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How ATI Materials Rolls Out New Technology That Sticks: Change Management, Real-Time Data, and Frontline Empowerment
By: Guidewheel
Updated:
March 6, 2026
8 min read
How ATI Materials rolls out new technology that sticks: change management, real-time data, and frontline empowerment
In this webinar, Norman Goco (Senior Manager, Operations at ATI Forge Products) joins Lauren Dunford, CEO of Guidewheel, to discuss change management, real-time visibility, and building the kind of culture where new technology actually gets adopted on the plant floor.
Top 5 takeaways
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Here are the five key takeaways from Norman Goco's approach to technology adoption at ATI Forge Products:
- Real-time visibility replaces hours of manual data collection. Norman cut his daily data gathering from three hours to near-zero by replacing manual processes with real-time machine monitoring.
- Frontline autonomy accelerates problem resolution. Operators at ATI now file facility tickets the moment an issue surfaces instead of waiting 24 hours to report through a manual chain.
- Structured change management prevents backlash. Norman's 6M Change Log (Man, Machine, Mother Nature, Measurement, Method) gives every stakeholder context before any process change takes effect.
- New leaders should observe before optimizing. Rushing to change processes in a new environment erodes trust. Listen first, understand the current state, then recommend improvements.
- Three tools are non-negotiable for a modern plant. Norman identifies real-time machine monitoring (Guidewheel), statistical process control (SPC), and a robust ERP system as his essential technology stack.
Best practices and key learnings
Stop collecting data manually. Start acting on it in real time.
Most operations leaders know the pain of Monday morning data fights. Different spreadsheets, different numbers, different conclusions. Norman lived a version of this every single day before ATI adopted real-time monitoring.
His morning routine used to start with three hours of gathering production data by hand. That is leadership time burned on data entry instead of problem-solving. With Guidewheel's AI-powered platform providing a live scoreboard of machine status, that time dropped to minutes. The shift was not just about convenience. It changed what Norman and his team could actually do with their mornings: catch issues early, prioritize resources, and make decisions based on what is happening now rather than what happened yesterday.
The operators felt the difference, too. Before, reporting a machine issue meant waiting for the next shift handoff or filling out paperwork that might not get reviewed for a full day. Now, alerts fire automatically, and operators submit facility tickets on the spot.
"I used to spend about three hours every morning just collecting data and now it's like within my fingertips and in real time I could just look at the scoreboard and understand what machines are running and what machines have issues."
Norman Goco, Senior Manager, Operations at ATI Forge Products
This is the core value of industrial AI done right. Not a flashy dashboard nobody checks, but a practical tool that removes manual overhead and puts actionable data in the hands of the people closest to the work.
Use a formal change management process to win over skeptics
Norman learned this lesson the hard way. Early in his time at ATI, a supervisor pushed through a process change without consulting the team. The result was predictable: frustration, resistance, and a workforce that felt excluded.
Norman's response was not to slow down on change. It was to build a better system for managing it. He created the 6M Change Log, a structured framework that requires anyone proposing a change to answer a set of clear questions before implementation begins: Why are we changing? What is the scope? What does success look like? What happens if we do nothing?
The 6M categories (Man, Machine, Mother Nature, Measurement, Method, and Material) ensure that every relevant dimension of the operation is considered. The change gets logged, communicated to all stakeholders, and opened for feedback. People can suggest adjustments. The process becomes collaborative rather than top-down.
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Norman's 6M Change Log framework ensures every proposed change is evaluated across six dimensions: Man, Machine, Mother Nature, Measurement, Method, and Material. Before any rollout begins, the team documents why the change is needed, what success looks like, and what happens if nothing changes. This structured approach transforms technology adoption from a top-down mandate into a collaborative process — significantly reducing resistance and building trust with frontline teams.
This matters especially when rolling out new AI tools or AI automation on the factory floor. Technology adoption fails most often not because the software is bad, but because the people using it were never brought into the conversation. Norman's approach treats cultural buy-in as a prerequisite, not an afterthought.
