Many sectors have been—and continue to be—transformed by what additive manufacturing offers the modern workspace. In a piece for Engineering.com, Ian Wright says the aerospace industry has adopted 3D printing with considerable intensity. Advancements in FFF (fused filament fabrication) materials, such as carbon fiber–infused filaments, have paid off in the creation of drones used for activities like photography, surveillance, prototyping, and more.

Wright notes that research shows composite filaments can improve lightweight components, delivering higher durability and performance for UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles). He adds that other industries, like automotive, may see greater adoption in the future as electric vehicles become more commonplace globally. “For example, electric powertrain components that need fluid-based thermal management can benefit from conformal cooling channels that can only be made using metal AM,” says Wright.

Secondary factors are also accelerating adoption across myriad sectors. In a piece on ongoing trends for 3D Printing Industry, Michael Petch says the growing prevalence of AI and machine learning will expand 3D printing’s footprint. Experts polled by Petch posit that automation will optimize design, production, and post-processing, and enable monitoring systems that enhance quality control and certification while helping prevent failure. Many sectors will also benefit from lighter, higher-performing parts.

Petch says that 2025 is a big year for moving 3D printing further into industrialization and mass production. Materials integral to the process are also driving this shift, including advanced metal alloys like titanium and aluminum, fiber composites, and more cost-effective pellet-based extrusion. There are also calls within the industry to develop more environmentally conscious materials and processes to mitigate additive manufacturing’s operational footprint.

Currently, the up-and-coming additive manufacturing industry is seeing moves that encourage both interest and caution. Jake Volcsko, writing for Advanced Manufacturing, says consolidation is an ongoing theme among AM companies. “Consolidation fosters greater collaboration and could help pave the way for the standardization of processes, materials and procedures, as well as identify areas in which AM offers distinct advantages,” says Volcsko. Consolidation is primarily occurring among American and European manufacturers, while many companies in China are expanding into Western markets to keep up with competition.

It isn’t all boom for additive manufacturing, though. Madeleine P, in a piece for 3D Natives, says 2024 brought many negative developments that created a downcast atmosphere (such as bankruptcies and failed mergers). Q3 2024 saw a sales decrease of about 25 percent from the previous year, but growth of around 14 percent was still predicted for the sector. Companies worldwide saw greater investment as the year progressed, which suggests greater staying power alongside growing use of 3D printing in advanced fields like medicine. However, ongoing issues like U.S. tariffs may influence how much manufacturers are able to grow.

Other factors have slowed momentum and prompted caution across the space. In 2024, 3D printer manufacturer Stratasys filed two lawsuits against Bambu Lab for patent infringement. Stratasys alleges that Bambu Lab knowingly infringed several of its patents in printer designs, which could be especially damaging for Bambu Lab as it enters a growth phase. This legal action is being considered a watershed moment in the 3D printing sector and, along with other ongoing cases, may set legal precedent for decades.

Many factors are still driving growth in 3D printing, writes Melina Bluhm for Replique. Other trends include large-format printing, which is allowing sectors like construction and energy to benefit from parts and goods beyond the scope of typical at-home or office printing. “As 3D printing steadily marches toward industrialization, 2025 marks the year it fully integrates into the broader manufacturing ecosystem,” says Bluhm. 3D printing is fast becoming a vital tool for manufacturers.

One way 3D printing is taking greater hold across countries is through microfactories. A microfactory is a smaller, highly specialized production facility that provides an end-to-end solution for an entire product. These enable shorter supply chains, quicker post-release iterations, and, importantly, a much more localized focus than traditional factory setups. Microfactories are often highly automated to prioritize speed and efficiency.

In a report for CNBC, Shafi Musaddique says 3D printing microfactories are even enabling some manufacturers to become more ecologically sustainable. For example, the UNSW Sustainable Materials Research & Technology Centre (SMaRT) builds plastic filaments made from 100 percent waste plastics, often locally sourced. Their goal is to deliver automated, locally focused production tailored to customer needs, alongside environmentally friendly practices.

