Skip to Main Content
case study

Using Solid Edge helps Goster refocus on mining machinery market and win critical new business

Global recession drives strategic change in company’s direction

Global recession drives strategic change in company’s direction

Goster

Goster builds custom machinery for mining and industry operations.

http://www.dpgoster.pl
Headquarters:
Bydgoszcz, Poland
Products:
Solid Edge

Share

Using Solid Edge also makes it easy to develop documentation in as little as two or three weeks for assemblies with as many as a thousand parts.
Anna Pater, Owner
Goster

Economic downturn drives change in strategy

Przedsiębiorstwo Projektowania i Realizacji Goster (Goster) is a Poland-based design and contracting company, whose main business is manufacturing state-of-art machinery and providing quality services to its customers. The company strives to develop robust, cost-optimized solutions that meet user expectations in accordance with a basic principle that any success requires a balanced combination of human resources and appropriate equipment. Initially, Goster was focused on designing machines and tools for the mining industry. However, just before Poland joined the European Union in 2004, the company decided to realign its core business, because it viewed the food industry as the most promising sector in terms of growth opportunities.

After an early period of prosperity, Goster’s business was disrupted by the global economic downturn in 2008. Facing fewer orders from formerly thriving enterprises, Goster sought a way to limit the negative impact of the recession and support ongoing company growth. Therefore, the company decided to refocus on designing and manufacturing machines for the mining industry. The strategy paid off.

Economic downturn drives change in strategy

Solid Edge tested best

With the shift of its manufacturing strategy and new emphasis on the mining market, Goster searched for an appropriate, easy-to-use 3D design tool. After having tested several systems, the company chose Siemens PLM Software’s Solid Edge® software, which provides the industry’s most complete hybrid 2D/3D CAD technology. “We wanted to expand our business with new machines and equipment, so we were looking for 3D software that would help us present our new solutions to customers,” says Anna Pater, Goster’s owner. “After a month of testing applications from three different vendors, we came to the conclusion that Solid Edge was the most easy-to-use CAD software solution.”

Because Goster’s innovative designs and modifications required changes at every stage of product development, the company wanted software that would easily handle design changes. That requirement was readily realized using the software’s synchronous technology functionality. Using Solid Edge, Goster also developed designs and related documentation substantially faster. “The unique characteristics of our industry require us to take an individual approach to every customer project,” explains Pater. “In the beginning of each process, customers provide us with their expectations and assumptions. We can quickly showcase customer requirements and key project assumptions. During the customer consultation phase, we can demonstrate how products will look and operate by showing them 3D models, and in the process validate agreed-upon principles and design-related needs. Using Solid Edge also makes it easy to develop documentation in as little as two to three weeks for assemblies with as many as a thousand parts.”

Solid Edge tested best

Avoiding expensive physical prototypes

The use of Solid Edge helped Goster achieve its main business goal of focusing on services for mining enterprises. The use of the software has also helped Goster avoid the high costs of manufacturing new device prototypes. Instead, Goster shows customers digital designs to demonstrate how products will look and perform.

“We wanted to leverage our expertise to design a completely new line of modern machines and showcase them with maximum fidelity,” says Pater. “These designs are used to show future customers visualizations of products, instead of building physical prototypes, which is an extremely costly process. The cost of manufacturing a single device prototype may reach any amount between PLN 50,000 and one million zlotys.”

Deploying Solid Edge software has greatly contributed to increasing the productivity of Goster’s engineers, as well as shortening product design lead times. Preliminary designs based on customer requirements can now be developed in as little as two or three days.

“The advantage of Solid Edge over other CAD systems lies mostly in the easy-to-use synchronous technology,” says Pater. “We can meet all customer requirements and model a machine’s appearance in only 3 days. This allows us to present even the most complex solutions in a way that makes it easy for customers to visualize. Furthermore, with Solid Edge we are able to collaborate with our customers and quickly implement any necessary changes.”

It quickly became obvious that Goster’s software investment had been a wise move. The company noticed a significant influx of additional orders almost immediately, including important new contracts with customers in the mining industry.

Pater concludes, “We finished our machine designs and showcased the results on our website. This approach helped us reach new customers and increase sales volume. We have become a trusted vendor to these customers, who are also impressed with the quality of our designs. We have already sold several new machines.”

Avoiding expensive physical prototypes
The advantage of Solid Edge over other CAD systems lies mostly in the easy-to-use synchronous technology. We can meet all customer requirements and model a machine’s appearance in only 3 days. This allows us to present even the most complex solutions in a way that makes it easy for customers to visualize.
Anna Pater, Owner
Goster