By enhancing productivity, consistency, and employee well-being, the Company has strengthened its competitive advantage and is well-positioned for continued growth and success
Background
The Paris-based phone refurbishment Company, founded in 2021, specializes in refurbishing smartphones. With a 500 sqm factory and over 100 employees, the Company collaborates closely with operators who handle the logistics and repairs. The process involves diagnosing phones with the OptoFidelity test system, repairing them with spare parts, and conducting a final diagnosis before selling the refurbished phones.
The Challenge
With the purchase of the first two OptoFidelity FUSION testing systems, the Company grew and began handling twice as many phones. However, with over 300 phones now connected to their Wi-Fi, the existing network infrastructure couldn't handle the load. Additionally, the Company still relied a lot on manual testing, which led to inconsistent results due to human variability and fatigue. The need for a more reliable, scalable, and efficient testing solution became apparent.
The Solution
To address these issues, the Company decided to implement OptoFidelity's FUSION test systems throughout the process. Initially starting with two systems, they have currently expanded to twelve. The FUSION systems automate the whole testing process, providing consistent and reliable results. The Company also upgraded its network infrastructure to support the increased number of devices tested.
Marion, Continuous Improvement Engineer at the Company, explains, "With FUSION, we can test way more phones and get repeatable and reliable results. This has significantly improved our productivity and the quality of our refurbished phones."
The Benefits
The implementation of the FUSION test systems brought numerous benefits to the Paris-based company:
- Increased Productivity and Consistency: Automated testing with FUSION eliminated human errors and variability, leading to consistent and reliable results. "One of our main challenges was finding the correct parameters for all phones. With FUSION, we can adjust these parameters and ensure we do not let phones with issues pass," Marion states.
- Enhanced Data Analysis and Traceability: The FUSION system captures detailed information, including images and sounds, during the testing process. This data helps analyze test results and improve future processes. "Instead of just having a PDF telling you what is OK and what is not, we can see all the information taken by FUSION and analyze it," says Marion.
- Improved Employee Well-being: Automating the testing process freed employees from repetitive and non-ergonomic tasks. They could now focus on more rewarding and valuable activities. "Employees testing phones all day long is not rewarding. It's better that we can offer our employees more valuable tasks," Marion emphasizes.
- Scalability and Growth: The Company's ability to scale operations efficiently has contributed to its rapid growth. "When I arrived in December, we had 70 employees. Now we have more than 100," Marion notes. The expansion of FUSION systems and the upgraded Wi-Fi infrastructure have positioned the Company well for future growth.
- Collaboration and Support: Working closely with OptoFidelity's R&D team has been beneficial. Marion mentions, "We are happy working with OptoFidelity’s team. They are very active and respond to tickets fast."
[1] For competitive advantage reasons, the customer’s name has been kept anonymous and referred to as “Company” in this case study.