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KIT® named finalist for Software Solution of the Year at the 2026 Instrumentation & Electronics Awards

September 3, 2026/in Aerospace, Automotive, Defence, ExploreKit, Food & Drink, News/by Wayne Stant

Coplan Ltd is delighted to announce that KIT® has been named a finalist in the Software Solution of the Year category at the 2026 Instrumentation & Electronics Awards. The shortlisting recognises KIT’s innovative approach to inventory intelligence, calibration management and operational readiness, as well as its growing impact across the instrumentation sector.

According to the award organisers: “Software solutions can, among other things, help solve problems or improve operational efficiency. This award recognises the most innovative software solutions and services in the instrumentation sector.”

While many equipment inventory solutions focus on recording assets, KIT goes further by combining a highly visual approach to asset management, inventory intelligence, calibration tracking and audit automation in a single platform. This enables organisations to reduce operational risk, improve efficiency and maintain complete confidence in asset readiness.

KIT’s innovation lies in transforming traditionally manual, time-consuming asset management processes into highly visual, auditable workflows that improve productivity, compliance and service delivery. Today, KIT helps organisations manage hundreds of thousands of critical assets for large manufacturing & specialist engineering customers in highly regulated sectors such as aerospace, automotive, food and drink and defence.

The KIT platform demonstrates:

Innovation within the instrumentation sector
Proven operational efficiency gains
Strong user adoption through intuitive design
Measurable customer outcomes
Scalability across industries and operational environments

While many enterprise systems struggle with user adoption, KIT succeeds because it reflects the reality of the shop floor. By mirroring physical workspaces through intuitive visual interfaces, the platform transforms complex inventory management into fast, simple and highly controlled processes. The result is less administration, greater accuracy and more time spent on productive operational activities.

“Being shortlisted for Software Solution of the Year is fantastic recognition of the work our team has put into developing KIT,” said Wayne Stant, Head of Marketing Strategy for KIT. “We’ve focused on solving practical operational challenges faced by many organisations every day. By making inventories visual, accessible and intuitive, KIT has achieved something rare in industrial software: genuine user adoption. Teams can verify equipment readiness in seconds rather than hours, delivering better compliance, faster audits and greater productivity.”

Shortlisting for Software Solution of the Year marks another important milestone for KIT as it continues to help organisations improve operational readiness, simplify compliance and gain greater control of critical assets.

The winners will be announced at the Instrumentation & Electronics Awards ceremony on 15 October 2026 at London’s Grand Connaught Rooms, where KIT will compete alongside some of the instrumentation sector’s most innovative software and technology providers.

How KIT helps manufacturers take back time and stay in control of tooling

June 16, 2026/in Aerospace, Automotive, Blog, Defence, Food & Drink/by Wayne Stant

A recent article in Manufacturing Management highlighted findings from research published in the report “Same factory, different reality – the growing divide between manufacturing leadership and operators” by OFS that details an all too familiar problem in UK manufacturing: too much time is still being lost to manual reporting, disconnected systems and a lack of real-time visibility or control.

When operators spend valuable minutes logging information, chasing updates or waiting for someone else to surface an issue, productivity suffers. The real cost is not only admin time. It is slower response, more downtime, missed deadlines and less confidence in the data being used on the shop floor. KIT is built to solve exactly these problems by giving manufacturers a simpler, faster way to manage tooling, audits and calibration in one place.

1. KIT reduces manual reporting and admin-heavy workflows

One of the biggest issues raised in the report is the amount of time operators lose to manual reporting. KIT helps remove that burden by replacing scattered spreadsheets, paper-based checks and disconnected records with one intelligent tool control system. Instead of spending time updating multiple logs or preparing information for audits, teams can complete visual tool audits in seconds, access centralised records instantly and keep tooling data current without the usual back-and-forth. That means less time feeding systems and more time focused on production.

2. KIT gives instant visibility of tooling status

The report makes it clear that limited access to real-time information slows down decision-making. KIT changes that by giving manufacturers immediate visibility of their tooling inventory, calibration status and audit position. Using KIT’s dashboard, teams can see what tools they have, where they are, what condition they are in and what needs attention without relying on someone to pull reports manually. This instant visibility helps issues get spotted earlier, reduces the risk of tooling gaps and supports quicker, better-informed decisions on the shop floor.

3. KIT improves control and accountability across operations

Disconnected systems often create uncertainty around ownership, responsibility and next actions. KIT brings control back by creating a single source of truth for tooling records, audit activity and calibration requirements. With everything managed centrally, manufacturers can standardise processes, reduce tool creep, improve traceability and make it easier for teams to work consistently across departments or sites. Better control does not just support compliance; it also reduces the operational noise that distracts teams from value-adding work.

