We originally published this episode in 2019. It was a better time in Israel’s history, before the country was savagely provoked to go to war to protect its existance. Israel is a country full of industry and world class innovative companies, such as the manufacturing company Ditron Precision. This interview contains insight on how Israel is so important to the world’s metal working industry as well as why the Jewish People need it as a Jewish Homeland. View the podcast our YouTube Channel. Listen on your favorite podcast app using pod.link, or: …
Author: Noah Graff
Today I’m debuting a new episode series under the Swarfcast umbrella that I’m going to put out every so often. From April 19, 2018, until April, 19, 2019, I spent an entire year meeting at least one stranger every day and documented everyone I met. Some days I met 10 people, other days I was lucky to have a short conversation with one person. After a few months, I decided I would write about the experience and create mini podcast episodes about the people I met. And five years later, I’m FINALLY getting around to doing the podcast. I call…
Have you considered whether your business is salable? My guest on today’s podcast says only a small fraction of companies have built an organization and leadership structure that makes them attractive to buyers. Damon Pistulka is founder of Exit Your Way, a firm that helps businesses sell their companies. What’s unique about Exit Your Way is that before it tries to sell a business, it helps the business’s owner increase their company’s value, often working with clients for three to five years. Then the company can net a much higher sale price and have a higher probability of actually completing…
A Bad Deal Wednesday, Graff-Pinkert hopefully finally buried a turd of a Swiss screw machine. You probably saw it over the years in our advertisements—a Tsugami B0205 II, Mfd. 2014, that we bought in an online auction for about $45K. The great investor, Charlie Munger, who died last week at 99, famously said, “If you mix raisins with turds, you still have turds.” Graff-Pinkert better have a lot more raisins in its stock to cancel out turds like this Tsugami. The biggest problem with the machine was that it was configured only to run blanked parts—not bar stock. We figured…
Our guest on today’s podcast is Joe Bennett, Vice President of Sales at Seaway Bolt and Specials, a privately held cold heading company in Columbia Station, Ohio, founded in 1957. In the cold heading process, coiled steel is cut into slugs, which are then hit multiple times, ultimately pounding them into a desired shape. The cold heading process is capable of producing several hundred pieces per minute. Some cold-headed products are net shaped blanks that are shipped to machining companies who then finish the parts. Scroll down to read more and listen to the podcast. Or listen on your phone…
A few months ago, I was up past midnight recording a solo podcast. I was feeling tired and frustrated that it had taken me so long—longer than it “should have.” Then I paused. I looked at myself on the webcam with my cool microphone and my headphones, and I thought, “This is what I want to be doing.” This is what I get to do, so I should pause for a minute and enjoy this moment. This is fun creative work I’m proud of. This is making something that might have a positive impact on someone. I do gratitude lists…
Malachi Greb, my guest on today’s show, has a mission, “freeing humans, one robot at a time.” He is the founder of Elite Automation, a company that designs automated systems for manufacturing clients, taking manual processes and automating them with robotics, conveyors, vision, and more. They also provide robotic welding systems. Malachi and I talked about some of the latest technologies in the robotics field. Malachi also hosts the Manufacturing Come Up Podcast. We discussed his career journey, from dropping out of high school on purpose to founding his own company in his 20s, which has grown to 27 employees…
When you’re shopping for machines do you find yourself wondering if the more expensive option for a machine is the better one? Does a taiwanese brand perform worse than a German brand? Will one machine last longer than another? Are some machines pretty similar between certain brands? The truth is, paying more money for a machine tool does not always translate to better user experience or greater productivity. Machining and life are more interesting than that! Our guest on today’s podcast is Justin Tauber, co-owner and Vice President of Integrated Machinery Systems (IMS), a machine tool distributor in Itasca, Illinois. …
Do you ever ask yourself why the majority of businesses out there are struggling to survive while an elite handful are crushing it? On today’s podcast we are discussing that question. Our guest is Steve Preda, founder of Steve Preda Business Growth. He is also an author of three books and the host of the Management Blueprint Podcast. Steve coaches business owners to help them reach their ambitions, which often means scaling and maximizing their companies’ profitability or making business ownership a more pleasurable, fulfilling experience. Steve’s life mission is to eradicate what he calls “Business Covid.” He says 180,000…
On today’s podcast episode, you’re going to hear the story of a thriving fifth-generation family manufacturing business that is constantly reinventing itself. I interviewed Adria and Aaron Bagshaw, owners of W.H. Bagshaw, a machining company in Nashua, New Hampshire, that started over 150 years ago! For 135 years, W.H. Bagshaw produced the same type of metal needles and pins on ancient equipment until the company purchased its first CNC Swiss machine in 2005. Since then, the company has modernized and acquired three other manufacturing companies, including its newest addition, a wooden baseball bat company, Walter Bats. Those topics make this…