25 years of partnership

A partnership that grows with you

At Matthys Group, innovation is not just a buzzword, but a way of working. The family-run business designs and builds complex, bespoke machines for manufacturing companies across the globe in a wide range of industries, including textiles, plastics and building materials. These machines are large, modular and technically challenging. “We rarely build exactly the same machine twice,” says Charlotte Matthys, who is responsible for sales and marketing. “That is our strength, but it also makes our entire value chain complex.”

Matthys has been working with Savaco for over 25 years. For Paul Tack, IT Manager at Matthys, flexibility and scalability are the key strengths of this long-standing partnership: “Over the years, Savaco has introduced me to a wide range of new technologies and enabled us to experience their benefits: from 3D CAD software to Product Lifecycle Management and much more. What sets Savaco apart is that they not only implement the right technology, but do so in a flexible manner – with the growth of the Matthys Group in mind. As a result, the technology they provide us with is scalable and flexible enough to grow alongside our business,” he explains.

One recent example of how Savaco and Matthys Group innovate together, is the launch of MG Portal, the Matthys Group’s digital customer portal, where customers can easily identify spare parts and access documentation.

3D model at the heart of the process, from production to after-sales

At the heart of the new platform lies a significant process innovation. “We are increasingly using our 3D model as the reference document for our production workshop and therefore no longer produce traditional assembly drawings,” explains Paul. “This saves our design engineers a great deal of time. However, this focus on the 3D model also made it more difficult to make spare parts accessible to our customers. After all, our spare parts files used to be derived from those assembly drawings. That is why we developed a completely new method in which spare parts files are based on the 3D model, and we sought a solution to then make them accessible to our customers.”

Spare parts clearly displayed in MG Portal

To this end, Paul sought advice from Savaco. “We already had an idea of how we wanted to go about it,” says Paul. “But Savaco took a broader view and introduced us to some innovative tools to get started with: a customer portal based on Microsoft Azure and NeoSpace, a tool that allows us to create visualisations based on the 3D model of our machines.”

The result is MG Portal, a secure online environment with three levels:

  • A separate environment for each customer
  • An overview of all relevant information for each project
  • 3D models, documents and schematics for each machine

    The 3D models are converted to a lightweight format via NeoSpace, so that customers can view them in the portal but cannot download them. “That’s how we protect our intellectual property,” explains Paul. “Everything is read-only and encrypted. We’ve also given careful thought to roles and permissions within the system, so that users (whether internal or at the client’s site) can only access the information relevant to them.”
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Time savings and better service

Thanks to MG Portal, the engineering team no longer needs to produce 2D drawings for spare parts. “That saves us a huge amount of time,” says Charlotte. “Our engineers can focus on their core expertise, rather than on repetitive tasks.”

For customers, the portal represents a major step forward, as it has evolved into much more than just a spare parts portal. “Our customers, as well as the partners we work with, now have a single central location where all the information is available,” Charlotte continues. “From 3D visualisations to electrical diagrams. External installers can also view simplified drawings. That makes our service faster and more transparent.”

After-sales as a strategic asset

MG Portal fits perfectly with the Matthys Group’s strategy to further expand its after-sales services. “Today, service is one of our strengths: if a customer experiences a breakdown, we spring into action straight away to help them. In the future, we want to evolve further towards proactive service, with maintenance plans and SLAs,” says Charlotte. “This portal is a first step in that direction.”

The impact is significant internally too. “We are working more efficiently, and our customers are experiencing a better service,” concludes Paul. “Savaco has helped us set up a flexible and scalable system that grows alongside our ambitions.”

What can a customer portal like this do for you?

Are you also looking to streamline your after-sales process? Then follow Matthys Group’s example: start with a 3D model of your product and build a customer portal that really benefits your customers. With NeoSpace’s technology, excellent after-sales service is closer than you think.

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