Golden Shovel Spotlight

At Test Devices by Schenck, a leader in rotary testing for the aerospace industry, innovation isn't just a goal—it's a core part of the culture. As the Industrial Engineering Manager, Darren O'Neil is at the forefront of this mission, charged with steering the company from legacy paper-based operations to a dynamic, digital future.

When a nine-month search for a Manufacturing Execution System (MES) left him underwhelmed, a simple Google search led him to Tulip. The platform's free trial was a game-changer. "Within an hour I was in there building apps," Darren recalls. "It's a clean slate. You build it the way you want, the way your team wants. The look of it, the feel of it, the function of it. It's whatever you want it to be.”

This blank canvas approach was precisely what he needed to single-handedly drive solutions perfectly tailored to Schenck’s unique needs, setting the stage for a digital transformation that would touch every corner of the facility.

Darren's first major challenge was the company’s core manufacturing process, which relied entirely on paper. “We have paper work instructions and binders, paper manufacturing travelers that get signed off as every step is completed, and you write down any measurements and metrics along the way,” he explains. The problem was multifaceted: he needed to not only digitize the instructions but also figure out how to collect and store data, and enforce the routing from one process to the next.

Darren took an ambitious approach for his first solution, with a six-month deep-dive into development that resulted in a comprehensive, end-to-end system. This immersive learning experience was the key that unlocked his ability to build subsequent solutions with incredible speed, breaking them down into smaller solutions that could be tackled one at a time. For example, when an issue with tracking tooling inventory across the facility surfaced in a morning meeting, he didn't create an Excel spreadsheet or a SharePoint list — he built and deployed a Tulip app. Within four hours, technicians across the facility were adding the tooling to the database.

One of Darren’s most transformative projects was creating an “all-in-one solution” to innovate the management of over 450 calibrated tools. While Schenck had a database for tracking these tools, it was maintained by a single person, was inaccessible to the broader team, and had become messy over the years. This created information silos and operational bottlenecks, presenting a clear opportunity for a digital upgrade.

Darren built a dynamic Tulip application that serves as a central, accessible hub for tool management. Team members can now log calibrations, set tool statuses, track locations, and receive 30, 60, and 90-day warnings for tools needing service. The system also flags if a calibration certificate hasn’t been uploaded, eliminating lost paper trails. But the “best part,” Darren notes, is the system's seamless integration with their work instruction apps. Now, when a process step requires a specific tool, the operator simply scans its barcode. The app instantly verifies if it’s the correct tool, if its calibration is current, and if it has been locked out by quality or engineering. If anything is amiss, the operator cannot proceed, and an alert is sent to the quality team. This has had a huge impact, as the app automatically logs which tool was used for which part and links it to the exact calibration certificate on file at that moment.

"There's no more need to write that down," Darren says. "In Tulip, you scanned it, now it’s logged." The result is a system that saves time while creating "accurate records, complete records, organized records and... an overall picture of our calibrated tool system."

The development process itself was a journey of iteration. Tulip was the "obvious interface for records," but the initial phase was tedious, requiring collaboration across teams to clean up the existing database. From there, it was a process of building and iterating on the interface until a cutoff point where the team fully switched to the new system. Even after launch, the iteration continued as the team encountered unexpected, real-world scenarios. For example, a third-party company might calibrate a tool but not provide the official certificate for several weeks, creating a lag in the paperwork. To handle this nuanced case, Darren had to adapt the application to allow a tool to be certified for use while still tracking the pending documentation.

Becoming the first app builder at Test Devices by Schenck has fundamentally changed how Darren approaches operational challenges. "I'm constantly thinking about how I would build that," he admits. This builder's mindset has begun to permeate the culture, with colleagues now regularly approaching him with suggestions, asking, "What could we build in Tulip to solve this?"

The impact on the shop floor has been undeniable. Operators now benefit from on-screen instructions that eliminate ambiguity and prevent mistakes.The system automates calculations, enforces procedural steps that might have been skipped previously, and removes tedious tasks like manually signing off on paperwork. The production management team benefits from live status updates, and the quality team benefits from having a complete digital history of every part. Feedback on Darren’s Tulip apps has been overwhelmingly positive, with even initial skeptics becoming the biggest advocates for more digital solutions.

For those just starting their journey with Tulip, Darren’s advice is simple: "Just get started. Build something." He emphasizes that practical, hands-on experience is the best way to learn. Instead of getting bogged down in theory, he encourages new users to tackle a small, simple process and learn by doing – running into problems, finding solutions, and iterating along the way.

He also stresses the importance of creative thinking when digitizing manual processes. “Your best solution is not the one you have now,” he advises. “You have to think outside the box." It’s this philosophy of continuous improvement and innovative thinking that defines Darren’s work and makes him a true Groundbreaker.