Taunton-based ExoTec Precision is one of very few companies in the world working with beryllium, which is the lightest machinable metal in the periodic table, with exceptional stiffness and thermal conductivity that make it ideal for space applications.

The company’s optical lenses and other products are currently deployed on a number of satellites; while NASA and the European Space Agency keep track of their location in space, ExoTec relies on the Javelin production control system from Vero Software (www.javelin-mrp.com) to ensure full material traceability on Earth.

Operations manager Adrian Willoughby says that one Javelin function in particular — Materials Control — enables each component to be traced right back to the billet from which it was machined.

“With everything we order, we register the ‘goods received’ note and record all traceability data associated with the material, so whenever we subsequently book material for a job, we can maintain traceability from the original supplier, along with all their certifications.

“When we come to ship the finished product, we can guarantee the exact origin of that material to our customers. This is particularly valuable for pure beryllium plus the other exotic and unusual materials we work with.”

ExoTec recently switched from an old version of Javelin’s predecessor — Jobshop — to the improved functionality of Javelin, which gives the company a simple, fast and efficient way of receiving orders, capturing and structuring the associated bills of materials, generating materials requirements and work instructions, and then ‘launching’ works orders.