Petch adds that, in the global supply chain, decentralized, regional manufacturing hubs for resilient supply chains will make production more efficient and secure. “The trend toward regionalized manufacturing hubs is gaining momentum to reduce supply chain vulnerabilities as geopolitical manoeuvring creates uncertainty around trade tariffs,” he writes. Businesses are reacting differently to ongoing tariffs, and microfactories may help mitigate negative effects that could stunt development of the additive manufacturing segment.

True to the DIY nature of additive manufacturing, microfactories are a way for 3D printing to continually innovate on the modern manufacturing process. AM’s relationship with other buzzworthy technologies like AI suggests it will keep attracting attention by staying close to the cutting edge. Despite setbacks, its continued growth shows it’s here to stay and will soon offer even more to newcomers to the field.

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As time and technology advance, manufacturing’s reputation for the ‘3Ds’—Dirty, Dull, and Dangerous—is rapidly becoming a relic of the past. Over a century ago, working 12 hours a day, seven days a week wasn’t unusual in many North American factories. And to say children were exploited is an understatement; instead of being schooled, kids as young as six worked in factories, earning far less than their adult counterparts. Despite their tender age, youngsters were equally exposed to unsafe machinery, poor lighting, and smoke-filled, overcrowded factories.

These poor working conditions persisted for decades until U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s government brought in the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA). Along with fostering the right to a minimum wage and time-and-a-half overtime for workers putting in over 40 hours per week, the FLSA brought in child labour provisions governing children under age 16, and civil penalties for child labour violations.

Sadly, there have been countless workplace injuries and disasters over the years. One of the most infamous remains the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911. Engulfing New York’s Triangle Shirtwaist garment factory, the inferno claimed the lives of 123 women and girls and 23 men, most of them recent, uneducated immigrants. Since the factory doors were locked to prevent theft and unauthorized breaks, workers died from the fire or smoke inhalation, while others jumped to their deaths. The tragedy accelerated the growth of labour unions such as the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGWU), which had been formed in 1900.

Changing for the better
In the United States, manufacturing accounts for approximately 12 percent of gross domestic product (GDP); in Canada, manufacturing generates about 9.5 percent of the GDP. Worldwide, manufacturing is responsible for millions of jobs. From pens and parkas to computers, cell phones, and cars, manufactured goods are an essential part of our everyday lives.

As our need for goods grows and diversifies, so does the manufacturing sector. In the United States and Canada, processes are rapidly evolving, with many companies embracing the Fourth Industrial Revolution, better known as 4IR or Industry 4.0. Although many factories still have time-tested machinery like lathes, injection molding machines, presses, grinders, and mixers, these are being joined by 3D printers, industrial robots, precision lasers, programmable machines, advanced robotics, Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled devices, artificial intelligence (AI), machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, and other smart technologies.

The result of such technologies is greater accuracy and fewer errors, machines able to produce products at faster speeds and greater volume, enhanced safety, and self-monitoring capabilities. Eager to increase output and lower costs, manufacturers are investing in the latest technologies, and according to estimates, the global industrial machinery market is positioned to increase from USD 592.4 billion in 2022 to USD 1,041.6 billion by 2032.

With Industry 5.0 on the not-so-distant horizon, savvy manufacturers are preparing their facilities for this upcoming technology and for the need for trained workers to handle the demands that the next generation of manufacturing will bring. According to the European Commission—which prioritizes the European Union (EU) in building “a sustainable, digital and inclusive future” through seven priorities, such as competitiveness and security and defense—Industry 5.0 will be a key driver in the EU’s future success. While complementing Industry 4.0, Industry 5.0 will play “an active role in providing solutions to challenges for society including the preservation of resources, climate change and social stability.” It will need to empower workers, attract the best talent, and address “the evolving skills and training needs of employees.”

