Expand Machinery’s commitment to remaining an industry leader by providing the highest value and precision machining productivity available has resulted in a diverse product line that offers unparalleled machine quality. Of particular note is the company’s newly acquired line of Japanese-manufactured equipment, of which it is especially proud.
Founded in March 1985 under the name Ganesh Machinery, within three short years Expand Machinery moved into a 4,000-square-foot warehouse, and has continued to thrive ever since.
Going for growth
Focusing on providing excellent customer service and fostering customer loyalty, Expand Machinery has since expanded into a cutting-edge 15,000-square-foot factory with a 40,000-square-foot warehouse, serving more than 12,000 machine shops, manufacturers, and technical institutions in a variety of industries with sales and servicing of equipment.
In 2019, Expand Machinery acquired the GENMILL, GENTURN, and Ganesh product lines. The company’s dedication to delivering top-notch, well-engineered machinery and exceptional post-purchase support to all its customers means each machine is designed to offer the most advanced technology.
This year, in particular, is one the company has been looking forward to, with IMTS 2024 – Inspiring The Extraordinary, taking place Sept. 9-14 in Chicago. Managed by the Association for Manufacturing Technology, The International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS), first held in Cleveland, Ohio in 1927, features industrial machinery and technology including welding, lubrication, and materials engineering.
The largest manufacturing technology trade show in North America, IMTS provides a forum for creators, builders, sellers, and drivers of manufacturing technology to connect, find solutions, and get inspired. Participants from around the world gather to discover the latest innovations and technologies that are changing the future through advanced and traditional manufacturing, robotics, automation, and digital transformation.
“The show is one of the biggest in our industry,” says General Manager Ravjeet Singh. “We will not only be participating, but participating in an even bigger way than the previous times.”
“Made in Japan” on display
The company has been moving in a positive direction, he adds, particularly in its product line. “In our 40 years in business, this is the first year Expand will be selling products that are made in Japan. Our made-in-Japan machines will be highlighted, demo-ed, and shown at IMTS in Chicago.”
Singh encourages attendees to visit Expand Machinery at the event at booth 338187 in the South Hall, to view the products’ capabilities firsthand.
As the company has previously only sold products made in Taiwan since its founding, it’s proud to offer this addition to its high-quality line of machinery. “Our Taiwan products will still exist; nothing is being discontinued,” adds Singh. “But we have expanded into made-in-Japan products, and we’re excited for the first two key models to be represented at the IMTS show.”
Expand Machinery will have seven or eight machines in total showing at IMTS this year, which also features its partnership with one of the company’s biggest partners, Mitsubishi, for controls and robotics.
The two new Japanese model machines being launched at IMTS 2024 are the C42MYS / C52MYS (Twin Spindle Single Turret Live Tool Machine with “Y” Axis available with Fanuc OITF Plus Control) and the CW42MY / CW52MY (Twin Spindle Double Live Tool Turret Machine with “Double Y Axis” available with Fanuc OITF Plus Control and Mitsubishi M800 Control).
The new launch of the company’s best seller for the last 20-plus years, GENTURN 36CS, is now available with Mitsubishi M800 Control, while GENTURN SL-20Y2 SWISS 20MM Hybrid Machine can be used with or without guide bushing and Mitsubishi M800 Control.
Other models include GENTURN 52GTS (Twin Spindle, Twin Gang Machine with Full “C” Axis and Mitsubishi M80 Control); GENMILL 5X-8 with Mitsubishi RV-13 (13KG Robot); GENMILL 5X – 24 with Mitsubishi 80KG Robot, and GANESH GMV-2F Manual Milling Machine with Newall DRO.
“The 5X – 24 is also a newer product, but it’s manufactured in Taiwan and will be displayed at the Mitsubishi booth with an 80KG Mitsubishi robot,” Singh says. “Also our GENTURN 52GTS machine will also be displayed at the Mitsubishi booth. So those two sets of machinery will be at the Mitsubishi booth, which will be only three or four booths away from the Expand Machinery booth in the South Hall.”
