Customer service in industrial enclosure design enhanced by operations team experience

Leading industrial enclosure manufacturer, Spelsberg els UK Ltd, a subsidiary of Gunther Spelsberg, has reached a key milestone as its core operations team achieves its tenth anniversary. In total, Spelsberg UK has provided in-house CNC customised and fully assembled enclosures for over 20 years. Now, each of Spelsberg’s current departmental lead roles in customer support, CNC machining, and assembly operations, has been in place for excess of 10 years. This landmark ensures enclosure design excellence and service reliability. Spelsberg UK’s in-house CNC machining and assembly operation can provide completed bespoke enclosures in less than a week.

The first step is guiding the customer on the enclosure most suited to their requirements. Enclosures are typically used to safely house electrical junctions, and they are also vital to provide electrical devices with additional protection from dust and moisture ingress, impact, as well as environmental conditions. Environments where enclosures are installed can range from farms or factories to hospitals or rail terminals, each with their own specific needs.

In-house CNC design

The customer journey begins with the sales and support team. With over 11 years in industrial enclosure specification, the team is led by Clare McCusker, Spelsberg UK’s National Sales Manager. Supporting OEMs and end users, as well as distributors, Clare specifies enclosures across commercial and industrial installations, guided by her prior experience in industry at Schneider Electric and Weidmuller.

Bespoke enclosure design, including custom CNC machining to enable exacting component installation and cable routing, is a key Spelsberg offering. Clare guides the initial design, ahead of engaging with Michael Jones, Spelsberg UK’s CNC Operator & Programmer. Michael leads Spelsberg UK’s CNC workshop and has been in place with the company for over 10 years, following an engineering apprenticeship, backed up by an HNC in General Engineering.

Michael creates enclosure designs from scratch, but also works from provided technical customer drawings, or even physical models. Design prototypes can be created within 24 hours, and orders of multiple, bespoke designed, enclosures can be provided within five days. Spelsberg UK’s CNC service ensures an exacting design thanks to direct communication with the on-site team. The in-house service also protects enclosure integrity, which can be a challenge if CNC design and machining is carried out by a third-party. The all-under-one-roof approach also ensures a much faster speed of service.

In-house assembly

In addition to the in-house CNC machining facility, Spelsberg UK’s operation also comprises enclosure assembly. This service typically includes the installation of electrical terminals and wiring, but it can also include virtually any customer-specified item that needs enclosure protection. Also available is enclosure printing of information such as brand details or user safety information. Large orders can extend into the assembly of 1,000-plus enclosure units. 

Spelsberg UK’s assembly service is managed by Dave Mills, Spelsberg UK’s Operations Supervisor. Managing the assembly operation involves confirmation of the bill of materials, as well as implementation of the actual assembly process. Thanks to the ease of use of Spelsberg’s enclosures, most of the assembly tasks can be quickly achieved tool-free, or with simple hand tools. 

The Operations Supervisor role also covers a variety of key areas within the operations spectrum. Supporting the sales team specifying requirements at customer sites, Dave also plays an in-house role assisting with enclosure specification, backed up by his own prior experience in an external sales role. 

“Customers rely on us to provide quality, durable designs, but also to provide speed of project delivery,” says Spelsberg UK’s Managing Director, Chris Lloyd. “Thanks to our in-house operations, this enables us to achieve these objectives.” 

About Spelsberg

Spelsberg is one of the largest manufacturers of electrical enclosures in the world. With over 4,000 enclosures available as standard and further customisation possible, it offers solutions for almost any application.

With the largest supply of non-metallic enclosures, ex-stock in the UK, its products are often available for delivery within 24 hours; customisation is possible on any product, including bespoke entries, engraved corporate logos or fitted terminals, within 48 hours. Products can be ordered direct from Spelsberg or from most leading supply specialists including RS, Rapid, Farnell and CPC.