Case Study — Sheet Metalwork

Built for engineers, used by engineers.

How Cambridge Rapid replaced a system that held them back with an ERP that reflects how their engineering business actually works — and moves with them as they grow.

Cambridge Rapid sheet metal manufacturing facility

Industry

Precision Sheet Metalwork

Location

Suffolk, UK

Experience

30+ Years

Accreditation

ISO 9001:2015

About Cambridge Rapid

Technical excellence backed by decades of experience.

Cambridge Rapid is a precision sheet metalwork manufacturer specialising in stainless steel fabrication. Its capabilities span laser cutting, punching, folding and forming, welding, design and prototyping, and mechanical assembly.

Serving customers across the furnace, security, transportation, and automotive industries, the company has built long-standing relationships around reliability. It has also embraced manufacturing technology for decades, introducing shop floor data collection as early as 1997.

The Challenge

Growth exposed the limits of a system that dictated the process.

As Cambridge Rapid moved onto a growth trajectory, the limitations of its previous Fitfactory Tricorn MRP system became harder to ignore. The software required the team to adapt established processes around the system instead of supporting the way the engineering business already operated.

“We needed an ERP that could scale with us — one that was genuinely built around how an engineering business operates, not a generic solution we had to force into shape.”

Esther Cornell, Managing Director

The Solution

An ERP designed around real manufacturing work.

Two capabilities made an immediate difference to Cambridge Rapid.

SOPs and risk assessments at the point of work

Shop floor staff can access current safety and process documentation directly in Fraction ERP. This keeps work more controlled and consistent, building on Cambridge Rapid's long history of shop floor data collection.

Flexible forward and backward scheduling

The team can view production from different scheduling perspectives and make quick adjustments as priorities change. It is functionality Cambridge Rapid now uses constantly.

The Results

Better control across the business.

Improved delivery performance

Clearer planning and flexible scheduling have helped improve on-time delivery.

Greater cost and stock visibility

Integrated stock and inventory give the team a level of insight the previous system could not provide.

Smooth staff adoption

People of all ages adopted Fraction with minimal support and without an intensive training programme.

Cambridge Rapid achieved these improvements at a significantly lower software cost than before, while continuing to discover new value as Fraction ERP evolves.

Esther Cornell, Managing Director of Cambridge Rapid

“You can tell Fraction has been written by people who have actually run an engineering business — it's not theoretical, it reflects how these businesses genuinely work.”

Esther Cornell — Managing Director, Cambridge Rapid

Looking for an ERP that fits how engineers work?

See how Fraction ERP can improve control, visibility, and delivery performance across your manufacturing business.