At GTR Manufacturing, we love telling the stories of our memorable projects. With our wide range of capabilities as a single-source supplier, our most exciting challenges require deep customer collaboration and seamless teamwork between departments. From early-stage design support all the way through final delivery, our vertical integration means every capability can play a vital role in bringing your vision to life.
To demonstrate GTR’s unique strengths as a single-source solution, let’s follow the complete journey of one project where we manufactured complex enclosures that moved through nearly every division of our operations.
Stage 1: Design Consultation for End-to-End Manufacturability
Our customer approached us with a concept and clear objectives in mind, but without any drawings or models. They shared their application requirements and showed us the computers, wiring harnesses, and batteries they wanted to fit in the enclosure, which ultimately needed to be mounted.
However, they needed expert help to create an efficient, manufacturable design.
While we’re not a design firm, our engineering and electromechanical assembly departments collaborated closely with our customer and provided them with insights that allowed them to develop detailed plans.
Stage 2: Quick-Turn Prototyping
Once the design was finalized, our prototyping division took over. Our dedicated prototyping facility specializes in fast-turn, low-volume builds, and quickly produced an initial prototype.
Throughout this phase, we maintained close communication with this customer, implementing revisions and adjustments as needed. After several iterations, the design was approved for a 50-piece production run.
Stage 3: In-House Fabrication and Machining
This project required a wide variety of our in-house capabilities, and our teams collaborated extensively to maximize efficiency, often working in parallel to eliminate bottlenecks:
- Our sheet metal fabrication division produced the outer enclosure and covers
- Our rapid sheet metal prototyping division created smaller bracketry and other components
- Our machining department leveraged their CNC milling and turning services for several internal components
Throughout production, every department followed the same traveler, drawings, and models, per our standard practice. This unified approach allowed every team to stay aligned, minimizing the risks of missed processes and preventing unnecessary delays.
Stage 4: Metal Finishing for Aesthetic Touches
Once fabrication was complete, the parts moved to our in-house sheet metal finishing department for powder coating. Our customer had strict branding standards, but we were able to easily match their color requirements and also apply their logo to the front door through silk screening.
Interestingly, during our partnership, this customer was acquired by another company, and we had to change colors and logos on the product. But thanks to our integration, we updated branding without skipping a beat, completing final orders for the original design while seamlessly transitioning to the new specifications.
Stage 5: First Quality Inspection for Machined and Fabricated Parts
After powder coating, all machined and fabricated parts underwent thorough inspection before assembly, ensuring that every component achieved our high standards.
Quality control isn’t just one stage in our process at GTR—as a single-source supplier, it’s integrated throughout our entire workflow. Our quality department serves as a critical checkpoint to ensure nothing substandard progressed to final assembly.
Stage 6: Assembly and Testing
Next, the project transitioned to final assembly. By this point, we had already completed various subassemblies in parallel with enclosure fabrication, which streamlined the final assembly process and significantly reduced lead times. However, this proactive approach was only possible because we’re a single-source supplier with all capabilities under our control.
To bring the project to its final stage, our electromechanical assembly team completed the assembly process, wiring, testing, serializing, and documenting every unit. Additionally, to enable traceability for the long term, we logged all serialized components in our database.
Stage 7: Inspection, Packaging, Shipping—Then Scaling
Finally, to ensure quality and consistency across each unit, our inspection department thoroughly tested every product. Once approved, we shipped the product directly to our customer’s end clients.
As a single-source supplier, the products that arrived at each end customer’s facility had been manufactured entirely by us; we even provided packaging and logistics. However, as such, this complete fulfillment process had to be built on trust—an essential component of any great contract manufacturing partnership.
Building off of that trust, after several successful production cycles, our customer began to ramp up production volumes. Since our electromechanical area is designed for flexibility, we quickly adapted and reconfigured it to support their growth without compromising efficiency.
Watch Your Next Project’s Full Journey
However, at GTR, we handle more of your project in-house, simplifying your supply chain and ensuring exceptional quality from end to end. But that’s the benefit of working with a single-source supplier. And if you want to see how easy your next project can be, all you have to do is request a quote today.