Pax Machine Works, Inc. Expands Digital Footprint and Streamlines Processes with Plex ERP

Pax Before Plex

Since its founding 76 years ago, Pax Machine Works, Inc. has grown to be a renowned producer of precision metal stampings, machined components, and assemblies. Pax is known as a full-service provider and is dedicated to consistently exceeding its customer’s quality expectations. As the company has grown and evolved with the ever-changing manufacturing market, the Pax team has worked to ensure that business can progress systematically, too. In response to these ongoing conversations, the team determined that, while overall happy with the experience on their legacy system, Pax needed to explore implementing something new to remain competitive.

With significant custom programming and reliance on a single employee to assist Pax within their legacy system, the team recognized that a new system was the best option to maintain their momentum. So, they began the search, ultimately reviewing 17 software packages and carrying out seven demos to find the best fit. A four-person committee was established to review each of the different systems and guarantee they made the right choice.

Despite initial hesitation with Plex’s cloud-based model, Pax Machine Works was intrigued by Plex and how smart manufacturing technology could support the company’s future improvements. After demonstrating how existing pieces of the Pax Machine Works puzzle would fit into Plex seamlessly and eventually become even more enhanced, Plex ERP was chosen as Pax’s new system.

Embracing Change Through Implementation

The Plex implementation was successfully adopted with the encouragement of upper management and personal involvement from key figures at Pax Machine Works. The in-depth level of understanding across the company made for a united front as they began the implementation. Pax also enlisted assistance from Revolution Group, a third-party system integrator, who helped throughout the process. Additionally, Pax Machine Works used departmental subject matter experts (SMEs) who took the lead and embraced Plex as a precursor to the training of all Pax employees.

Pax Machine Works went live with Plex in February of 2016—their team felt confident they were ready to move forward, and all parties were fully prepared. The go-live itself was characterized as “entertaining,” with Pax experiencing a major storm and power outage on the second day of switching systems. However, even with the severe weather, the Pax team carried out the implementation. They were pleasantly surprised that they could utilize Plex to ship parts from cell phone connections on battery-powered laptops during the inclement weather. This was an added perk that reassured the Pax team they had made the right decision in migrating to Plex.

Change can be difficult, and even after a successful go-live, some employees expressed hesitance in transitioning to Plex. Having been on the legacy system for many years, employees were comfortable and confident in the custom programming they were used to using. However, Jeff Pax, Administrative Manager at Pax Machine Works, stated that those same employees were fully onboard and even found Plex easier to navigate within a few days.

Digitized Improvements and Visibility

After implementing Plex, the company hoped to see several main improvements: increased digitization, visibility, and ease of use. Fortunately, Plex has helped to streamline Pax processes and achieve those goals since implementation in 2016. Specifically, the quoting process has been simplified and the company can now better track employee responsibilities. More modern technology on the shop floor, including automated check sheets, has been embraced by both older and younger generations. With an influx of newly recruited employees to counteract upcoming retirements, Pax Machine Works is pleased with the impact of the shop floor modernization thus far and is confident the innovative technology will continue to make a difference for years to come.

The move from their legacy system to Plex has been a notable improvement for the Pax Machine Works team, helping to not only streamline processes but also push accountability. Digital processes have also helped to increase the response rate to Pax customers and provide real-time data for increased visibility. Required by their customers, the company also experiences frequent audits – Plex has simplified the audit process by allowing Pax to quickly retrieve necessary information.

Pax Machine Works has big plans with Plex as they continue to optimize operational efficiency. The team is currently implementing Plex MES Automation and Orchestration (A&O), a scalable process automation solution, and is simultaneously kicking off the implementation stage of Plex’s Machine Integration solution. Additionally, Pax is working on various production dashboards for even greater visibility and progressing towards a full transition to Plex UX. With Plex, Pax Machine Works Inc. is continuing to make strides in the metal stamping world and upholding the quality standard that its customers have come to expect and appreciate.