Into the world
The company’s embrace of new and innovative technology was one reason it changed names from Ganesh to Expand in 2019, Singh explains. “We wanted to have the name Expand Machinery because we are venturing into different countries and globally into the world.”
While today the company is launching made-in-Japan products, tomorrow it might be launching something new and exciting from another region. Regardless, it’s the first time in 40 years that the company has added any product made in a different country. “Japanese-made is considered a very superior product in our industry,” Singh says.
“This is the first time we’re showing four new products in the IMTS show, which we have never done,” he adds. “One of them will be our GENTURN 36CS—our number-one seller for Expand Machinery in the last 20 years. This is also the first time we’ll be relaunching that machine with the Mitsubishi M800, which a lot of our distributors and customers are waiting for.”
And IMTS will certainly be the best area to showcase these products. With the event taking place only every two years, it was canceled in 2020 at the height of the pandemic and was poorly attended in 2022. This year, however, promises to be different. “What we are hearing is that everyone from different parts of the country will definitely be attending, so it should be a well-attended show this time in Chicago,” says Singh.
While COVID has adversely affected all businesses in the industry in various ways, Expand has continued to thrive, especially in its growth and its strategic move into the Japanese-made product lines.
“It’s an accomplishment, and we’re expanding in the industry with this new launch,” Singh says. “As for milestones we’re hoping to achieve in the upcoming years, that also includes growing and expanding as a company. As we’re a small business looking to grow into a larger-sized business, these higher quality and more productive machines will help us get into the tier-one category of customers in the United States; that’s what we’re hoping for ourselves and our distributing partners.”
While the company already has an impressive customer base with the likes of Lockheed, Tesla, Ford, and SpaceX, this will further enhance Expand Machinery’s capacity to serve tier-one customers, along with the small and mid-size shop market.
“We’ve also expanded hugely in our parts support,” Singh says. “We’ve just added a number of machines in our parts department to enhance the efficiency level of our parts service to our customer base.”
The company’s growth necessitated a search for additional space when it became apparent that too much floor space had been yielded to the recent expansion of the parts department. To keep up with its impressive growth in the industry, boost efficiency, and increase its part-storage capacity, Expand Machinery added five Kardex Remstar VLM machines to its parts department. These new automated vertical parts storage and retrieval systems were the answer to the space issue, delivering an effective solution for quick parts choosing and storage along with much better floor space management.
Having quick, easy, and dependable access to components lowers warehousing costs and lets the company’s parts department expand. “All of this, of course, is also vital for our launch of products made in Japan,” says Singh. “It’s about expansion, maintaining quality service, and moving to the next level of high-quality, productive machines. Our company’s diverse product line that offers unparalleled machines will also be reflected in our new made-in-Japan launch.”
An expansion into robotics is another area Expand Machinery has delved into. “With the way advancements are happening in the optimization of the industry, robotics are important to our growth—as well as our big partner being Mitsubishi robots.”
Impressive strides
Ultimately, Expand Machinery is making impressive strides in its growth and ability to grasp what’s most important to the industry at large and especially its customers: what they need now and what they’ll need in the future to remain successful and relevant.
“Everyone knows when they see ‘Made in Japan’, it means it’s high quality, maybe the highest quality product,” says Singh. And while this newest addition will absolutely help set the company apart from its competitors, Expand also boasts many additional qualities that help place it on the highest rung.
“Of course, we have competition out there,” says Singh. “Our competition is also bringing in and selling similar types of machines, but what sets us apart is the whole platform of being a family company.” What that means in practice is providing top-notch service to its customers, both before and after the sale, and all under one roof. Expand Machinery also ensures customers receive support and care for all applications, services, parts, and sales.
“That is what drives our customers to come back to us,” says Singh. “Not only do we provide high-quality machines to our clients, but we back them with an excellent level of support.”
Be sure to visit Expand Machinery at IMTS 2024, Sept. 9-14, McCormick Place, Chicago Illinois, Booth 338187.
