YouTube/Fictiv
Fictiv
Digital manufacturer Fictiv has announced the implementation of transparency and visualisation capabilities within its digital manufacturing network.
The company fulfils orders via an array of production partners, including Jabil Additive Manufacturing, and has put in place technology that will allow customers to gain greater insights and visibility into production workflows and help manufacturers to increase speed and quality.
Ficitiv’s aim, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic significantly reduced overseas travel, has been to remove the need for users of its service to fly in to inspect manufacturing outfits and their facilities, moving physical assessments onto a digital platform.
Key features of the Fictiv transparency tools are On-Demand Production Status, which delivers detailed updates on the parts within an order immediately and online; Visual Inspection Photos, which will be taken in the facility pre-shipping; Centralised Access to Quality Documentation, which includes material certifications, conformance certifications and inspection documentation; and Order Configuration Details, which gives access to 2D and 3D design files, thread specifications, material and process configurations and invoices for all Fictiv orders. Users can also call up previous manufacturability feedback on ordered parts to inform future design cycles, reorder parts at previous pricing and track shipments.
YouTube/Fictiv
Ficitv
“Historically, companies were working in the dark, relying on phone calls late at night, file transfers, emails and time-consuming site inspections, when it came to overseas manufacturing – a risky, expensive process that often resulted in delays and quality issues,” commented Fictiv CEO Dave Evans. “Fictiv’s ground-breaking new radical transparency initiative is better because our quality engineers and customers can inspect a part all along the way. These features introduce a disruptive set of visibility controls and prompts that peel back the covers and make it possible progress with manufacturing work and come away with complete confidence in quality outcomes, delivery times and costs.”
“Quality control for overseas manufacturing is an expansive, herculean effort, requiring multiple week-long trips every year pre-pandemic for an entire team, totalling hundreds of thousands of dollars in hard expenditures and lost opportunity costs,” added Gregg Miner, a product development specialist who has previously worked with Oculus, Facebook and Apple. “Now, there isn’t even an option for travel, forcing companies to accept whatever product shows up at their door. Fictiv is breaking new ground with its initiative – no one has ever attempted this level of robust transparency at this scale before. I am excited to see this become the gold standard industry-wide as it will completely transform the way we conduct business.”