Expectations placed on manufacturers today, such as recycling, minimizing waste, preserving natural resources, and adopting circular production models, will keep increasing. And to remain competitive, manufacturers will need workers who are able to balance these considerations with tomorrow’s technology. “Industry 5.0 envisions a future where industries go beyond just efficiency and productivity, focusing on worker well-being and using technology for broader prosperity while respecting planetary limits,” states the European Commission. “It places human values at the core of production, driving the digital and green transitions essential for Europe’s long-term success.”

To be successful, manufacturers will need skilled staff who are able to bridge human and machine intelligence. Artificial Intelligence, after all, is only as accurate as the data it receives.

Manufacturing: the next generation
In November 2023, Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME) released Manufacturing Canada’s Future. The 26-page report provides important information on key areas, including the need to expand and upskill the country’s manufacturing workforce. Some of the issues manufacturing are facing include red tape, regulatory barriers, trade barriers, a lack of incentives in investing “in productivity-enhancing machinery and equipment,” and the ongoing skills shortage.

For the nation’s manufacturing sector to remain competitive, the report suggests manufacturers work with all levels of government to devise strategies for advanced manufacturing. The four key areas are: Expanding and upskilling Canada’s manufacturing workforce; Stimulating innovation, investment, and the adoption of advanced manufacturing technologies; Encouraging domestic manufacturing production, and value-added exports; and Speeding up and expanding clean technology incentives to help manufacturers adapt to and advance Canada’s climate change plan. According to the CME, implementing these recommendations will bring benefits such as increased productivity, emission reductions, greater production, and securing “manufacturing’s rightful place as a key driver of Canada’s economic growth and prosperity.”

Manufacturing is in a state of transformation, and to be successful, companies must embrace technology and ensure the 3Ds stay in the past. The challenges ahead—from skills shortages to sustainability pressures—are significant, but they are also opportunities for reinvention. By investing in training, adopting advanced technologies, and collaborating with governments and industry associations, manufacturers can strengthen their competitiveness while supporting environmental and social goals.

What began as an industry defined by long hours and unsafe conditions is steadily evolving into one that values innovation, efficiency, and human well-being. As Industry 4.0 matures and Industry 5.0 approaches, the future of manufacturing will not only be about what the machines can do; it will be about how they do it, with people and technology working together to create a safer, smarter, and more sustainable world.

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In a very short time, the Kentucky-based company began making a name for itself in the utility sector, mainly through word of mouth. Initially hired by DC Power for sales, Jesse Tyree, out in the field and speaking to potential customers about their needs, quickly realized that many opportunities in products, services, and solutions were missing from the market. With an extensive background in running and managing businesses, Tyree soon developed hiring strategies, and, with DC Power’s owners, investigated new opportunities opening up and the many services the company could offer.

Hitting the ground running
DC Power started off small, providing industry-leading mobile dielectric testing and American National Standards Institute (ANSI) inspection services to power contractors across America.

“We travelled, interacted with our customers, and found a huge need for many services that we felt we could offer, and could do so in a way that catered to these companies and their hectic and unique schedules—because everybody is different,” says Tyree, DC Power’s Operations Manager.

Much of the company’s work started with clients having equipment breakdowns. While out on site performing dielectric testing, DC Power crews frequently saw clients experiencing various equipment stoppages that urgently needed the attention of a skilled mechanic. “Not only could we offer a certified mechanic to come to them in a fully equipped service truck, but we could rent a piece of equipment to them, and even fully tool that equipment with everything they needed to get the job done,” Tyree says. “That could include anything from light or heavy-duty utility trucks to earth-moving equipment in our shop or mobile.”

Soon, demand led to the establishment of a full equipment rental program alongside a range of other services, including repairs and a body shop. DC Power has materials on hand or will order as needed. Customers can rent a basic bucket truck, use customized tooling services, or purchase tools and personal protective equipment (PPE).

To meet all customer needs, DC Power has a full, well-stocked warehouse and a massive body shop accommodating several trucks. Investing in a state-of-the-art paint booth and paint-mixing system, DC Power can perform everything from entire paint jobs to touching up scratched fenders. And since the paint system is highly efficient, the team can mix just enough paint, with no waste.

