CpK Interior Products

CpK Interior Products operates three vertically integrated plants in Ontario that function as a tightly coupled just-in-time supply chain — Belleville (thermoplastics compounding), Port Hope (cast skin, foam, and subassembly), and Guelph (final assembly and sequencing to the carmaker). In JIT automotive manufacturing, any production disruption cascades immediately to vehicle assembly lines. Despite this exposure, CpK had no centralized control over automation assets: equipment programs were tracked in spreadsheets, stored on USB drives or individual laptops, and updated through manual point-to-point technician connections. Revision control depended entirely on individual discipline, producing version drift across facilities and extended Mean Time to Repair whenever equipment failures required software intervention.

Working with JAE Automation — a Rockwell Automation System Integrator PartnerNetwork member that had supported CpK since 2010 — the team initially scoped a pilot at the smaller Belleville facility, where an existing SCADA server (FactoryTalk View SE) provided the deployment foundation. When the Belleville team recognized the company-wide exposure, the project was elevated to a corporate initiative spanning all three Ontario plants. FactoryTalk AssetCentre software was deployed at each facility, with dedicated servers added at Port Hope and Guelph. Microsoft Remote Desktop Services enabled thin-client access, ensuring all technicians connect through a single controlled interface. The software enforces a check-in/check-out workflow for every PLC program and automation asset, automatically captures full version history, logs all user actions, and performs continuous automatic backups — eliminating reliance on manual saves to USB drives or unnetworked laptops.

The deployment closed CpK's most critical asset management gaps across all three Ontario facilities. Technicians now access only the current approved version of any program, and all changes are automatically captured at check-in. When equipment faults occur — machine jams, sensor failures, or other corrective maintenance events — the correct software is retrieved immediately rather than located through a search of file drawers or USB drives of uncertain revision.

Key outcomes:

• MTTR significantly reduced across all three facilities, confirmed by production management
• Complete version control maintained for all PLC and automation programs
• Risk of program loss eliminated through automatic, continuous backup
• Program consistency confirmed across the multi-plant operation

The shift from spreadsheet-based tracking also reduced the administrative burden on skilled trades personnel.

• In JIT automotive environments, uncontrolled program versions are a hidden MTTR driver — centralizing version control is a maintenance priority, not an IT project.
• A pilot at a smaller or R&D-oriented facility is an effective way to validate an asset management solution before committing to a multi-site rollout.
• Automatic check-in/check-out workflows outperform policy-based revision discipline — design the system so correct behavior is the default path.
• USB-based program storage introduces unacceptable risk in multi-shift, multi-technician operations; networked centralized storage is the baseline for defensible asset management.
• Long-term system integrator relationships accelerate deployment because the integrator already understands the installed base and operational constraints.