That was the case for IMT Elite Finish, a long-established St. Catharines company whose work in metal finishing and automotive component assembly has supported major original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for more than three decades.

IMT began in 1990 as Niagara Metal Finishers & Supply Inc., operating out of a modest 5,000-square-foot facility. Today, the company has grown into a busy 35,000-square-foot operation offering vibratory finishing, shot blasting, heat treating, saw cutting, and high-volume assembly of automotive trim components. Much of their assembly work requires tight process control, with every part accurately tracked from inspection through installation.

That traceability became the source of a growing challenge, as IMT’s operators were printing labels in bulk, away from the assembly line, then applying them after visual inspection. The small inefficiencies added up: labels sometimes went missing, the wrong ones were used, or extra sheets were printed and wasted. In an industry where each component must be tied to the right vehicle at the right moment, even minor delays—and minor errors—carry significant consequences.

Faced with the need for a more reliable, real-time approach, IMT reached out to WAMIC. What began as a conversation on the production floor quickly turned into a full redesign of the label-creation and application process. WAMIC’s engineering team developed a compact print-on-demand system that connects directly to IMT’s assembly equipment. Instead of printing labels in advance, the system now produces each label the moment a part passes inspection. A Zebra ZD411T thermal transfer printer handles the output, while a Raspberry Pi 5 with a touchscreen controls the process. The equipment receives an automated trigger from the assembly controller but still allows operators to print manually when needed. Built with wireless-capable hardware, the setup is already positioned for future Industry 4.0 integration.

“This solution not only met our current needs but positions us to scale smart manufacturing capabilities across the plant floor,” noted Rick Spicer, IMT General Manager.

In fact, he says, the change on the floor was immediate. Assemblers no longer stop what they’re doing to sort through labels or return to a separate station to reprint missing ones. Every part now receives the correct label at the exact moment it’s required, dramatically reducing the small but costly errors that once interrupted the workflow. Traceability has tightened, waste has decreased, and the overall pace of production has become smoother and more predictable.

For IMT, the project marked another step in its evolution from a traditional finishing shop to a modern manufacturing partner. For WAMIC, it was another example of how applied research can take a practical problem, understand the real-world constraints behind it, and deliver a solution that fits seamlessly into day-to-day operations.

If your business is facing similar production challenges—or if you want to explore what’s possible—WAMIC can help. To learn more about how your company can access the same support IMT received, please contact Sylvia Denton, Technical Sales Manager for WAMIC, at [email protected].