Case Study / Oryx Systems
A Precision Measurement System that Speaks Human
Client Context
Oryx specializes in custom measurement solutions for industrial applications. Their focus is on non-contact, precision thickness and width measurement of webs and strips on factory floors, allowing their clients to deliver quality products to their customers.
The Challenge
Oryx’s precision thickness gauges reliably measure their customers’ production materials down to the micron. Despite providing a superior product, certain aspects of their their technology limited their success:
- Their custom hardware’s operating system was old, with no networking capability. Spec changes, updates, and fixes required an Oryx team member to fly out to the site and make the changes in person.
- Its user interface was incomprehensible to the average operator, and the product setup was challenging for supervisors. Training each customer on equipment use took nearly a week.
Oryx Needed:
- Network, Wi-Fi, and cellular connectivity.
- UI as intuitive as a smartphone app.
- UX that fit industrial requirements.
- More efficient use of screen real estate (reducing cruft from the old interface).
- Display panels in a high contrast color palette visible from 15 feet away.
- Buttons big enough to navigate with gloves.
Oryx’s Director of Technology knew of Jim Remsik, Flagrant’s founder and president, and trusted his team’s work. But it was a big ask for a software development agency to take on a project involving a physical environment, industrial machines, and custom hardware.
“Not many agencies would be willing to take a leap like this. They were.” Ben Vandgrift, Director of Technology, Oryx Systems
The Solution
After watching users interact with the system, Flagrant’s Creative Director Kelly Rauerdink created a UI/UX and visual design that met Oryx’s specific needs before bringing in Jim and the others on the team to help implement the front end. Together, they created a 21st-century web application in a kiosk that line supervisors and plant managers could access remotely on the network, interfacing with displays on the factory floor; a system capable of updating over a cell signal; buttons that accommodated gloved fingers; a clean display with easy-to-read panels, showing each customer only what they needed to see, allowing them to react quickly to any change on the line.
The Result
The new system exceeded their expectations. After Flagrant finalized, implemented, and pushed the changes to the system live, Oryx increased its revenue from $400,000 to $5,000,000.
User-friendly displays allowed their customers’ operators to react quickly. This improvement in particular had dramatic impact for one of Oryx’s customers, where every minute out of tolerance cost $16,000. Another customer increased production by 300%.
And the intangible benefits? Happier end users. People preferred Oryx’s equipment because it was easy to use and just worked.
Less Waste. More capability. Excellent digital customer service.
“Oryx was immediately able to market the user interface and designs as a sales tool because our displays were so far beyond our competitors’.” Ben Vandgrift, Director of Technology, Oryx Systems
