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Executive Snapshot
- Company: Antora
- Industry: Clean industrial energy and storage
- Challenge: Move from prototype builds to production with traceability, inventory accuracy, and test data linked by serial and lot
- Why Manufacturo: Configuration for a rapidly growing company, unified execution and test traceability, phased integrations that did not block the production floor
- Highlights: Work Orders, Inventory, Receiving and Inspection, Procedure Runs with structured data, Test Reports linked to equipment and calibration, integrated systemic quality controls
- Results: One record of truth for execution and tests, cleaner kitting and inventory, smoother readiness for increased output
- What’s next: Ramp throughput, expand governed change and ERP depth, strengthen test coverage
Customer Overview
Antora’s factory-built thermal batteries deliver reliable industrial heat by storing low-cost clean electricity as heat in solid carbon blocks. These batteries support always-on industrial operations by absorbing low-cost, surplus electricity and releasing reliable, dispatchable energy for use in industrial processes.
The Challenge: Prototypes to Production
As Antora moved from engineering prototypes to repeatable builds, they needed a production system that would stand up quickly, avoid brittle tool sprawl, and still capture the essentials for scale, including:
- governed work orders
- clean inventory control and receiving
- structured data collection for first-article and pilot builds
- end-to-end traceability tying test articles and subassemblies to their results.
They also wanted minimal upfront configuration that met them where they were, with headroom to ramp output as processes stabilized.
Antora's Storage Module
Why Manufacturo: Fast Now, Scalable Later
Antora chose Manufacturo for its out-of-the-box configurability and the ability to refine processes as production evolved. The team started with Work Orders and electronic work instructions, then added Inventory, Receiving and Inspection, Procedure Runs with structured data capture, and Test Reports linked directly to work orders and equipment IDs.
Manufacturo’s service team helped tailor execution flows — for example, reducing allocation noise in kitting — and supported early integrations without slowing day-to-day work. As Antora’s operations matured, they expanded ERP integration while continuing to use Manufacturo as the primary system of record for execution and traceability.
Partnership in Practice: Configuration, Integration, and Cadence
Antora’s needs encompassed more than software; they needed a hands-on partner to remove early friction and concretize the path to scale. Here’s how we worked side by side.
Standing start to working system
We configured core workflows quickly so production could begin capturing data without long consulting cycles.
Floor-first design
Early iterations prioritized technician clarity - fewer clicks, clear buy-offs, embedded checks.
Noise removal
We tuned kitting and allocation to match the operating model, reducing re-picks and manual overrides.
Phased integrations
Manufacturo ran execution and traceability from day one while ERP sync expanded in lock-step with operations.
Cadence and ownership
Weekly working sessions and a shared backlog made scope and timelines visible. Customer success owned unblockers, service owned configuration, product advised on roadmap fit.
Antora is transforming clean power into dependable energy for industry. We’re proud to provide the execution and traceability backbone that helps them scale with confidence.
From Requirements to Results
The table below connects real shop-floor requirements to what we implemented with the right number of controls for safety, and without the unnecessary layers of added complexity.
What Antora Needed
How Manufacturo Delivered
Quick stand-up with minimal configuration
Out-of-the-box workflows for Work Orders, Inventory, Receiving and Inspection, and Procedure Runs so production could begin capturing data immediately
Single record across builds and test
Work-order-level Test Reports with equipment IDs, calibration state, and acceptance criteria - preserving lineage from receiving through build and test
Cleaner inventory and kitting
Tailored allocation and kitting behaviors aligned to the operating model - fewer on-floor workarounds and clearer picks
Repeatable execution data
Procedure-driven capture for critical parameters and test conditions - consistent evidence for quality and audits
Integrations without stalling execution
Phased ERP synchronization while keeping execution and test traceability in Manufacturo
A path to a regular output cadence
Hardened routings and buy-offs that make scaling volume a controlled step, not a risky leap
Reliable operations require reliable tools, and first-of-a-kind designs require flexibility. It is challenging to create systems which can adapt to both needs; I think Manufacturo’s product line and service team shines in both. When I started at Antora our production floor was an empty building. Manufacturo is one of the tools we relied heavily on to rapidly scale into our current steady-state production line.
Future Outlook
Antora is moving from early repeatability to sustained throughput. With core execution and test traceability in place, the next phase focuses on increasing volume while protecting quality and audit readiness.
Throughput ramp
As routings and approvals stabilize, the team is progressing from pilot cadence toward a regular output rhythm. The emphasis is a predictable drumbeat without adding friction on the floor.
Quality coverage and controls
Extend effective updates and role-based approvals across more procedures, so improvements roll out without disrupting active work, keeping audits straightforward.
Test coverage and traceability
Broaden structured data capture within procedure runs and test reports. Link results, equipment identifiers, and acceptance criteria to each build to tighten feedback loops and speed issue resolution.
Integration depth
Expand ERP synchronization across items, receipts, costs, and inventory reconciliation while keeping Manufacturo as the source of truth for execution and test history. Goal: fewer manual touches and cleaner handoffs between operations, supply chain, and finance.
Operational readiness at scale
Maintain audit-ready evidence from receiving through final acceptance in a single record of truth, using the same controls and visibility established during initial production as volume grows.
Conclusion
Antora’s path shows that rapid growth can go hand in hand with disciplined operations. With Manufacturo in place, they’re equipped to raise output while keeping every build traceable and audit ready.
