Siemens integrates configurator software for engineer to order motors

Siemens Energy and Automation says it’s reduced costs, absolutely slashed quotation times and improved customer satisfaction since implementing packaged sales product configurator software for its engineer to order industrial motor manufacturing. The firm worked with ERP developer Cincom Manufacturing to build an interactive selling and product configuration system dubbed Motor Pro, that captured and automated Siemens’ best experts’ knowledge and makes it available at the point of sale. John Larabee, manager of Engineering Systems at Siemens, says the project has been a complete success, right down to providing automatically generated certified motor performance data and CAD drawings. Larabee: “Our goal was to capture the knowledge of our motor experts, and bring that closer to the point of sale. Now our sales people and customers can use Cincom’s solution to guide them through the process of configuring and pricing an electric motor without having to be a motor expert, or risk choosing an invalid selection.” Quotation times, he says, have been cut from days to minutes, but one of the most powerful gains has been the drawings and CAD link. “Because motors can be a critical path for our customers, and for OEMs are an integral part of their products’ design, certified CAD motor drawings and performance data are required as deliverables. This process once took four to six weeks, but now takes us less than one hour.” And that’s not all. Larabee says Siemens can now dynamically create and load bills of material into ERP. “[The system] has helped us move engineering closer to our customers, enabling us to better serve their needs, while opening up time to focus on our most complex customer requirements.”