Spreadwise has been manufacturing and supplying slurry-handling equipment since 1991 and is a founding member of the British Dairy Consortium.
From starting as a practical dairy farm and local contracting business for over two decades, Spreadwise have been designing and manufacturing slurry handling equipment for many varied slurry and waste problems across the whole of the UK and Ireland.
Spreadwise started working with ADS in August 2020. Previously, they used to rely on a subcontract metal fabricator to manufacture their agricultural machinery.
Our contact at Spreadwise, Matthew Faulkner, Director, joined the company six years ago and decided they needed to fabricate everything in-house.
The challenge Spreadwise encountered was that they were growing faster than their metal fabricator, therefore lead times were too long for their customers.
In addition, their previous metal fabricator was plasma cutting and as a result, it was not neat or precise enough.
This eventually impacted the quality of Spreadwise’s agricultural machinery equipment and resulted in long lead times.
In an industry such as agricultural machinery equipment manufacturing, quality, lead times, and trust in the supply chain are essential factors, and one that Spreadwise could not afford to be impacted.
Also, the previous fabricator’s sheet metal was stored outside. As a result, the general quality of the material was not acceptable to Spreadwise.
Director Matthew Faulkner said:
“At the time, we didn’t have the machinery to do intricate things such as profiling or pressing. This is why we bought a second laser cutter and press brake. But after finding ADS, we’ve never even turned the machines on and used them. Everything with ADS is so easy that we are not bothered by doing it ourselves.”
When we first started working with Spreadwise, they had just taken on the fabrication of their agricultural machinery equipment for the first time in 25 years, so within the space of a few weeks they were incredibly busy and worried.
Treading in unknown waters is never easy. Unfortunately for them at the time, it is even more difficult when they also had to worry about the quality and lead times provided by their metal fabricator at the time.
Because they started that way and were not able to keep up with the demand, the cold call from our National Sales Manager, Derek Payne, came at the most opportune time.
After the first call, Spreadwise sent us their drawings, which our in-house team of estimators and programmers sent back to them in under a few days.
This marked the start of a long working relationship based on trust, as we were able to make the process of outsourcing their metal fabrication easy.
In addition, we have internal processes and quality checks in place in terms of drawing and clarity on lead times. We firmly believe in the quality of our workmanship, therefore we need to provide clients with absolute clarity on lead times so that they know what to expect and when to be ready for it internally.
This means that we were able to have a closer look at Spreadwise’s equipment and their technical requirements and as a result, improve their previous drawings and overall manufacturing.
Spreadwise was always open to hearing our ideas and feedback regarding their agricultural machinery fabrication. Consequently, we were able to look into how their equipment functions and find areas of improvement.
Matt said:
“All the conversations with Derek about our requirements were spot on and very helpful.
When we started working with ADS, we had just stopped working with our previous metal fabricator, meaning that we needed all our drawings re-done from scratch.
After the initial conversation with Derek, we sent ADS our outlined drawings which came back quickly and were perfect.
When we first received our fabricated equipment from ADS, they appeared to be better built, and it was of higher quality than what we were used to. No more rough angles, upgraded quality of steel, and overall sharper, cleaner, straight work. Our equipment looked visually and technically upgraded, and the appearance was more professional.
All in all, working with ADS enabled us to improve both our equipment and our production time.”
Matt said:
“There weren’t any concerns at any point in the process of working with ADS as our metal fabricator. Every time we asked questions, they were understood and the process was smooth from start to finish.
Because we didn’t have to spend so much time worrying about the quality of our agricultural machinery equipment’s metal fabrication, we suddenly had more time to look inward at our business and eventually be proactive regarding the demand we were facing. With ADS’s help, we were able to develop new designs and machinery more quickly.
In addition, if we are trialling a new design or equipment, ADS is always happy to help us navigate the waters of how achievable our project is and provide us with the initial drawings.
Keeping up with the market is essential for us at Spreadwise because the agricultural machinery sector is constantly changing. We continuously need bigger, heavier equipment and new, more intricate designs.
Throughout this development of our business, ADS was able to improve the strength of our products with ease. If there was an issue, they could address it quickly, whether that meant changing the design or holding production, making corrections and resuming.
As a result, jobs keep getting bigger and more complex over the months, and we continue sending everything to ADS, whether it’s a small flange or entire pairs of mechanical power arms.”
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