Lippert Components, Inc. invests in augmented reality, digital innovations

Elkhart, Ind. — Lippert Components, Inc. (LCI^®) announced today that the Company’s Digital Innovation Department has developed augmented reality capabilities that allow them to give OEM customers a visual representation of product integrations without manufacturing a physical prototype. The Company has developed an internal program whereby 3D Computer-Aided Design (CAD) models can be viewed in a physical location with the human eye during the product development stage, providing OEMs with on-the-spot, visual representations of product and floor plan integrations.

“With augmented reality, I can go from meeting with a product manager straight to engineering, and the minute we have a 3D concept, you can actually go out to production, load up the image and interact with it around the coach. You can place it in the coach, you can move it around the coach, and you can tell me, do we have enough room to move around in this floorplan,” said Dominick Bilancio, LCI’s RV Product Manager. “You can make real-time changes right there because they’re much easier to change on a computer than once you begin production.”

LCI Workbench is the internal app developed by LCI’s Digital Innovation Department that allows the Company’s R&D team to better service customers. Utilizing a Microsoft HoloLens, the lens wearer gets a visual introduction to LCI’s product and is also able to share the augmented reality experience on nearby monitors, allowing all other parties the ability to view the product concept as well. The LCI workbench app has also been developed for the Apple iPad and iPhone for internal use.

In lieu of physical product prototypes, LCI’s R&D team can conceptualize and visually display products to exact size specifications. The Company’s digital investments give OEM partners a realistic, 3D representation of LCI’s products in real world spaces without the time-consuming and often expensive phase of trial and error in manufacturing.

Michael Rupchock, Director of LCI’s Digital Innovation Department explains, “Our team focuses on bringing transformative new technologies to keep us sharp and to stay ahead of the curve. Digital solutions that can make our teams faster, more efficient or help them communicate more clearly with our customers are a win. That’s why augmented reality felt like a no brainer for us, as it checks off all those boxes. It’s even more exciting because we’ve barely scratched the surface; this technology will only continue to get better and better in the coming years.”

“Innovation is the very core of our operations. We always strive to stay ahead of the curve, so to speak, and digital innovations have become another avenue for us,” commented Jamie Schnur, LCI’s Chief Administration Officer.

For more information about LCI’s digital innovations, contact mrupchock@lci1.com

About LCI Industries ^®

From over 90 manufacturing and distribution facilities located throughout North America and Europe, LCI Industries, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, LCI, supplies, domestically and internationally, a broad array of highly engineered components for the leading OEMs in the recreation and transportation product markets, consisting primarily of recreational vehicles and adjacent industries, including buses; trailers used to haul boats, livestock, equipment, and other cargo; trucks; boats; trains; manufactured homes; and modular housing. The Company also supplies engineered components to the related aftermarkets of these industries primarily by selling to retail dealers, wholesale distributors, and service centers. LCI's products include steel chassis and related components; axles and suspension solutions; slide-out mechanisms and solutions; thermoformed bath, kitchen, and other products; vinyl, aluminum, and frameless windows; manual, electric, and hydraulic stabilizer and leveling systems; entry, luggage, patio, and ramp doors; furniture and mattresses; electric and manual entry steps; awnings and awning accessories; towing products; truck accessories; electronic components; and other accessories. Additional information about LCI and its products can be found at LCI1.com.

Lippert Components, Inc.
3501 County Road 6 East
Elkhart, IN 46514
Email: marcom@lci1.com