Covering the entire United States, the company can also arrange shipping for clients. “That goes back to us being a one-stop shop,” says Tyree. “We will never say no to anything our customers run into.”

One-stop benefits
DC Power provides services that are wide-ranging and designed to meet all the needs of its customers, even during unexpected situations. Recognizing that equipment breakdowns can happen anywhere at any time, the company offers 24/7 Emergency Response Field Maintenance services to minimize downtime. Fast, friendly, and professional, DC Power’s highly skilled technicians address customer repair issues quickly to get them back on the road again.

The company’s Field Maintenance Service handles everything from repairs to inspections and maintenance, and is complemented by an extensive parts department stocking OEM parts as well as high-quality aftermarket parts. Along with being a leader in Utility Material, Tooling, & PPE, DC Power’s full-service Body Shop & Fabrication service takes care of everything from minor dents and dings to major collision repairs. Combined, these professional services fit well with the company’s mission statement.

“Our mission is to be a one-stop shop for anything in the utility industry that our customers may need,” says Tyree. “We’ve grown quickly by investing everything back into our company from the start to offer as many services as we can to our customers. From providing them with a piece of rental equipment to urgent testing and inspections, we have them covered all while offering safe, fast, and courteous services.”

In addition, anticipating customer needs saves them money and frustration, and makes life much easier by having just one invoice. “It cuts down on confusion for our customers and saves them a lot of time.”

Staying safe
To ensure everyone gets home safely at the end of the day, DC Power has a safety consultant with over 30 years of experience and in-depth knowledge of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

“Our biggest thing when it comes to safety—and this is how we’ve looked at it since day one—is we are all in it together,” says Tyree. “We don’t take shortcuts with anything. If a customer asks us to, we are very upfront in saying, ‘We’re not going to do that’ if it’s something we don’t consider safe ourselves.”

Even if a client calls for mobile repair, and DC Power technicians see something unrelated, like using conductive lines instead of non-conductive lines, they will let them know it is unsafe on the spot. “That’s not to sell our services; it’s a safety issue.”

Modern marketing
Now, DC Power is growing and is about to embark on a massive social media campaign. Along with traditional advertising tools like paper flyers and online videos, the company’s staff wear shirts with QR codes on them. “If somebody is in a picture with the shirt on, it’ll pop up and say, ‘DC Power services,’ and show them everything we offer,” Tyree explains. Back when he was in the automotive industry, he was the first to come up with using QR codes on vehicles so they could be scanned for information.

The company will also have a booth at the upcoming Utility Expo. The largest trade show and conference for the utility construction industry, the Utility Expo will be held this October 7^th to 9^th at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville.

For DC Power, the Expo will be a valuable opportunity to connect with existing and potential customers. “We want to provide any meaningful solution we can for anything somebody might run into in the field,” says Tyree. The DC Power team plans to continue educating customers into the future on everything from the importance of keeping inspections and testing up to date to safety in the field.

“Our goal is to centralize many important services needed in this industry without having to contact and coordinate with many different companies, especially when you’re in a time crunch,” Tyree says. “This saves time and cuts down on communication breakdowns which can lead to delays, and in extreme cases, to unsafe situations out in the field for those working to keep important services online. We want to be the first company you think to call, no matter what your issue is, and we will offer a solution.”

The post Powering the Industry That Powers America<p class="company">DC Power</p> appeared first on Manufacturing In Focus.

Bourn & Koch provides field service, rebuilding, retrofitting, and repair parts for 29 American machine tool companies. Boasting archives representing more than 2,500 years of engineering expertise, the company brings unique solutions to the modern manufacturing sector while preserving the still-useful machinery that gave rise to American industry.

