In order to have more time for turning metal pieces instead of turning pedals on the bicycle, Mr. Rich, born in 1899, suggested to his employer that he manufacture various items at home and transport them once a week by car to Stuttgart. By saving time and effort on the commute, he was able to increase his performance which, in turn, allowed him to take on more projects and work for additional employers. This allowed Mr. Rich’s business to grow beyond a one-man operation. In 1968, he transferred his business, which employed 15 workers by then, to his then 28-year old son, Siegfried Rich. Rich junior controlled the company until 2000 before he passed it on to the next generation.
Today, Rich-Präzision, run and operated by Gottfried and Wolfgang Rich, has 35 employees manufacturing precision metal parts with the highest CNC-quality. Revolutionary industrial advancements, taking quantum leaps especially in the technical production of machine-manipulated parts, as well as the company owners’ consistent ambition to operate a successful business, have lead to the continued expansion of Rich-Präzision GMBH.
As the company expanded and its output increased, so did the demand for quality. The company achieved an increase in production pieces in direct correlation to a reduction in error tolerance down to a hundredth of a millimeter. Parts, such as metal sealing valve seats and magnet anchors for controlling and regulating technologies, as well as parts used in water treatment and cooling technologies or hydraulics and pneumatics, require precision not ascertainable by the human eye. In order to satisfy the quality demands of clients, the Swabian company Rich Präzision turned to CAQ AG in Rhineland-Palatine.
In accordance with its region-specific focal point of serving the automobile industry, Rich Präzision decided as early as 1995 to rely on computer aided quality. “At that time we worked with computers that you would call steam engines nowadays,” explains company owner and CEO Wolfgang Rich. “One would think that technology from back then would no longer serve any purpose today. But of course CAQ software technology has advanced steadily just as we have. Consistent system updates and the software’s performance expansion guarantee, just as they did 10 years ago, the high level of quality to which we are committed.”
With its emphasis on CNC manufacturing of customer-specific lathing parts and the corresponding customer-demanded guidelines, Rich Präzision has placed its trust since 1995 in CAQ AG Factory Systems when it comes to matters of quality. CAQ AG has devoted itself for more than 20 years to developing and manufacturing high-performance software solutions for state-of-the-art quality and environmental management.
In order to maintain the desired level of quality, the software system, customized to fit the specific demands of Rich Präzision, acquires all details involved in daily processing and saves these in corresponding allocations. Company owner Rich speaks with enthusiasm of his software: “With lot sizes of up to 5,000 individual pieces, ca. 600 different production parts, and an annual output of approximately 1,000,000 pieces, we have over 1,500 procedures saved in our system. Since 1995 we have been able to trace every single batch, and have been able to list the lot sizes and performances in detail. If there were ever any quality-related problems – which luckily have not occurred thus far – we would be able to trace and evaluate them at a later point in time.”
The foundation for the high user satisfaction can be found after extensive research as well as concluding interviews with diverse providers/developers at the annual quality tradeshow Control. Unitil recently, Rich Präzision used a gauge administration system which ran up against limits of its own performance capacity. With the goal of implementing a standard software system which can be updated and at the same time be customized without any problems, Rich Präzision was left with only a handful of systems that were potential suppliers.
The solution to finding a software supplier was CAQ AG Factory Systems, which, according to Wolfgang Rich, “could provide the perfect price/performance ratio as well as adaptability. In CAQ AG we have found a partner who supports us in all endeavors”. Rich continues: “When we confront CAQ AG with a challenge, we can expect to get a practical solution in no time, one which conforms to our request perfectly both in terms of content and price.”
Currently, the specialists for lathing parts use the software system for goods issue quality control which serves voluntary operator control as well as satisfies demands of DIN ISO 9001. In addition to the base module CAQ Compact.Net® the company consistently employs customized components of first sampling inspection EMP.Net® as well as the production resource management module PMM.Net®. Rich Präzision is particularly proud of the fact that its module for rejection management REM.Net® has not had to be employed up until now. “After all, it is a sign that our quality control prior to production conclusion operates optimally”, explains the company owner and adds jokingly, “The fact that we own a “superfluous” software module is a small price to pay for the fact that we haven’t had to record returns due to errors.”
Not in the least “superfluous” is for Rich Präzision the TSP module “Top Service Pack”. Investing in this module company owner Wolfgang Rich sees as “absolutely wise in a business sense”.
“The fact that we have been able to operate our CAQ software since 1995 without any interruption is partially due to using the CAQ AG Factory Systems TSP which we have dubbed the “all-round worry-free pack”. In addition to the offered training sessions, which we make use of regularly to optimize software usage, the updates are, in the true sense of the word, a top service. After all, this does not just include superficial improvements but also user specifications which are fed into the software and make it even more efficient.”
Since updates – so highly regarding by Rich Präzision – are in operation after only 30 minutes of installation time and bring the software up to the latest technological state, the company makes use of them regularly. The next big update for this company producing metal sealing valve seats is already scheduled. CAQ AG Factory Systems’ module Cust.Net®, making possible a customer-specific software interface, will be integrated into Rich Präzision’s software system.
“Imagine the relief in work load that such a customized design of the user interface will bring about”, declares Rich enthusiastically. “Even a proficient software user always has to check to see which options in the software application are relevant for him or her. If it were possible to blend out those options that are not relevant for our particular business, it would alleviate a lot of searching and many delays which will definitely make job output much more efficient. Such application improvements make working more fun too. We look forward to another 10 years of cooperation with CAQ AG Factory Systems. We are certain to have the right software system working for us.”
Renowned customers especially demanding in the area of quality and environmental management describe their success stories and serve as guarantors and references for software that yields high performance and is reliable and fair.
From mid-size companies to multi-national corporations, CAQ AG develops innovative, integrated software solutions that satisfy the highest demands and meet all requirements of quality management.
Furthermore, CAQ AG software supports all quality-related processes pertaining to any value added chain, production companies, and service providers. We attach special importance to compliance with standards as well as 100% release-capability of all of our software solutions without any restrictions – all this while retaining the maximum degree of customization to satisfy customer-specific demands.
Although CAQ AG software solutions are installed on thousands of systems worldwide, we guarantee that you can update your version automatically, no matter how many updates and upgrades you have installed previously. All upgrades function with minimum servicing time and effort onsite. Updates install automatically without requiring you to consult or involve our service staff. Updates neither change nor impede any customer-specific configurations. This principle ensures the full value of your investments.
In all of our efforts our most important goal is not just to satisfy you, but instead to thrill you! One thing is essential to realizing this goal – and we are very proud of our accomplishments on this front: We have a highly motivated, engaged, and competent team in which and with which working is fun!
It is a matter of course for us here at CAQ AG that our employees in development, support, customer service, sales, and management, in addition to having university degrees as well as practical experience, have completed the training courses for “Quality Manager GFQ-IHK” or “Quality Assistant GFQ-IHK” and stay up-to-date by continuously completing training programs.
