March 2025 – Coplan / KIT

Driving precision: KIT’s role in calibration management for a British luxury motor manufacturer

March 31, 2025/in Automotive, Case Study, Defence, Tool Calibration/by coplan

A British luxury motor manufacturer, renowned for its commitment to precision and quality, needed to ensure that their tool and equipment calibration processes were as robust as possible, whilst also enhancing how they managed and maintained their extensive array of calibrated tools and equipment.

A decision was made to partner with Coplan to implement KIT, a comprehensive calibration management solution designed to streamline the processes around prompting the collection and return of tooling and equipment amongst users whilst also offering a dynamic test and validation solution for internal validation of items.

Key Features & Benefits of KIT

Instant tool identification

Any tool or piece of equipment can be swiftly identified by scanning the attached barcode within the KIT application. This grants instant access to the calibration status, home location, owner(s) and other pertinent information. This streamlined process enhances efficiency and reduces downtime particularly when searching for and identifying tools ‘on the line’.

Calibration tests and validation

KIT enables users to create and publish the testing parameters for their calibrated tooling and equipment. The team are then able to perform validation checks on tooling and input the results. KIT cross-references the results against the parameters and then provides a detailed report for each and every test performed. The system offers a complete calibration history for every tool.

Reporting and reminders

KIT provides prompts and reminders via the system dashboard and notification emails, to ensure all appropriate parties are aware of equipment requiring calibration and the actions required to be taken. The system automates the traditional administrative task of notifying tooling and equipment owners to either arrange for their equipment to be ‘dropped off’ or collected as necessary, enabling teams to focus on the more proactive and appropriate tasks
KPI reports are also generated to provide the senior teams with an overview of performance, achievements and areas for improvement.

Return on Investment

Implementing KIT has resulted in a significant time saving for this manufacturer, through the reduction of manual administrative tasks typically associated with ensuring performance and compliance. Manual prompts and reminders have been replaced by automation whilst the ease of data access through in-app scanning reduces the time spent identifying tooling and equipment.
The company already maintained the highest standards for these critical processes and have looked to improve these further by utilising the efficiency, reliability and scalability of KIT.

Centralised data

The system infrastructure is built on the latest technology with system speed and ease-of-use of paramount importance. This approach facilitates easy access to and retreival of crucial information for the calibration process and operations.

KIT has empowered this British luxury motor manufacturer to elevate its calibration management processes, providing a scalable and customised solution that meets their very specific and unique needs. The implementation of KIT has not only improved efficiency but has also established a new standard for precision and accountability within the company’s tool calibration practices.

“KIT is a one-stop solution to store, record, inform and overall manage calibration of tools. We love the system. The prompts and reminder notifications alone are saving us 5 hours of admin emails a week. Overall, the system is easily saving us 1 day per week.”
Test & Measurement Manager
Leading British Automotive Manufacturer

KIT – Luxury Car Manufacturer Case Study

Overcoming calibration chaos

March 20, 2025/in Blog, Tool Calibration/by coplan

In any organisation where precision and accuracy are paramount, keeping tooling and equipment calibrated and tested is critical.

Yet, for Quality and Metrology managers, the process of gathering these tools for calibration often feels like herding cats.

Colleagues might overlook prompts and reminders, and relying on spreadsheets can make the entire process feel reactive and cumbersome. However, there are strategies that can ease this burden, such as systems that automate effective email prompts and reminders—provided the responsibility doesn’t solely fall on the Quality and Metrology departments—along with implementing 5S and Visual Management solutions.

The challenges of gathering tools for calibration

One of the most frustrating aspects of managing calibration schedules is the tendency for prompts and reminders to go unnoticed or unheeded. Whether it’s an email, a message on a collaboration platform, or even a physical reminder in the workspace, these notifications often fail to catch the attention they require. The reasons for this are many:

Email Overload: Inboxes are inundated with messages, and calibration reminders can easily get lost amidst more urgent or seemingly important communications. More notably, notifications are often not regular enough to prompt action, as it typically falls on a manual process to send and await a reply or action.
Lack of Immediate Relevance: For many employees, calibration doesn’t seem immediately relevant to their daily tasks, leading to deferment.
Cognitive Overload: Employees juggling multiple responsibilities might not prioritise calibration tasks, especially if they don’t see immediate consequences for delays.

Reactive spreadsheet management

Spreadsheets are a common tool for tracking calibration schedules, but they often lead to a reactive rather than proactive approach:

Outdated Information: Spreadsheets require constant updating, and it’s easy for data to become outdated, leading to missed calibration dates.
Lack of Real-Time Visibility: Spreadsheets don’t provide real-time visibility of tool locations and statuses, making it hard to quickly identify and retrieve items due for calibration.
Manual Errors: The manual nature of spreadsheet management introduces a higher risk of errors, which can complicate the calibration process further.

“Real-time visibility of tool statuses and locations allows for more proactive management, reducing the reactive nature of the process.”

Streamlining equipment and chemical management: Traka’s success with KIT

March 19, 2025/in Case Study, COSHH & Safety/by coplan

Traka, a leader in intelligent management solutions for keys and equipment, faced the challenge of managing an expanding inventory of tools and hazardous chemicals.

Key Challenges and Solutions

KIT enabled Traka to overcome several operational challenges:

Chemical Management (COSHH): Traka leveraged KIT’s digital system to improve safety and reduce on-site chemical quantities by digitizing Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) and marking them with QR codes.
Calibration Management: Moving from spreadsheets to KIT automated Traka’s calibration schedules, reducing errors and enhancing accountability with automated email prompts and dynamic reporting.
Uncontrolled Purchases: By assigning unique identifiers to each item, KIT helped Traka prevent unauthorised equipment purchases, streamlining inventory control.

Traka Case Study