Demonstration Environment Displays Software Capabilities

The Steelhead Hatchery from Steelhead Technologies is a demonstration environment that showcases the capabilities of its job shop software. Steelhead Hatchery aims to present a paradigm shift in how the industry approaches manufacturing solutions. 

Similar to how a hatchery nurtures steelhead trout from eggs to smolts, the Steelhead Hatchery nurtures individuals and businesses from initial curiosity to complete mastery of the Steelhead platform. By experiencing the entire manufacturing process within the Steelhead ecosystem, metal finishing experts can experience the benefit of modern software and how it will apply to their processes and raise their efficiency standards. The experience is designed to enable Steelhead operators to deploy systems faster and stronger.

Unlike traditional ERP demos and sandbox environments that provide a glimpse into capabilities, the Steelhead Hatchery offers a full-scale playground where employees, prospects and potential customers can immerse themselves in the manufacturing ERP platform. It simulates the real-life experience that job shops across the country will have with the job shop software, promoting a better understanding of its power.

“We are excited to open the doors to our Steelhead Hatchery and invite the industry to explore the future of manufacturing with us,” says Jeff Halonen, chief executive officer at Steelhead Technologies. “Just as a hatchery fosters the growth of steelhead trout, our Hatchery nurtures the growth of knowledge and expertise within the Steelhead ecosystem. We believe this initiative will revolutionize how businesses perceive and leverage ERP solutions.”

The Hatchery is comprised of nine stations that mimic the various steps of typical metal finishing plant processes. This gives the operator an opportunity to gain an understanding of the physical application and software execution of each process. Steelhead has improved the training experience by providing a realistic demonstration of the capabilities of each feature to support visual, physical and social learning styles.

“Steelhead is not a small change for the job shop manufacturing industry,” says Aaron Halonen, president of Steelhead Technologies. “It takes many hours to fully understand the true power of running your plant on a fully digital, automation-intensive platform. The Steelhead Hatchery provides a hands-on immersive experience to accelerate the paradigm shift of what next-generation systems can do to drive businesses to the next level.”

Steelhead Technologies continues to put effort into increasing the value of the U.S. surface finishing and heat treat industry. Steelhead’s vision includes providing job shop management with the tools needed to provide quality output, improved production speed and profitability margins that provide direction to increased growth. The Hatchery assists in this aspiration by providing surface finishers with knowledge of the capabilities the Steelhead platform has to offer.

The first Hatchery training session took place in September 2023 with a group of seven guests. The hands-on environment was said to be impactful and enabled an accelerated, more complete understanding of the software features and capabilities.