Sometimes, business growth requires a shift in approach. JS Controls is an industrial controls integrator in Campbellsburg, Kentucky, with a focus on small and midsized customers who need varying degrees of support with their control systems. JS Controls has always taken a flexible and agile approach to meeting customer demand, since some customers’ needs are limited to electrical designs and panel building, while others required end-to-end systems integration services from concept to installation and commissioning.
Because of the dynamic nature of JS Controls’ business, the company didn’t need a permanent in-house design center. But JS Controls is growing, and its business is evolving. To meet customer needs, it wanted to add an electrical design tool to its panel building process that could support a shifting approach to design that reduced the company’s reliance on outside contract work. This meant building a new internal design function. “Contractors just weren’t able to meet the timelines that we required,” said Jeremy Strothman, Founder and CEO of JS Controls. “It was time for us to bring that activity inside.”
Building a new function meant upgrading design software. The company’s current solution was not hitting the mark on ease-of-use or customer assistance, and Strothman wanted something better. To set the company on a course for an efficient and effective internal design function, JS Controls needed design tools for today and for tomorrow - a solution that was easy to learn and scalable for the future.
On the recommendation of a trusted distributor partner, JS Controls researched and eventually decided to adopt our nVent HOFFMAN Design to Manufacturing (DTM) Software. JS Controls was not receiving the level of hands-on support they needed from their current solution, so training and assistance was central in the decision to embrace new design software.
The DTM software support team made it their mission to help the JS Controls team realize the value of their investment. From day one, they had access to technical support from a dedicated team. In conjunction with the software’s user-friendly functionality, the team made it possible for JS Controls to introduce its new approach to electrical design in a matter of weeks. In Strothman’s words, “Through the individual training sessions, I was able to start rolling.”
The full backing of the dedicated DTM team has been instrumental in expanding JS Controls’ capabilities. “The software is far easier to use than our prior solution,” Strothman said, citing the built-in design guardrails in particular. “When you’re dealing with a large project—something with 200- or 300-page schematic sets—checks and balances become critical to success. DTM software does a great job to ensure that those checks and balances are in place and that you’ve got everything covered.”
Looking forward, DTM software also has laid the groundwork for onboarding a full-time designer. New hires will have access to more on-demand resources like instructor-led training modules and they can take advantage of the intuitive interface and technical support team to get up and running quickly. Together, the advanced design capabilities of DTM software and the team’s commitment to customer success have helped JS Controls take control of its internal design function. What’s more, the software and the support apparatus made it easier to formulate a plan for growth and continued competitive advantage.
Around the world, nVent is bringing its deep application expertise and broad solutions portfolio to help customers do business more efficiently and with better results. JS Controls is just one example—could your business be next?
Learn more about our end-to-end automation solutions here: DTM Software | nVent HOFFMAN
