Kurtz Ersa Maximizes Machine Uptime and Productivity with Fieldbit's Augmented Reality Platform for Field Service

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1 Kurtz Ersa Maximizes Machine Uptime and Productivity with Fieldbit's Augmented Reality Platform for Field Service JULY 2017

2 Kurtz Ersa: Global Manufacturer of Production Machinery With a rich history dating back to 1779, Kurtz Ersa is a best-in-class manufacturer of particle foam machines and other innovative production equipment for the global manufacturing industry. Kurtz Ersa comprises three equipment divisions that design, build and support production machinery for customers who operate manufacturing facilities in 135 different countries. Committed to outstanding service and support, Kurtz Ersa relies on a cadre of approximately 120 engineers, technicians and apprentices to service its machines around the globe. The Service Challenge: Preventing Costly Downtime and Improving Field Technicians' Proficiency Given the global distribution of its growing customer base and the size of its workforce, providing efficient field maintenance for Kurtz Ersa' production machinery is a constant challenge. Adding to the complexity is the fact that the density of equipment per site is relatively low, and most systems are customized to a customer s specific needs. Thus, it is very difficult to staff regional field service teams with the specific knowledge necessary to maintain equipment for all customers in a given region. Kurtz GmbH employs small teams of field service engineers (FSEs), each of which covers a large geographic area. The knowledge and skill sets of Kurtz FSEs vary from team to team, which include both experienced FSEs as well as apprentices. This fact, combined with the customized nature of the equipment, makes it impossible for every FSE to possess a high level of proficiency in every product line. Remote support was not effective Three years ago, when a customer experienced a problem with its machine, they called Kurtz for support. Kurtz s technicians would try to help the customer resolve the problem over the phone. However, for a variety of reasons (e.g., aging workforce, shortages of skilled workers, plant downsizing, etc.), many of Kurtz s customers no longer employed highly trained, skilled maintenance personnel. This led to low remote resolution rates and frequent callbacks from customers to resolve the same problem. 2 FIELDBIT LTD ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

3 Often, the only way to be certain that the problem had been resolved satisfactorily was for Kurtz's technician to travel to the customer site. While functioning as an effective contingency plan for the customer, onsite visits were a major burden for Kurtz. First, Kurtz s service department became even more stretched on human resources. If an FSE had to travel to fix a problem, then nobody else was available to handle new installations or other technical calls that arose in the meantime. In addition, the small volume of service requests that Kurtz received didn t justify keeping FSEs "on standby" for the rare instances when a new service request would come in. Onsite visits could last anywhere from a few hours to a few days or weeks, depending on the customer s location and the complexity of the problem. This created more pressure from the standpoint of FSE availability and added more costs to Kurtz s service operations. Lastly, Kurtz was concerned that its younger generation of FSEs would find excessive travel to be stressful and potentially cause them to leave the company. The Goal: Turn Outstanding Field Service into a Competitive Edge Kurtz' International Service Manager, Elmar Guetling, realized that in order to maintain the company's leadership position, it was not enough to provide the highest quality machines. Future success would be predicated upon also providing an innovative technological solution for field service. Our competitors don t sleep, notes Guetling, and service is a standard by which all manufacturers are measured. Service is critical for Kurtz's customers since machine downtime can disrupt a customer's production operations and result in tens of thousands of dollars in lost revenue. Service is a standard by which all manufacturers are measured 3 FIELDBIT LTD ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

4 The Solution: Fieldbit's Augmented Reality Collaboration Platform Consistent with its vision to be at the forefront of field service technology, Kurtz decided to implement the Fieldbit Hero platform. This proprietary software solution enables remote experts to send precise visual instructions to onsite field technicians using realtime augmented reality, live video, messaging and voice. With full support for smart glasses (as well as mobile devices), this platform enables Kurtz s service experts and customers to share a view of faulty equipment in real time. Fieldbit lets customer personnel transmit live video from the machine, creating better diagnostics and eliminating unnecessary visits. Using augmented reality, Kurtz's remote service experts can send superimposed diagrams, instructions and video annotations to the technician on site so customers can resolve the issue themselves. If the customer requires additional help, an FSE can then be dispatched. Once onsite, the FSE can be guided step-by-step from a remote Kurtz expert familiar with the particular machine in order to resolve the problem as quickly as possible. 4 FIELDBIT LTD ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

5 The Results: Better Service, Enhanced Customer Satisfaction, Fast ROI Kurtz began to use Fieldbit Hero in August of 2016 and expects to receive a return on investment within one year through enhanced FSE productivity and reduced operational costs. For example, service events that would typically take several days onsite to resolve were completed within one hour by telephone. Not only has the quality of customer service improved, but FSEs are happier and more productive in their daily work. Guetling also credits the Fieldbit team with providing a supportive and proactive environment for the implementation, rollout, training, and ongoing support of the solution. Another benefit of the platform is that it's very easy to use. This helped to facilitate user adoption and accelerate time to results. As Guetling says, It's not that complex. It's very intuitive. We can use it automatically. Fieldbit enables us to offer best in class after-sales service to our customers. 5 FIELDBIT LTD ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

6 Today Fieldbit Hero is a basic component of each service team's toolkit, while the financial justification exists to support its continued use. If Kurtz can avoid just one service visit per month, the investment in Fieldbit pays for itself. Ultimately, Guetling believes that using Fieldbit's cutting-edge augmented reality platform enhances Kurtz s reputation as an innovative market leader. The ability to provide best-in-class machinery as well as excellent post-sales service via Fieldbit Hero sets Kurtz apart from the competition. ABOUT KURTZ ERSA Founded in 1779 as iron hammer works in the Spessart Forest, Kurtz Ersa has developed into an international conglomerate with worldwide presence. With three areas of business Electronics Production Equipment (Ersa), Molding Machines (Kurtz) and Metal Components Kurtz Ersa offers innovative solutions for the most successful companies in the manufacturing industry. As technology leader with worldwide 15 locations and 1,200 competent employees Kurtz Ersa repeatedly sets new standards to further improve the productivity of its customers. ABOUT FIELDBIT Founded in 2014, Fieldbit is a leading developer of real-time augmented reality collaboration solutions. Its enterprise class, out-of-the-box, hands-free technology enables on-site service engineers to collaborate seamlessly with experts in the service center, and to receive all the know-how and guidance they need to solve issues quickly. Fieldbit increases remote resolution and first time fix rates, minimizing costly downtime and enhancing customer satisfaction. All actions and information exchanged in a repair session are recorded and documented, helping organizations preserve practical knowledge and address the challenges of an aging workforce. For more information, please visit or info@fieldbit.net. 6 FIELDBIT LTD ALL RIGHTS RESERVED