Richard Parks, from Cadspec, explains how the Made in Yorkshire member continues to support its workforce and develop a new way of working during the Coronavirus outbreak.
Speaking about how the Yorkshire-based company has responded to the situation, Richard said, “During the ongoing situation, our first response was to maintain own business and make it sustainable during these trying times. Doing this we recognised that a new way of working was emerging, and we knew how we could help other businesses get through it.”
Richard went on to say how supporting their workforce to work-from-home, was a key challenge the company faced, saying, “We quickly saw that remote working was key and so we set up several free tutorials, webinars and technical support calls enabling our customers to keep their organisations going. Supported by our partners Autodesk we helped get dozens of companies working from living rooms, dining rooms and kitchens.”
“Once we’d assisted in the setup of remote working the next phase was to ensure that companies with limited staff could still design and manufacture key products not just supporting the NHS but manufacturing as a whole. Our technical team helped with design validation, managing BOM (bills of materials) and FEA analysis, maintaining a steady stream of vital parts going through manufacturing and production facilities.”
Yet despite furloughing some staff, Cadspec has used the time to invest in training. Speaking Richard said, “We’ve also set up a training program for furloughed workers to attend free remote CAD/CAM training courses to ensure they maintain and develop their skillsets while on furlough. This ensures that upon returning to work UK Engineers are more knowledgeable and productive.
Our aim is now to continue supporting the UK’s manufacturing industry and Backing Britain to evolve our way of working and ensure we continue to deliver world-class manufactured products.”