Lesjöfors, a global leader in spring manufacturing with a rich industrial heritage, has built its success on precision engineering and quality manufacturing. As the company expanded through acquisitions and organic growth, it faced increasing challenges in standardising information management across the organisation. To maintain its competitive edge and support continued expansion, Lesjöfors needed a solution to unify document management and streamline critical business processes.  

By partnering with Columbus and implementing M-Files, Lesjöfors has established a foundation for sustainable growth and operational excellence, creating consistent processes across its expanding business network.

The challenge: Managing information in a growing enterprise 

As Lesjöfors continued to acquire companies and expand operations, maintaining a unified information system became a significant challenge. Each acquisition brought its own document management practices, resulting in a fragmented approach across the organisation.  

Sales teams struggled with document access and version control. Meanwhile, quality and production teams faced difficulties maintaining consistent documentation for critical manufacturing processes like advanced product quality planning (APQP) and production part approval process (PPAP). Engineering drawings were stored in various systems, making it difficult to ensure production were using the correct versions.  
 

"With each new acquisition, we inherited different ways of working and different systems," explains Kenth Wiipa, Group CIO at Lesjöfors. "We needed a standardised approach to information management that could be deployed across our entire organisation while still accommodating the specific needs of each business unit."  

The lack of standardised processes wasn't just an operational inconvenience, it posed challenges for compliance, quality control, and ultimately customer satisfaction.  

The solution: Unified information management with M-Files 

Columbus worked with Lesjöfors to implement M-Files as a central platform for managing critical business information across the organisation. The solution replaced siloed systems with a unified structure, making it easier for teams to find what they need, follow consistent processes, and collaborate across locations. 

The results: A foundation for sustainable growth 

Lesjöfors has a long-standing partnership with Columbus, built on continuous improvement and a “think big – start small” approach. This mindset played a key role in the M-Files implementation, which delivered significant improvements across Lesjöfors’ operations: 
  

Streamlined acquisition integration  
New acquisitions can now be integrated into Lesjöfors' standardised information management environment more quickly, accelerating alignment and value realisation.  

 
Enhanced sales efficiency  
Sales processes are more consistent. Teams can generate quotes faster and have confidence they're working with the latest product specifications.  

 
Reduced production errors  
The integration between M-Files and M3 ensures that production always uses the correct drawings, significantly reducing the risk of manufacturing errors.  

 
Improved maintenance operations  
Maintenance teams now have access to equipment documentation and service histories in the document management system (DMS), reducing equipment downtime and extending asset lifespans.  

 
Standardised quality processes  
Consistent workflows for APQP/PPAP have been rolled out across key facilities, helping to uphold Lesjöfors' reputation for quality as the company grows.  

Improved compliance and documentation control 
Controlled document management ensures that teams work with up-to-date procedures and specifications, simplifying audits and reducing compliance risks. This includes seamless integration with 2c8, a tool used for process visualisation, helping teams better understand and align with documented workflows.  

 
"The M-Files solution implemented by Columbus has given us a foundation for managing information consistently across our growing organisation," notes Kenth Wiipa. "We now have visibility into processes that were previously scattered across multiple systems. The integration with M3 for our drawing archive has been particularly valuable for our production teams." 

Looking forward: Building on digital foundations 

With the M-Files platform now established, Lesjöfors is looking at additional opportunities to leverage its information management capabilities:  
 

• Expanding the solution to additional business processes  

• Enhancing document analytics with AI to identify process improvement opportunities  

• Further standardising processes across newly acquired companies  

• Extending system integrations to create a more connected information ecosystem  

  
The partnership with Columbus continues to evolve. "Columbus understood both our immediate needs and our long-term growth strategy," reflects Kenth Wiipa. He concludes: "The M-Files implementation isn't just solving today's challenges, it's creating capacity for future expansion."