Driving software development
Challenging opportunities
When I started working at LVD, my first major project was to design the SQL Server database, and I’m still really proud of that, even today! It’s a very open concept: in addition to tools and bending technology, the database also contains machines, workpieces, and job lists. All CADMAN products can connect to the same database and exchange data.
What makes CADMAN® Suite unique is that now the software for bending and laser cutting is fully integrated.
Our universal software must be able to control all machines, and that is precisely where the challenge lies! This is not only practical for us, but also for the operators. If they can set configurations on a TOUCH-B, they will have no problems handling TOUCH-L; the user experience is the same.
My job largely consists of coming up with new concepts for CADMAN Suite as well as the further development of CADMAN-B. I have direct contact with beta customers, who test our new software. I also give internal training to sales and customer service staff whenever new software is released.
The nice thing about my job is that you have control of everything from analysis, programming, and testing on-site at the customer, to service and support.
A good team
Our dynamic software team consists of 15 people. New colleagues are usually recruited at the end of their internship. Those who prove that they can carry out a project properly usually have a good chance of staying on. I have good colleagues, we have grown as a team and know what we can expect from each other! Weekly and monthly scrum and sprint meetings ensure that we are informed about what the other team members are working on and save a lot of time. For example, we may decide to use an existing development in other applications.
An open-minded approach
What do customers want and what do they want to do with it? You learn a lot when you visit a customer’s premises to check out the possibilities.
A good example of this is a project we did for a manufacturer of luxury fireplaces in the Netherlands. The customer asked for a short report with a list of the lasered pieces that still had to undergo the bending process, along with the related tools, so that he could sort them for his press brakes and enter them manually. We deliberated as to how we could avoid this extra manual step. In the end, we did the programming on-site at the customer, and we set up a complete software platform for them. Now the customer can scan pieces using bar codes and they appear immediately on their screen.
Thanks to automating this process, it is now much faster and fewer errors are made. We went beyond the customer’s initial request, but the bar code scanning fits perfectly into their QRM system and can also be implemented for other customers.
Just do it
The freedom to program and implement that something extra has often led to good results, such as transparency in the TOUCH-B control. That’s the strength of LVD: we think outside the box. If we think something is necessary, we do it.
