I often see machine tool preference as a kind of religion, and my game is not to try to convert people. In the used machinery business, my usual strategy is to be a matchmaker rather than a missionary. If customers ask for an ACME 1-5/8” RB-8 I don’t generally attempt to sell them a Wickman 1-3/4”. If a customer is a devout Tornos user, I doubt I can convert them to Citizens. A few years ago I trekked through the mountains of Slovenia with a customer to buy a Schutte SE16 spindle stopper sitting in a barn. We could hear…
Author: Noah Graff
The last year and a half, I’ve been a rookie family man. I’m trying to balance selling sexy-ugly iron, podcasting, and being a good dad and husband. I’m a distractible person with mild ADHD. I like to have fun, get out of the house, and I sometimes have trouble pulling myself away from the TV. Four years ago, I read the book, The Art of Less Doing: One Entrepreneur’s Formula for a Beautiful Life, by Ari Meisel. The book had a significant impact on my life, particularly for how I do work. I’m far from having the majority of my…
Our guest on today’s podcast is Sunny Han, founder and CEO of Fulcrum, a cloud based enterprise resource planning system, or ERP, for small to medium sized manufacturing companies. Besides creating a great ERP, Han says his true aspiration is to create a vast network of manufacturing companies, enabling them to work together seamlessly. Scroll down to listen to the podcast. Main Points (2:35) Sunny explains that Fulcrum is a cloud based ERP software for small to medium sized manufacturers. He says the software lends itself to companies with at least 12 employees on the shop floor. Some of its…
On today’s podcast we interview Rick Miller, owner and cofounder of Elijah Tooling, a company that sells innovative CNC work holding equipment. Scroll down to listen to the podcast. Rick has a knack for for coming up with unique products and has several patents in the work holding sector. He says that innovative ideas are vital for success, but getting customers to buy into those ideas is what makes for a successful business. Main Points (Time codes according to audio) (3:05) Rick talks about the origin of his business. Before producing work holding equipment, he and his brothers started a…
Happy New Year! As much of the Swarfcast team is on vacation through the holiday season, we’re sharing a few of our favorite podcasts from 2019. This week, we feature an episode we did with Aneesa Muthana, the owner of Pioneer Service Inc., a CNC machine shop located in Addison, IL. The episode originally aired in March of 2019. Scroll down to listen to the podcast. Lloyd and Noah write: “On today’s podcast, we interviewed Aneesa Muthana, owner of Pioneer Service Inc., a CNC machine shop that features 26 Star CNC Swiss lathes. Aneesa shared her fond memories of being…
Happy Holidays! While much of the Swarfcast team is on vacation through the New Year, we’re sharing a few of our favorite podcasts from 2019. This week, we revisit Episode 39, in which Noah interviews Jay Sauder, owner of Sauder Machine in Plymouth, Ohio. This episode originally aired in May. Noah writes, “One of Sauder’s specialties is making hydraulic wheel cylinders for Amish horse-drawn buggies using sophisticated CNC equipment. Sauder and his 10 employees are all members of the Mennonite church. Earlier in his life, Jay himself drove a horse and buggy, but today he chooses to drive a pickup truck.…
In today’s podcast Lloyd and Noah Graff reflect on their experiences in the machining world of 2019. What did we see this past year? What did we learn? How did it feel? Scroll down to listen to the podcast Main Points (2:07) Lloyd says when he thinks of 2019 he thinks of his “constant battle between despondency and hope.” He feels like one deal can make or break a year in the used machinery business. (3:45) Lloyd and Noah talk about the importance of journaling about their days. Lloyd tries to do it in the middle of the work day…
Today’s podcast guest is Travis Erickson of Precision Components of Oxnard, California. Precision Components runs Tornos CNC Swiss lathes, specializing in producing custom mil-spec contacts primarily for the aerospace industry. Travis and his father handle all of the company’s machining and quality duties and employ only three people in their shop. Scroll down to listen to the podcast. Main points of the interview (2:50) Travis explains the core of his company’s business, custom mil-spec electrical contacts that go into circular connectors for large OEM aerospace companies. The company produces parts ranging from 16mm all the way down to .0013mm. (4:45)…
Scroll down to listen to the podcast. Today’s podcast centers around a company that provides capacity for machining firms that lack resources to meet clients’ needs. Our guest is Greg Paulsen, Director of Application Engineering for Xometry. Xometry provides manufacturing on demand using an artificially intelligent quoting system and a manufacturing partner network of over 3,000 companies. Main points of the interview (3:00) Greg explains his background in product development working for firms in the additive manufacturing sector. He discusses the his dislike in his previous job of sending out lots of RFQs and then having to wait for responses. …
Scroll down to listen to the podcast. Today’s podcast is part 2 of an interview we did with Alec Mandis, Chief Executive of Accord Precision, the largest machined component manufacturer in New Zealand. Over the years Accord has strived to set itself apart by developing a diverse group of niche products. One example is a stainless steel diving helmet made from an investment casting which took the company three years of R&D to produce successfully. Main Points of the Interview (2:30) Alec talks about the process to produce Accord’s stainless steel diving helmet from an investment casting. He says that…