Founded in 1975 in Rockford, Illinois by engineers Larry Bourn and Loyd Koch of Sundstrand Machine Tool, Bourn & Koch has since made numerous changes and upgrades to its lines, from redesigning and re-engineering the Blanchard 22AD-42 rotary surface grinder, bringing it up to date with the latest technologies, to developing gear hobbing and shaping technology ranging from 25 to 1280 millimeters of work envelope. More recent engineering developments include the new MT³ (pronounced M-T cubed) vertical grinder, which combines milling, turning, and vertical grinding into a single machine platform.

Opportunity is where you find it
Other changes are also underway for this innovative company. In 2023, InCompass acquired Bourn & Koch and Mollart as part of two separate acquisitions. As a result, Bourn & Koch took over Mollart’s operations, sales, and field service support, previously based in Chessington, United Kingdom.

Mollart, which creates and produces equipment for deep hole drilling, multi-spindle pellet die drilling, micro-drilling, BTA deep-hole drilling, and gun drilling, began the process of moving production to Bourn & Koch’s Rockford facility in early 2024. “InCompass is a group of machine tool companies with some familiar names in manufacturing like Clausing, Bridgeport, and Timesavers, so it’s a great home for us,” says Joe Goral, Vice President of Sales. “We’ve made a number of improvements in our 130,000-square-foot facility to welcome Mollart’s product line and now build those machines here,” he tells us.

Improvements also included purging some aged inventory and leveraging ‘5S’ to make space for the growth and fit of everything from the London operation, adds Vice President of Operations Todd Wells. “We also reconfigured the factory layout to allow building of larger gun drilling machines into a high bay we already had.”

Along with relocating the assembly and service parts warehouse from the London facility to the Rockford factory, Bourn & Koch added some critical roles to support the integration. The company has also leveraged the workforce development programs available at IMA (Illinois Manufacturers’ Association) and TWC (The Workforce Connection), Rockford’s local workforce board, to support the delivery of critical education to its workforce. IMA and TWC support investments in developing critical skills, such as skills for machine building and CNC machining, the gun drilling application being a new CNC application to the BK team.

Building skills
“Gun drilling has been quite a learning curve for us,” Goral shares. “It’s not something we’ve done previously, but we’ve learned it, supported by Mollart employees from the UK who we’ve retained to continue production of these machines.”

With all the unknowns that preceded the acquisition and move, this success has come as great news, he adds. “When you build a machine for the first time—something we do a lot because we’re involved in special machine tool manufacturing and custom engineering—there are a lot of times where the machine just doesn’t exist before we build it.”

This means there’s always some risk involved. Bourn & Koch visited the Mollart facility in the UK, did their homework, and were “cautiously optimistic” that things would go well. “It’s great to hear one of their longtime employees come here and compliment the job we did. We really enjoy hearing that, and it bodes well for the future success of having this work here.”

Mollart’s business is roughly 50 percent North American and 50 percent global, with a prominent presence in Canada, the U.S., and Mexico across major sectors such as medical, automotive, and firearms. “Being on the sales side of things, I get to visit customers in the factory and see how these machines are integrated with their processes,” says Goral. “I’ve seen some very impressive fully automated lines where transmission shafts are moved through the factory to the gun drill, and then on to other processes. It’s really neat to see the success they’ve had in the past with these customers, and to be able to continue that.”

A new start for Blanchard
As for the Blanchard product line—a company brand since 2004—for the first 14 years after the acquisition, Bourn & Koch built the machines in the Blanchard way, updating the controls and systems as they went obsolete, but still based on their original engineering. However, in 2018 Bourn & Koch redesigned the entire machine and process, adding numerous features that certain segments of the market found valuable, including a full, automated stainless-steel enclosure with a roll-up door and power dresser. The company is now making an effort to redesign it again to better meet what the majority of the market is looking for in a rotary surface grinding machine.

“That doesn’t mean we’re going to abandon the current design of the machine,” says Goral, “but just simplify it to make it fit what the market wants and bring it to a price point that’s easier to justify for smaller manufacturers and companies that may not need the technology level of the current design.”

