Brazilian consumer goods leader

In the market for more than 40 years, competing against multinational enterprises, Esmaltec stands out today as the only consumer products company with 100 percent Brazilian capitalization. Esmaltec offers a complete line of products, including conventional ovens, water fountains, microwave ovens, refrigerators, freezers, water coolers, hoods and cooktops. The newest division of the company, Esmaltec Food and Beverage, produces a product line for commercial cooking. Its products are exported to more than 50 countries.

Known for its quality and reliability, Esmaltec is a national leader in the water fountain market, with a market share of approximately 40 percent. In 2008, the company established itself as a leader in oven sales. Esmaltec’s industrial park in Maracanaú, Ceará, has more than 213,000 square feet of space, 2,800 employees and the capacity to produce 300,000 units per month.

Facing a market situation in which rapidly deployed launches may ensure a company’s survival, and in which mistakes are not easily forgiven, Esmaltec decided to migrate to an integrated product development platform as a way to reduce the development cycle and improve reliability. The goals for the platform were 1) to integrate all areas, from design to simulation, including the manufacturing line and technical documentation, 2) to manage the resources available for the deployment of complex projects, 3) to offer greater control and reliability and 4) cost reduction.

Carefully chosen solution

The implementation was carefully studied by Esmaltec, which forecast a two-year implementation plan divided in three main stages: system analysis, onsite evaluation and implementation. Within this period, diverse solutions were evaluated and, in the end, Esmaltec chose the one that was better adjusted to its needs for the following criteria: process integration, resources, user interface, migration facilitation, data management, cost, support, future expansion possibilities, structure and partner accessibility.

The technical evaluation included presentations focused on possible partnerships, software trials and training. By the end of the evaluation period, it was possible to precisely determine the software’s fit to Esmaltec’s reality. The company chose Solid Edge® computer-aided design (CAD) software and Teamcenter® software, preconfigured for rapid deployment and fast return on investment (ROI), both from Siemens Digital Industries Software. This choice was made on the basis of the software’s better cost/benefit relationship and more substantial ROI, as well as the possibility of stable growth and better operational income. The fact that the solution belongs to Siemens Digital Industries Software, regarded as a company that provides the best services and is more flexible and accessible for future contacts and negotiations, was essential for the company.