Manufacture:
Musical Instruments
Medium
Bratislava, Slovakia
Dowina is one of the few companies in the world specializing in handcrafted guitars, known for their dedication, passion, and customization capabilities. Dowina’s customization process offers an astounding 45 quadrillion possible combinations, making it one of the most flexible custom guitar producers in the world. However, this enormous variety posed significant challenges.
The company lacked an internal solution and database for their 3D models. Pricing and price updates were difficult to manage and were calculated using Excel, which was inefficient and prone to errors.
The main pain points revolved around the customer experience and internal operations. The design process was limiting, leading to frequent miscommunication between the company and its clients. Extensive time was spent on administration and customer communication. The pricing process was inefficient, and there was a general lack of transparency in operations. In addition, not being able to create effective visual showcases at events using 3D and AR was an obstacle for the sales teams.
Naturally, offering customers the ability to customize their purchases sparked a lot of questions about pros and cons. Giving each inquiry personal attention had to be done through texts, calls, and emails, and sometimes it took weeks to finalize the order.
The inability to predict the client's choices made pricing pretty difficult. Moreover, incorporating the extensive time spent on communication into the pricing structure was not possible, as it would render the guitars essentially unsellable.
Information used to get lost in the overload of communication. Misunderstandings may occur within the production team even in the event that a client confirms the product specification. It appeared impossible to keep an exhaustive database to cover the millions of conceivable combinations.
Previously, Dowina used to create visualizations, supported with photo examples from past projects. However, due to the vast array of combinations offered, having photos of each one was not an option. Ultimately, it sometimes happened that the client's visual concept of a particular combination was different from the actual outcome.
Having a 3D configurator packed with specifications proved to be very beneficial for everyone involved. With less time and a simple approach, Dowina created a visual and sizable database of customization options, with everything in one place.
“We will always be committed to communicating with our clients, as it is imprinted in our DNA and the way we approach guitar building. However, with the 3D image always at our fingertips, we can shift our focus to the subtle aspects of guitar making, such as sound quality and sustainability.” Erika Marinova, CEO of Dowina.
The beauty of the solution lies in the rapid adoption of Vectary's technology. Despite having no prior experience with 3D technology, Dowina employees were able to create all of the configurators and textures by themselves. This was made possible by an intuitive environment that facilitates a steep learning curve.
By creating digital twins (as well as having them in Augmented Reality), Dowina streamlined internal workflows, reducing about 70% of the time previously allocated to administration and ordering processes.
It simplified operations in various other areas of the company and reduced client miscommunications and errors by an estimated 40%, thereby improving their overall operational efficiency.
The system also connected data directly to Dowina's databases via API, further optimizing the production and pricing process.