4. KIT helps manufacturers free up time where it matters most

Manufacturers do not win by asking skilled people to spend more of their shift on admin. They win when those people can focus on production, quality and solving problems early. By simplifying audits, streamlining calibration management and centralising tooling information, KIT helps free up time across the business. Time that would otherwise be lost to searching, checking, logging and chasing can be reinvested in higher-value activity. The result is a more efficient operation, with less friction and fewer delays.

Why this matters now

Many manufacturers have invested in digital systems, but the report suggests that too many frontline processes still remain manual beneath the surface. That is exactly where KIT delivers value. It does not add more complexity. It removes it. By making tool control simpler, more visible and more actionable, KIT helps manufacturers move beyond the appearance of digital transformation and towards something more useful: time saved, better decisions and stronger operational control.

For manufacturers looking to cut wasted time and give teams the clarity they need to perform, intelligent tool control is not a nice to have. It is a practical way to reduce friction, improve responsiveness and create a more productive factory floor. That is where KIT makes the difference.

The DNA of resilience

May 6, 2026/in Blog, COSHH & Safety, Food & Drink, Tool Audits, Tool Calibration, Tool Standardisation/by Mark Pedrasa

Why the Greencore-Bakkavor era demands tool-level discipline

The landscape of UK convenience food shifted on its axis in January 2026. With the finalised acquisition of Bakkavor, Greencore has emerged as a homegrown manufacturing titan, generating £4.1 billion in revenue and employing 28,000 colleagues across 36 locations.

But for a business now responsible for delivering 1 billion sandwiches and 400 million chilled meals every year, the greatest strategic threat isn’t just market competition, it is “standardisation drift” or “tool creep” as we sometimes call it.

The “mega-scale” standardisation challenge

Resilience at this scale is impossible if every site has its own way of managing equipment. In a multi-site network, inconsistencies in tool selection or storage lead to fragmented processes and rising costs. As Greencore pursues “delivery excellence,” the fundamental requirement is a unified standard for the physical tools that power their 3,200 products.

Whether a site is in the UK or the US, the health and organisation of its physical assets are the “DNA” of its resilience.

Circular thinking: more than just a marketing story

This shift toward tool-level discipline is further accelerated by the UK Government’s 2026 Circular Economy Growth Plan. This mandate isn’t just about recycling; it’s a structural requirement for businesses to take greater responsibility for the entire lifecycle of their products and assets.

In the factory, “circular thinking” means moving away from the “disposable tool” culture. By standardising high-quality tools and tracking them through 5S shadow boards, linked to their digital twins in software like KIT that prompts manufacturers to regularly inspect and calibrate their tools enables manufacturers to significantly extend the lifecycle of their equipment and eliminate the waste of frequent, unmanaged replacements.

The ROI of organisation

In a market defined by 5.7% food inflation and chronic labour shortages, tool loss is a “margin issue” that manufacturers can no longer ignore. Case studies show that simple organisation through shadow boards and foam inlays coupled with regular visual checks can save single facilities tens of thousands of pounds in replacement costs alone.

But the real value is in “shock absorption”. When a factory is organised, it can handle volatility, from sudden demand spikes to unexpected staff absences, without the constant firefighting caused by missing or uncalibrated equipment.

The “limbs” of the smart factory

As we move toward “autonomous, smart operations” where AI acts as the plant’s brain, your tools are the limbs. If those limbs are uncalibrated or unorganised, the most advanced AI in the world cannot guarantee safety or efficiency.

If your tools are not correctly looked after, then the robots and machinery they service and maintain or the products they build will suffer and the knock-on effects can be severe and costly.

With 35% of food safety non-conformances already linked to maintenance and calibration gaps, the message for 2026 is clear: Resilience isn’t built in the boardroom; it’s built at the tool level.

KIT wins big: named Calibration Product of the Year at 2025 Instrumentation & Electronics Awards

October 27, 2025/in Aerospace, Automotive, Defence, Food & Drink, News, Tool Calibration/by coplan

Making tool calibration a seamless part of your operation

Milton Keynes, UK – October 27, 2025: KIT®, the innovative tool control and calibration management platform, has been named Calibration Product of the Year at the prestigious Instrumentation and Electronics Awards 2025.

One of fifteen product award categories, the Calibration Product of the Year highlights that “Calibration is an essential part of the measurement process, ensuring that instruments are delivering to the correct standard. This award recognises the top product that makes calibration possible.”

This recognition celebrates KIT’s commitment to precision, reliability, and digital transformation in calibration workflows. By streamlining inventory management, visual audits, and calibration tracking, KIT removes headaches for operational leads and empowers engineering teams to maintain compliance and control with ease.

“We’re honoured to receive this award. It’s a testament to the hard work of our team and the trust our customers place in KIT to simplify and elevate their calibration processes,” said Paul Mazaher, Managing Director of KIT. “This win reinforces our mission to bring clarity and control to every workspace.”

The award demonstrates KIT’s growing impact across industries where accuracy and accountability are critical, from aerospace and automotive, to advanced manufacturing.