Roadmap to supplying the future

Delivering pieces in the right quality at the right time. That is what supplying is all about. A discipline that Stevens Punching from Ypres has mastered to perfection. Although the company weathered the corona-pandemic well, it has started thinking about how it can provide even more added value for clients in the future. Nicolas Stevens, co-manager who will now assist father Peter Stevens in day-to-day management, explains what they want to achieve.

Back in the 1970s, Stevens Punching pioneered subcontracting. Today it continues to lead the way in industrial sheet metal work tailored to its customers' needs. A state-of-the-art machinery and enthusiastic team of more than thirty employees together deliver quality in punching, laser cutting, bending, welding, powder coating and even assembly. 

Stevens: "Nevertheless, we must not rest on our laurels. Today we have a good team, a mix of experience and young talent, at all levels, from the shop floor to management. This is why we put our heads together during corona to see who else can benefit from our expertise in sheet metal working, in addition to the classic sectors that already know us."

Unburdening customers completely

A strategic exercise that forms the basis for the roadmap to supplying the future within Stevens Punching. "Our turnover has grown from 4.5 million euros to 12 million despite all the problems we have faced and are facing as a company. A growth curve that we want to continue in the coming years by further diversifying in the sectors we serve. In doing so, we want to make the transition from pure supplier to reliable, permanent partner. We want to use our knowledge and experience to see how we can help optimize our customers' production processes. By thinking about a better manufacturability of pieces, for example, but also by attuning our logistics to their needs. The end goal? To create an interaction that relieves our customers as much as possible."

Increase capacity

For Stevens, that starts with creating sufficient capacity on the shop floor. "That gives us the flexibility to process large volumes in a short time, even when it comes to complex pieces. My father has already laid the foundation for this in recent years, by focusing on extensive automation in laser cutting. We now want to build on this by investing in more capacity and autonomy," Stevens said. 

Soon the first exponent of this will already be on display. A 12 kW fiber laser cutting machine from Bystronic is on its way. That will be coupled a year later with an automatic sorting system that already places all cut pieces on the right pallet. "With that, we will double our cutting capacity and at the same time be able to look at new materials and new thicknesses. The same exercise that we actually made before the welding robot and robot that were added in 2021 and 2022 respectively, and that has caused a lot of growth. As a supplier, you always have to look ahead and be ahead. You have to be ready before the customer demand actually comes," Stevens knows.

Sharp prices, competitive delivery terms

A second thread in Stevens Punching's future story is therefore betting on digitalization. 

Stevens: "Because of the growth we are experiencing, it is no longer possible to do everything by feel. There needs to be order in the chaos. We are now working on our own internally developed platform that brings together data from all departments into one clear system, supplemented by an additional production planner. The idea is to map out in the coming months how many hours of laser, punching, bending and welding work is creeping into pieces. That will allow us to continue to have the same competitive prices and delivery times. It is important for every customer that we can perfectly predict to him when his pieces will be finished and delivered. This is where the creation of added value begins. Customers have to be able to trust that everything they put down here will be fine."