Machine shops name their tools their own way. A production plant might have a tool number in its tool management system for every insert and holder. A job shop might write "T14 - 3/8 ROUGHER" on the setup sheet and expect everyone to know what it means. The programmer thinks in terms of the CAM library; the buyer thinks in terms of last month's invoice.
Your part number is rarely the first thing anyone in the shop reaches for. The easier you make it to order with theirs, the more they'll order from you.
Order with the shop's own numbers
With customer part numbers, the shop orders using its own tool numbers and the app maps each one to your item. The crib attendant types the number on the drawer. The programmer pastes his tool list straight from the setup sheet. Your inside team never has to decode what "T14" means this week.
For companies with more than one plant, set the cross-references on a master account and every location inherits them. A location can override the master when one plant runs a different tool for the same operation.
My Catalog keeps the exact tool
In cutting tools, "close enough" isn't. Two inserts can share a shape and size and still behave very differently because of grade, coating and chipbreaker. My Catalog shows everything the shop has ever ordered from you, so the buyer reorders the exact insert that's been proven on the job instead of something that looks the same in a catalog.
It's also a quick way for a new buyer or a new crib attendant to learn what the shop actually runs. When the lead machinist who knew every insert by heart retires, the shop's proven tool list doesn't leave with him. It's sitting in My Catalog, with the shop's own numbers beside each item.
Convert a competitor's crib by scanning it
A lot of the tooling business you want is sitting in a competitor's crib or vending machine. Converting it usually means a rep with a clipboard, a stack of catalogs and a long spreadsheet.
The app lets your rep scan another distributor's bin label, from Fastenal, Imperial and others, and get your matching item. The cross-reference table holds every competitor part number matched to yours, and cross-reference progress shows how many items are crossed to each competitor and what's still in progress.
A crib conversion that works:
- Scan the competitor labels on the highest-use drawers first: the general-purpose inserts, the drills and the taps that run every day.
- Let the app match what it can, and have your application specialist cross the rest by hand.
- For tools where a brand-for-brand swap needs proving, set up a test cut before you switch the drawer.
- Print your own labels for every converted drawer, with the shop's tool numbers on them.
When a tool can't be matched, it goes to purchasing as a quote request instead of a guess.
Why this wins shops
Machine shops don't switch tooling suppliers just for price. They worry about the job that's running fine today. A conversion that keeps their tool numbers, matches their proven tools and proves the rest with a test cut takes most of that worry off the table. You stop asking them to change how they work and start offering a better way to keep the crib full.
Want to see it with your own tooling catalog? See how it works.