specific knowledge of each machine and facility highlights the need not only for personalised attention, but also a close relationship with the client.
List of after-sales services/products
The Aritex Group’s after-sales department offers a range of services:
- Spare parts management
- Modifications due to obsolescence and updates to adapt machines to new tasks
- Preventive maintenance, such as geometric inspections
- Corrective maintenance and helpdesk
- Training
- Support contracts: remote or on-site
Our business is based on a very direct relationship with the client. Our market is very specific and it’s not a big one, so we know our clients by their first name and maintain close and frequent contact with them, and that allows us to generate a close and trusting relationship where we can find out at first-hand what their concerns and needs are, and so offer the service that best fits in with their requirements.
Mikel Arrese
Head of Aritex After-Sales Department
A matter of time
Time management is a vital part of the after-sales service. Proposing products and planning improvements come from obsolescence studies of the components in each machine and facility. For example, the most widely demanded services in the Aritex after-sales service for Loxin are replacing and updating numerical controls and riveter heads, installed more than 15 years ago.
Another area where responsible time management plays a vital role in Aritex’s after-sales activities is making use of clients’ planned technical shutdowns, such as the ones programmed for summer or local public holidays.
Organising after-sales processes in these periods and strict compliance with our own schedules, are crucial for ensuring client satisfaction. “Except for corrective maintenance, all the interventions are planned with enough notice to ensure minimal impact on production. We are very careful and rigorous in complying with agreed plans, because of the potential impact on the client’s production”, says Mikel.
A philosophy like this highlights the importance of time as an objective in after-sales services: one the one hand, planning activities during clients’ planned shutdowns to ensure that the impact on production is minimal; on the other, focusing work on updates and retrofitting for machines and facilities to prolong their useful life, avoid obsolescence and ensure availability of the machine with up-to-date components and high quality service, which in turn make our clients even more competitive.
The future for after-sales in Aritex
The clients that receive our after-sales service are aware of the potential for improvement, and the department is no different in that regard.
“We have a wide range of services, but we can always aspire to do more, and contribute to an improved service for our clients. One of our objectives is to incorporate predictive maintenance into our services, and also develop the digitalisation and software areas, using for instance remote maintenance with augmented reality. This way, we’ll be able to offer immediate service anywhere”, says Mikel.
Efforts to improve the Aritex after-sales department are currently focused on developing a ticketing platform that provides a sequenced, logged and centralised system for all service requests. Data, reports, rankings… we not only optimise our client’s processes, we also boost our own potential, and that makes our after-sales service that much stronger, with efficient results and personalised attention.
