Testimonial
NADCAP Shop Goes Digital With Steelhead ERP
Identity & metadata
Video title
NADCAP Shop Goes Digital With Steelhead ERP
Customer name
Veterans Metal
Title & company
Andrew Kossowski, Owner, Veterans Metal
Date recorded
2024
Product/feature
Steelhead ERP; NADCAP tracking; QR code tracking; scheduling; quoting; invoicing; paperless workflows
One-sentence summary
Veterans Metal transformed from a fully paper-based shop to a modern, digital operation using Steelhead, enabling full traceability, real-time tracking, and streamlined operations.
Problem described
The shop relied on paper and spreadsheets with no visibility into efficiency, performance, or part tracking, making operations difficult to manage and scale.
Solution described
Steelhead provided an industry-specific ERP with QR tracking, integrated workflows, and structured deployment, enabling a full transition to a paperless system.
Quantified outcomes
• Transition from 100% paper-based to digital system
• Full shop visibility and traceability
• Streamlined quoting, scheduling, and invoicing
• Full shop visibility and traceability
• Streamlined quoting, scheduling, and invoicing
Emotional tone
Confident, impressed, forward-looking
Full transcript
Speaker labels
Andrew Kossowski is identified inline.
Timestamps
Not included for this transcript.
Key quote callouts
[QUOTE] “Everything was paper-based.”
[QUOTE] “I wanted to go 100% paperless.”
[QUOTE] “This is exactly what I was looking for.”
[QUOTE] “Now, we're the state-of-the-art shop.”
[QUOTE] “I wanted to go 100% paperless.”
[QUOTE] “This is exactly what I was looking for.”
[QUOTE] “Now, we're the state-of-the-art shop.”
Filler/redaction notes
Transcript reflects provided spoken dialogue with no timestamps.
Transcript
Andrew Kossowski, Owner, Veterans Metal
I'm Andrew Kossowski, and I'm the owner of Veterans Metal, and I run my plant using Steelhead.
Hi, I'm Andrew Kossowski, owner of Veterans Metal in Largo, Florida. We provide anodizing, chemical film, and stainless steel passivation services for our customers throughout the United States, and we're happy to do so. Most of what we do is for the military, but we also do a lot of work for automotive, marine, and recreational services as well.
As part of our transformation project, we came from an old 27-year-old manual job shop. Everything was paper-based, with Excel spreadsheets. We really had no ability to track efficiency, performance, or quality — everything was on paper. So, we did an RFP back in 2020 and started hunting for software that could help us combine quoting systems, scheduling, invoice tracking, and the ability to know where the parts are at all times through a QR code. I wanted to go 100% paperless, and it wasn't easy.
We were finding all kinds of software for manufacturers who actually make the parts, but we really couldn't find anybody that actually did anodizing or chemical film, the kind of metal finishing that we do. Then, we came across Steelhead by chance at a conference at IMTS, and Steelhead said, "Well, we'd like to show you what we do. We do it specifically for this industry." And then suddenly, I thought, "Wow, this is exactly what I was looking for."
They came on board, and the best part of Steelhead was the project management aspect. They really interfaced on a regular basis. I love the fact that we did soft launches, implementing one milestone at a time, all the way to fruition. Now, we're the state-of-the-art shop in Florida for sure, and especially in the local area.
I'm Andrew Kossowski, and I'm the owner of Veterans Metal, and I run my plant using Steelhead.
Hi, I'm Andrew Kossowski, owner of Veterans Metal in Largo, Florida. We provide anodizing, chemical film, and stainless steel passivation services for our customers throughout the United States, and we're happy to do so. Most of what we do is for the military, but we also do a lot of work for automotive, marine, and recreational services as well.
As part of our transformation project, we came from an old 27-year-old manual job shop. Everything was paper-based, with Excel spreadsheets. We really had no ability to track efficiency, performance, or quality — everything was on paper. So, we did an RFP back in 2020 and started hunting for software that could help us combine quoting systems, scheduling, invoice tracking, and the ability to know where the parts are at all times through a QR code. I wanted to go 100% paperless, and it wasn't easy.
We were finding all kinds of software for manufacturers who actually make the parts, but we really couldn't find anybody that actually did anodizing or chemical film, the kind of metal finishing that we do. Then, we came across Steelhead by chance at a conference at IMTS, and Steelhead said, "Well, we'd like to show you what we do. We do it specifically for this industry." And then suddenly, I thought, "Wow, this is exactly what I was looking for."
They came on board, and the best part of Steelhead was the project management aspect. They really interfaced on a regular basis. I love the fact that we did soft launches, implementing one milestone at a time, all the way to fruition. Now, we're the state-of-the-art shop in Florida for sure, and especially in the local area.
Taxonomy tags
Industry
Metal Finishing; NADCAP; Manufacturing
Company size
SMB / Mid-market
Use case
Paperless transformation; traceability; QR tracking; ERP implementation
Stage of journey
Advocacy