Sumitomo Drive Technologies and CADDi transform Six Decades of Engineering Data into an AI-powered Intelligence Hub, Cutting Search Time by up to 90%
Sumitomo Drive Technologies and CADDi join forces to strategically transform 60 years of engineering data into an active intelligence hub, accelerating commercial delivery times and priming the business for global implementation
CHICAGO, Ill. and CHESAPEAKE, Va. — CADDi Inc., the global technology company developing an AI data platform for manufacturers, and Sumitomo Machinery Corporation of America (SMA), the U.S. operating company behind the Sumitomo Drive Technologies brand, today announced early results from their strategic partnership, showing how the company transformed 60 years of engineering data into an AI-powered intelligence hub that reduced search time by up to 90%. The new case study explores how deep collaboration, executive leadership, and a commitment to change management enabled Sumitomo Drive Technologies to turn decades of engineering data into a competitive engine.
Strategic Application of Manufacturing-Trained AI
While the industry struggles with searches occupying 30% of an engineer’s time and the retirement of its most experienced engineers, Sumitomo Drive Technologies applied CADDi’s domain-specific AI to turn 60 years of fragmented data into an active intelligence hub, cutting research time and preserving institutional knowledge from decades of operation. For the first phase of a long-term change management strategy, the company focused on centralizing drawings and engineering documents, empowering its engineering team with AI-driven insights to navigate its vast intellectual property library with unprecedented speed.
Integrating AI into a complex engineering environment required a fundamental shift in workflow and mindset — a challenge both teams tackled together. Beyond the technology, achieving transformative results in just three months was driven by the unique, high-touch partnership between Sumitomo Drive Technologies and CADDi teams.
"The velocity of this project’s success is unprecedented," said Stephan Britz, director of engineering at Sumitomo Drive Technologies. "The seamless collaboration between our teams, and specifically the dedicated support from CADDi’s Customer Success group, turned this engagement into a tremendous driver of change for our organization."
Quantified Transformation Results
Because Sumitomo Drive Technologies produces complex, engineer-to-order products, it manages a massive archive of engineering assets distributed across siloed PLM, ERP, CAD and shared drives. While these systems served their specific purposes, the volume of data made it challenging for engineers to cross-reference historical designs efficiently. The partnership with CADDi has streamlined this landscape, delivering immediate results:
- Up to 90% Reduction in Research Time: Tasks that previously required deep dives into multiple archives can now be completed in minutes. The study noted that drawing research that used to be a struggle has become seamless. Specifically, their senior design checker noted a 90% reduction in the time it took to find data, allowing them to locate critical information in minutes rather than hours.
- Accelerating Commercial Delivery: The partnership has directly impacted Sumitomo Drive Technologies’ ability to execute complex orders. In a recent case, the engineering team used CADDi to identify a past design that closely matched a new, complex order. By helping design engineers locate a past design that closely matched new requirements, CADDi enabled users to reclassify a complex project into a streamlined execution. This capability saved weeks of design work and significantly shortened the lead time for customers.
"CADDi is a game-changer for us," said Tony Barlett, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Sumitomo Machinery Corporation of America. "It empowers our team to get beyond simply making drawings and focus their energy on solving complex problems for our customers." The company plans to expand this centralized knowledge base beyond North America, creating a truly global engineering asset that unifies their expertise worldwide.
To learn more, read the full case study, “Transforming “Searching” into “Solving” with Sumitomo Drive Technologies”.
About Sumitomo Drive Technologies
Sumitomo Drive Technologies is a brand of Sumitomo Machinery Corporation of America, one of the most respected names in the power transmission industry. As an industrial manufacturer of premium-quality gearboxes, motors, and controls, we operate multiple facilities across the United States. Our commitment to innovation, customer satisfaction, and comprehensive solutions makes us an industry leader in power transmission. To learn more, visit us.sumitomodrive.com
About CADDi
CADDi is an AI-powered data platform that makes design and supply chain data accessible and actionable for manufacturing teams. Headquartered in Tokyo and Chicago, the company was founded in 2017 by industry veterans Yushiro Kato and Aki Kobashi, formerly of McKinsey, Apple, and Lockheed Martin. Its flagship product, CADDi Drawer, uses advanced AI to centralize and analyze unstructured design and production data, helping manufacturers improve efficiency, reduce redundancies, and unlock innovation. Recognized globally for innovation, CADDi was listed in Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies and won the SaaS Award for Best Business Intelligence and Engineering Management Software. To learn more, visit us.caddi.com.
Media Contact
Milbien Medina
Senior Manager, Brand Marketing at CADDi USA