Choosing machinery is the easy part. It’s what comes after that matters most.
Modern cutting tables, toughening furnaces and IGU lines are all capable of delivering impressive results, and most reputable manufacturers will provide equipment that does exactly what it is designed to do. To choose between them, you can compare performance figures, seek out reviews or recommendations and calculate returns-on-investment. But as Flat Glass Solutions (FGS) managing director David ‘Oz’ Cahill points out, the real test begins once the machine is installed.
“Anyone can sell you machinery that looks great on paper,” says Oz. “The question is what happens when something unexpected stops production? That’s when you find out whether your supplier is genuinely there for you.”
In a glass processing environment, downtime is extremely costly. Production schedules are tight, customers need on-time deliveries and energy-intensive equipment such as toughening furnaces can consume significant amounts of power even when idle.
“When the line stops, the numbers add up very quickly,” Oz says. “You’re losing output, operators are standing around and customers are waiting. Suddenly aftersales support becomes worth far more than any specification sheet.”
Fast, responsive support
FGS has built its reputation on combining machinery sourced from leading manufacturers around the world with responsive technical support. The company’s approach is based on a simple principle: no matter where the equipment is manufactured, support must be immediate, practical and focused on getting lines running again, fast.
“We supply machinery from Europe and Asia, but from the customer’s point of view there is absolutely no impact where it’s from,” says Oz. “If there’s a problem, our customers get the answers they need straight away. Because they don’t want excuses about time zones or language barriers, they just want the issue sorted.”
That commitment was demonstrated recently when Hills Glass, a family business that has been supplying glass products to the home improvement and construction-related industries for 75 years, encountered an issue with the Yuntong toughening furnace it had purchased 11 years earlier. With production halted, the FGS team worked with its technical contacts to identify the problem and communicate a solution within the hour.
“Hills had a problem at 9am, and were up and running again by 10am,” says Oz. “Simon [Hill] was straight on the phone to Gary Dobson in our UK office who was ably supported by Catherine Li, who runs our FGS office in China. It’s exactly the kind of situation we are ready for. The goal is simple: to get you back operational as quickly as possible.”
In it for the long haul
This sort of responsive support is exactly why Double R Glass & Roofing Systems recently renewed its maintenance contract with FGS for its Yinrui cutting tables. Three years ago Double R invested in the two cutting tables, both with edge deletion and automatic double-sided glass loaders, which produced no discernible difference in performance or product quality than more expensive alternatives. Both tables now form a critical part of Double R’s production of approximately 1,000 sealed units a day.
“Like many of our customers, Double R were initially cautious about moving to Chinese-manufactured equipment when making the wrong decision would have serious implications on their business. We worked closely with Double R to plan and install the tables, with engineers from both ourselves and Yinrui ensuring production was not disrupted.
“The cutting tables are at the heart of their operations now and to be fair they’ve been absolute workhorses. But when equipment is that integral to daily output, customers need confidence that support is only a phone call away. Our customers know we’re committed to keeping their operation running efficiently for the long term.”
Oz is on a mission to show that machinery investment decisions should be based on more than brand names, headline specifications and purchase price.
“At the end of the day, processors want reliability,” he concludes. “Yes, they need good machinery, but they also need to know someone will pick up the phone and help when it matters most. That’s what turns a purchase into a partnership.”
It’s a philosophy that has helped FGS build long-standing relationships across the glass processing sector, with many customers returning as their businesses expand and modernise.
