Need support with a motion control challenge? Discover how to make sure your chosen technical partner delivers the results you need.

As an OEM, you’re used to optimising every inch of your processes and your products, so that you can bring improved productivity or new benefits to your customers.

So it’s reasonable to want your technical partners to deliver the same outstanding performance – particularly if they’re providing essential motion control components and support.

But where do you begin to find the right partner? How can you evaluate them before committing?

When you’re looking for a motion control partner, you should evaluate their performance in four essential areas:

• Speed of response

• A “problem-first” approach

• Custom solutions

• End-to-end support

Let’s explore each of these areas in more detail – and how Norgren’s Application Engineering team puts them into practice for OEMs looking for a technical motion control partner.

How fast can they respond to your challenge?

When you realise you need support with a motion control challenge, you rarely have time to waste; any lost time could mean missed opportunities, disgruntled customers, or a delayed product launch.

So you need a supplier that can move fast at every stage of the process. When weighing up a supplier, consider:

• How quickly do they respond to an enquiry? If your supplier doesn’t offer local support or if their team of engineers is too small, it might take a while for you to set up an initial consultation.

• How long does it take them to come up with a solution? A good partner will have enough experience to come up with some potential solutions quickly and work closely with you to refine and implement them. Don’t just ask potential partners how long they take to come up with solutions – also ask them how they make sure they’re delivering a solution that works without wasting time.

• How fast can they deliver? Once you’ve decided on the right approach – whether that’s standard components or a custom solution – ask how long it takes your partner to ship and implement your new solution.

• How quickly can they build knowledge in your team and introduce new ideas? The fastest partners may just deliver what was ordered and move on to the next project, leaving you to worry about making it work in the long term. But the best partners know how to quickly and effectively bring your team up to speed on your new solution. Ask your partner how they approach training and knowledge sharing after implementation – it could make a significant difference to the final performance of your product.

How does Norgren speed up delivery while maintaining performance?

On average, Norgren customers are on a call with an engineer from the Application Engineering team within 48 hours of reaching out – sharing their challenge with someone who understands the industry context, as well as the field of motion control.

Throughout every project, the aim is to balance speed with long-term results. That’s why Norgren has implemented rigorous testing and design processes, efficient manufacturing techniques, and dedicated training and support too.

Are they trying to solve your challenge, or just selling you a product?

It’s easy to find partners that take a “product-first” approach to motion control challenges. They might expect you to supply a Bill of Materials, and simply source and provide the parts you need. Or they might look at historic buying patterns and recommend a standard product configuration that they’ve sold to other customers with similar needs.

But in many cases this “product-first” approach fails to get to the root of the problem.

If your solution isn’t tailored to your context – the size and configuration of your product, where and how the product is used, or the wider industry context – then you might find that it doesn’t deliver the performance you need. Once it’s off the factory floor and outside of optimal operating conditions, you can quickly run into unexpected issues.

Giving your partner a standard Bill of Materials can cause problems too. Without specialised expertise in fields like pneumatics, it’s easy to miss nuances and opportunities to further improve performance. In other words, the part you think you need might not deliver the results you’re looking for.

This is why it’s important to look for a partner that takes a “problem-first” approach to solving your challenges, instead of trying to find the best off-the-shelf product. They’ll ask detailed questions about your challenge, use their specialised expertise to find the best approach for your very specific situation, and then match you with the perfect solution.

How does Norgren use a “problem-first” approach to solve OEM challenges?

The “problem-first” mindset shapes every project in Norgren's Application Engineering division. Thanks to the team’s extensive expertise in motion control and experience across a wide range of industries, this approach delivers outstanding results for Norgren customers.

If your solution can be solved with a standard product configuration, the Norgren team can help you find the best solution much faster. Or, if a standard product won’t meet your needs, the team will work with you to either modify an existing product or build a custom solution.

Which brings us to the next important factor to consider when choosing a partner.

Can they offer custom solutions?

Some motion control challenges can be solved using standard components. But many others require more complex configuration, modification, or system integration to deliver the best results. That might mean making changes to ensure the component reaches the correct IP rating, meets ATEX requirements, offers the right level of sensitivity, meets your requirements for process safety, or accounting for a host of other factors and nuances.

It’s difficult, expensive, and time consuming for most OEMs to make those changes, especially smaller OEMs that don’t have an extensive design team.

To get these customisations right, you often need support from an expert in niche fields like pneumatics – and very few OEMs have access to that kind of expertise in-house.

That’s why you need a partner that can make these kinds of modifications for you, providing custom solutions as well as standard products.

How does the Norgren Application Engineering team improve results for customers with custom solutions?

Norgren’s Application Engineering team is made up of engineers who are experts in their fields and all aspects of motion control, including more specialised fields like pneumatics.

As a result, the Application Engineering team can use their technical expertise to offer custom solutions, including:

• Modifying standard products to fit specific requirements

• Combining multiple products on a custom manifold to save space and improve efficiency

• Working with your team to create new solutions that you wouldn’t find elsewhere

What support can your partner offer after you buy?

Even the most reliable component or the smartest design might not deliver results if your partner doesn’t offer end-to-end support. They can sell you a product, but how do they make sure it works outside of the lab? How do they make sure your people know how to use it properly and take care of it so that it keeps running efficiently in the future?

When you’re looking for a partner, think about how they go above and beyond to make sure your solution works in situ, rather than just focusing on the sale.

How does Norgren’s Application Engineering team provide end-to-end support for OEMs?

The Application Engineering team – like all of the teams at Norgren – offers a few services to make sure your components work reliably and efficiently once they’re installed:

• Functional safety consultations - Using more than 50 years of experience in safety applications, the Application Engineering team will work with you to ensure that the system you design is both safe and effective.

• Testing and validation – Once your solution is installed, Norgren’s engineers can carry out extensive testing to ensure that it meets your performance requirements and solves your specific challenge.

• Training and support - The Application Engineering team offers Norgren customers a wide range of training to help make sure your people are equipped to maximise the value of your investment. Training includes everything from one-on-one troubleshooting questions with an engineer, as well as tailored, in-person training with your team on technical topics or Norgren technology.

What makes a great technical partner? Commitment to your success.

From providing end-to-end support to responding fast, building custom solutions, and exploring your challenge in detail, a great partner always puts your success first.

As we’ve explored above, a good partner cares just as much about the quality of your final product as you do. This kind of investment means they’ll stay for the long term – and that they’re more invested in solving your challenge than in making a one-off sale.

That’s the principle that shapes Norgren’s Application Engineering team. The engineers there use their expertise to find the perfect electro-pneumatic solution for OEMs – whether that’s a standard product or something completely custom.

If you have a motion control challenge that needs solving or want to improve the performance of your product, visit the Application Engineering page to find out more.