Tutorials & Learning
Tutorials and Learning Resources
Practical tutorials and how-to guides for manufacturers who want to understand and use AI tools — without wading through academic papers or sitting through hour-long webinars.
These resources cover the things that actually trip people up: how to read a mill certificate, how to set up a cutting optimisation plan, how to build a business case for digitalisation without a finance degree, and how to get your team using new software without a six-week training programme.
Topics covered in this section include:
- Understanding mill certificates and EN 10204 certificate types
- How cutting optimisation software generates cut lists
- Setting up yield tracking and scrap reporting
- Building a business case for digital tools in a metals SME
- Getting started with GoSmarter’s platform
If you’re looking for formal product documentation, head to the GoSmarter Knowledge Base. If you want background reading on industry terminology, start with the metals manufacturing glossary.
GoSmarter vs Excel for Metals Inventory Management
- Steph Locke
- Blog , Learning
- Mar 17, 2026
- Updated
Excel is the default tool for metals inventory, but it was not built for steel. GoSmarter was. Here is where each one wins and when it makes sense to use both.
AI Cutting Optimiser: The Complete Guide to Linear Cutting Optimisation
- Ruth Kearney
- Blog , Learning
- Mar 17, 2026
- Updated
GoSmarter’s Cutting Plans is purpose-built cutting optimiser software for rebar and long product manufacturers. Generate optimal steel cutting lists, improve cutting plan efficiency, and cut scrap rates by up to 50%.
Cloud MES Software: What It Actually Costs and Whether It's Right for Your Factory
- Steph Locke
- Blog , Learning
- Mar 16, 2026
- Updated
You’re a plant manager researching MES options. This guide explains what cloud MES is, how it differs from on-premise, what the top commercial solutions look like, and how to compare them on TCO without getting sold a lemon.
Rebar Quotation Is Eating Your Week. AI Fixes That.
- Steph Locke
- Blog , Learning
- Mar 16, 2026
- Updated
Rebar quotation is one of the most time-consuming, error-prone jobs in a rebar merchant or fabricator’s day. Here’s how AI rebar systems change that — and what to look for in one.
Your Scrap Rate Is Costing You Twice. Here's How to Calculate It.
- Ruth Kearney
- Blog , Learning
- Mar 16, 2026
- Updated
Learn exactly how to calculate scrap rate using the standard formula, work through real production examples in actual £ figures, and find out what a good target scrap rate looks like for metals manufacturing.
Metals Manufacturing Glossary: Plain-English Definitions for the Shop Floor
- Steph Locke
- Blog , Learning
- Mar 10, 2026
- Updated
Plain-English definitions of the technical terms metals manufacturers use every day: mill certificates, EN 10204, heat numbers, cutting optimisation, yield, traceability, and more.
AI for Metals Manufacturing: What It Does and Where GoSmarter Fits
- Steph Locke
- Blog , Learning
- Mar 6, 2026
- Updated
AI in metals manufacturing is not magic — it is a set of specific capabilities: reading documents, optimising constrained problems, and surfacing useful data. GoSmarter applies all three to the workflows that matter most.
GoSmarter for Metals Operations: The AI Toolkit Built for the Shop Floor
- Steph Locke
- Blog , Learning
- Mar 6, 2026
- Updated
GoSmarter is the AI toolkit for metals manufacturers: mill-cert automation, cutting optimisation, inventory traceability, and production planning, all in one place.
GoSmarter vs Generic OCR/IDP Tools for Mill Certificates: Why Metals-Specific AI Wins
- Ruth Kearney
- Blog , Learning
- Mar 6, 2026
- Updated
Generic OCR and IDP tools fall apart on real-world mill certificates — multi-heat documents, non-English formats, domain-specific data. GoSmarter was built specifically for metals, and it shows.
Integrated Cert Traceability & Auditability for Metals Manufacturers
- Ruth Kearney
- Blog , Learning
- Mar 6, 2026
- Updated
GoSmarter provides integrated cert traceability for metals manufacturers — linking every certificate to inventory, orders, and despatch records to build a complete, auditable chain of custody automatically.
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