When ATI rolled out Guidewheel, Norman ran it through this same change management process. The team understood the incremental steps: hardware installation, software training, accountability expectations. They knew why the change was happening and what it would mean for their daily work. The result was a smoother adoption with far less resistance than a top-down mandate would have produced.
Build the tech stack that actually runs a modern plant
When asked what tools he would consider non-negotiable if starting a plant from scratch, Norman named three: Guidewheel for real-time machine visibility, SPC for dimensional tracking and quality control, and a robust ERP system for integrated business operations.
What is notable is the reasoning behind each choice. These are not aspirational AI software purchases. They are practical layers that solve specific, daily problems. Guidewheel provides the real-time operating layer between the floor and ERP, catching downtime and surfacing machine status without requiring operators to manually log anything. SPC keeps machining tolerances in check. ERP ties shipping, finance, and production into a single system so transactions do not get lost in manual handoffs.
"If I were to start a new plant from scratch, what tools would be non-negotiable? I definitely think Guidewheel is critical, right? Because Lauren, you can't imagine how much it's automated some of our work."
Norman Goco, Senior Manager, Operations at ATI Forge Products
Norman also shared a telling story from a previous ERP implementation. Facing heavy resistance, he ran dual systems for three months and let the team compare results side by side. The integrated ERP matched or beat the legacy system on every metric. The skeptics became advocates because they proved it to themselves. That is the kind of pragmatic, experiment-driven rollout that makes new AI tools stick.
Ditching manual processes for real-time results
"Guidewheel is just instantaneous. It's real time. So automatically, we'll get alerts. Automatically, we'll be able to go down there and understand what's going on. And now we're even empowering the operators so that they could be autonomous and put in those facilities tickets to get things fixed."
How to put these insights into practice
Norman's playbook is not theoretical. Here is how to apply it in your operation this quarter.
1. Audit your morning routine. How much time does your leadership team spend collecting, compiling, or reconciling production data each day? If the answer is more than a few minutes, you have a visibility gap. A real-time monitoring layer like Guidewheel can close it without touching your OT network or requiring IT involvement.
2. Build your own change log before your next rollout. Before introducing any new process or technology, document the answers to five questions: Why are we changing? What is the scope? What does success look like? What happens if we do nothing? Who needs to be involved? Share this with every stakeholder before you start. Norman's 6M framework is a good template, but the key principle is simple: no surprises.
3. Empower operators to act, not just report. If your frontline team has to wait for a supervisor or a shift change to flag a machine issue, you are losing hours of potential uptime every week. Give operators the tools and the authority to submit tickets and take action the moment they see a problem. Real-time alerts make this possible. Stop authority makes it cultural.
4. Observe before you optimize. If you are new to a plant or a team, resist the urge to change things in your first weeks. Map the current state. Understand why things are done the way they are. Then identify the specific changes that will be most impactful. You will earn more trust and make better decisions.
5. Run a dual-system pilot when facing resistance. If your team is skeptical about a new tool or process, let them prove it. Run the old and new systems in parallel for a defined period and compare results. Data wins arguments that PowerPoint presentations cannot.
Conclusion
The gap between the factories that thrive over the next decade and those that fall behind will not be defined by who has the most advanced technology. It will be defined by who can actually get their teams to use it.
Norman Goco's approach at ATI Forge Products is a clear example of what works: structured change management, real-time data that replaces manual busywork, and a deep respect for the people doing the work. These are not revolutionary ideas. They are practical, proven, and available today.
The manufacturers seeing the biggest gains right now are not waiting for a perfect multi-year digital transformation plan. They are starting with the basics: real-time visibility into what their machines are actually doing, frontline teams empowered to act on that data, and a culture where change is managed with transparency rather than forced from the top.
That is what modernizing without the mess looks like in practice.
Ready to see what real-time visibility could do for your operation? Book a Demo
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