Leading Innovation for Sales, Engineering, and Manufacturing

 

On May 13–14, 2025, Lino GmbH hosted its Design & Sales Automation Conference. Under the motto “Simply integrate, intelligently automate”, the Leading Innovation Company welcomed users and industry experts to the Maritim Hotel in Würzburg. Conference attendees were impressed by the real-world insights shared by renowned machinery and plant manufacturers, the lively discussions with professional peers, and the in-depth presentations on optimizing and integrating sales and engineering processes.

The event has, for years, provided a dynamic platform for in-depth dialogue between software experts and users. DSAK has established itself as a key meeting point for anyone seeking to make sales, design, and manufacturing processes more efficient.

The conference focused on digital innovations in product configuration. In addition to introducing its new integration platform Lino® Hub, Lino also presented Lino® Automate, a solution for efficient CAD process automation. These were complemented by Tacton® technologies for CPQ and design automation, as well as deeply integrated applications for SOLIDWORKS® and existing system environments.

TYROLIT Schleifmittelwerke Swarovski – End-to-End Automation in Grinding Tool Manufacturing with Lino

As one of the world’s leading manufacturers of bonded grinding and dressing tools, Tyrolit Schleifmittelwerke Swarovski AG & Co. K.G. faced the challenge of adapting its existing processes to meet new technological demands. The investment in an automated machining center brought to light the need to also automate the upstream design and machine programming processes seamlessly. In the presentation titled End-to-End Automation in Grinding Tool Manufacturing with Lino, participants gained valuable insights into the company’s strategic approach. The talk provided a hands-on account of the challenges Tyrolit encountered throughout the project and illustrated how the implementation succeeded in close cooperation with Lino. A central theme was how to efficiently link existing processes and future-proof them through automation.

Erhardt+Leimer – Configuration as the Key to Sales Automation: A Scalable Success

Erhardt+Leimer GmbH develops scalable technologies for the web-processing industry, offering customers modular systems with an impressive range of variants—for example, in web guiding systems, where millions of configurations are possible. In a dynamic market environment, the rapid availability of technical data is a critical success factor—especially in the presales phase. Fifteen years ago, the company responded to rising engineering efforts with the concept of an end-to-end automation solution for technical sales. In their presentation “Configuration as the Key to Sales Automation – A Scalable Success”, Michael Spatz, Siegfried Schuster, and Drini Krasniqi shared practical insights into how this process was built and continuously optimized using Tacton products and Lino software.
The result: a scalable, automated sales process that delivers customized solutions to customers in the shortest time possible.

GC-heat Gebhard – Rule-Based, End-to-End Processes from Configuration to Production

In their presentation “Rule-Based, End-to-End Processes from Configuration to Production”, Andreas Dieckmann and Manuel Hopp from GC-heat shared a compelling report on how they digitized their quotation and manufacturing processes. The focus was on implementing a consistent system based on Tacton CPQ, enabling rule-based, standardized handling of customer inquiries—regardless of individual people or departments. The challenge was to manage high product variety and short response times in sales efficiently. Through seamless integration of Tacton CPQ into their existing IT landscape, GC-heat was able to establish a fully digital process chain—from the first customer inquiry to the start of production. The benefits: a faster quotation phase and reliable, automated production control.

GEA Food Solutions – “Playing with LEGO”: Intelligent Line Layouts with Tacton & Lino 3D Layout

How can you create tailored line solutions for food processing from over a hundred different machines? Max Meulendijks and Niek van Mierlo from GEA addressed this question in their presentation titled “Playing with LEGO: Creating Line Layouts Through Intelligent Configuration with Tacton & Lino 3D Layout.” GEA is one of the world’s leading suppliers of process technology for the food industry, assembling complete line solutions from a broad machinery portfolio. The main challenge: standardizing interfaces between machines and reducing complexity in engineering. By using Tacton Design Automation, GEA enables automated configuration of SolidWorks models, while Lino 3D Layout provides intuitive and precise placement within the overall setup. A feature called “Snapping” ensures clean, accurately aligned transitions between machines. The presentation offered insights into the implementation and results of this integrated solution, demonstrating how even complex production lines can be configured modularly and efficiently with the right tools.

Enhancements and New Features of Tacton and Lino Products

A central role at DSAK is played by experts from the Lino universe—long-standing technology partners, in-house consultants, and developers. Many attendees come to DSAK specifically for insights into new developments and innovations from the “Software Made by Lino®” portfolio. The Lino team presented updates and visions across the following areas:

Software Made by Lino – Innovation Testing / Research / Outlook
How can uncertainties in complex software projects be transformed into genuine opportunities for innovation?
Rüdiger Dehn, Managing Director of Lino GmbH, addressed this question in his inspiring keynote. The talk compared SaaS vs. on-premise approaches and explored the role of agile methods in product development. Using real examples, he demonstrated how iterative processes, early validation, and continuous customer feedback not only reduce development risks but also turn uncertainty into potential. The presentation offered a glimpse into Lino’s innovation mindset and previewed an upcoming collaboration with the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

Seamless Integration, Smart Automation – Introducing the Lino® Hub Integration Platform
With Lino® Hub, Lino introduced a comprehensive solution for automating design tasks across the entire value chain—from sales to manufacturing.
In his presentation, Product Manager Jens Mögel highlighted features like seamless 3D visualization, automatic CAD document generation, central model management, and integration with PDM/PLM systems. Practical scenarios illustrated how Lino® Hub transforms Lino’s engineering know-how into structured, reusable processes, ensuring efficiency and consistency across organizational boundaries.

Live Demo: CAD Automation and Modeling with Lino® Hub
In an exclusive session, Lennart Poggenburg-Harrach provided a hands-on demonstration of modern CAD automation with Lino® Hub. Under the title “CAD Automation and Modeling with Lino® Hub,” he showed how the platform’s flexible modeling environment enables cross-system process integration. A real-world use case revealed how workflows are accelerated, interfaces are simplified, and new potentials in product configuration and design are unlocked.

Configure and Deliver Projects: Functional System Modules with Tacton CPQ and Lino® Hub 3D Viewer
Stefanie Elzenbeck, Consultant at Lino GmbH, illustrated how to intelligently automate sales and order processes using Tacton CPQ. The solution enables end-to-end processing from quotation to ERP order entry, including rule-based pricing, product, and BOM configuration at the push of a button. This generates accurate, high-quality quotation documents instantly. The process is enhanced by the Lino 3Dweb viewer, now a standard part of the Lino Hub Suite, providing real-time, configuration-specific product visualization.

Process Automation with Lino® Automate Server and AI Agent 
In their forward-looking presentation, Ingo Knoch and Marcel Haas introduced a new paradigm in CAD automation: Lino® Automate Server, with its action list execution in the backend and intuitive web dashboard, optimizes existing workflows. The highlight was the new AI Agent, which enables automation via natural language commands—no programming skills required.
This combination of server-based execution and AI integration opens up entirely new possibilities for seamless, flexible, and intelligent CAD process automation.

New Features in Lino® Simplify: Model Simplification on the Server + PDM Integration
Version 1.4 of Lino® Simplify introduces enhanced features for more precise rule definitions.
In his session, Jens Mögel explained how Simplify now operates server-side in tandem with Lino® Automate Server. Results can be transferred directly into connected PDM systems, ensuring consistent management of simplified models. The talk also demonstrated how Lino® Automate helps automate recurring tasks efficiently and transparently within existing system landscapes.

We sincerely thank all our speakers and partners for their contributions.

Your Lino Team