This means simplifying the controls and reducing the footprint so the machine does what a Blanchard needs to do but isn’t over-engineered for the application. The company is gathering market feedback and spending a lot of time with its customer base before getting to the prototype phase to ensure it ticks all the boxes.

“While Joe is out there getting customer input directly from the user base, our internal team is submitting ideas about what changes would make the product easier to manufacture and assemble,” Wells adds.

Learning and leadership
To maintain its quality of workmanship and grow a skilled workforce, Bourn & Koch has continued to develop its learning management system over the past eight years. While experiencing some false starts with other programs, it eventually joined the Rock River Valley Tooling and Machining Association (RRVTMA) to design an apprenticeship program that fits the demands of developing relevant skilled labor.

As the local branch of the National Tooling and Machining Association, the RRVTMA has a key partnership with Rock Valley College, the local community college, which Wells says is a big part of its success in the area. “It marries well with our learning management systems so we can upskill,” he says. “We service, design, and build a variety of CNC machine tools—grinding, hobbing, shaping, milling, drilling, and turning.”

The RRVTMA makes a good fit with Bourn & Koch, allowing machine tool builders to undertake an apprenticeship program that supports skills and growth. “For the first time in 2025, we’ve successfully leveraged the program all the way through to having two graduates,” says Wells. “We’ve taken two apprentices through that four-year program for them to achieve their journeyman credentials. That’s a big win for us this year.”

Constructing CNC machines involves the integration of complex electronics to bring motion to an otherwise mechanical system. Bourn & Koch leverages the mechatronics program at Rock Valley College’s Advanced Technical Center to speed the development of electro-mechanical skills necessary to build these machines. “RVC has invited us to the table to help align their program with our needs,” Wells says. “This program helped deliver the skills necessary to grow the volume of panels built and controls integrated within the factory.”

The company has also partnered with the State of Illinois through a grant program which marries well with the training program. “Leadership skills are among the skills that have been hard to get,” says Wells. “We’ve used these tenets and job principles to guide us through a project for the past year and a half, working with our local workforce board so we can identify the marketable skills in every single business segment here—whether it’s sales or operations or the finance team—to clarify what the career pathways are for our entire business.”

This means that all employees at Bourn & Koch, regardless of their role, understand the steppingstones of their career. Through this project, the company has developed a 23-lesson leadership program that helps managers understand how to succeed in their position.

“It’s one thing to promote somebody to manager; it’s another thing to show them how to do it,” says Wells. “We’ve spent a lot of time over the past year helping our managers know how to be good managers—how to understand employment law, our internal processes for performance reviews, and the training program itself.” This has included increasing the flexibility of work schedules to support work-life balance, which is much appreciated. Employees surveyed in connection with this project are 94 percent satisfied with career opportunities at Bourn & Koch.

From a national system standpoint, the National Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) program has also been vital, offering an excellent leadership program developed to help qualify leaders, along with the local chapter, IMEC (Illinois Manufacturing Excellence Center), Illinois’ MEP, and the IMEC Leadership Development Program.

Facing down challenges
Unfortunately, recent budget cuts throughout the U.S. may lead to MEP programs being cut, putting those invaluable opportunities, particularly for a smaller manufacturer like Bourn & Koch, in jeopardy.

“That immense value we get through IMEC and the immense value that other manufacturers get through these MEPs may no longer be an option,” says Goral. “Grant funding supports a lot of these programs we’re talking about, and it’s helpful when we look at how we justify and pay for them.”

IMEC has also been an invaluable resource across the organization. Without that grant funding, companies won’t have those opportunities. “I’m glad Joe said it; I agree with it,” says Wells. “It’s a very important program, and we’ve been fortunate so far to be able to be supported by those entities. I hope that continues.”

Despite uncertainty surrounding future funding, Bourn & Koch’s history of innovation, adaptability, and investment in its people suggests a strong path forward. By blending time-tested machine tool expertise with forward-thinking engineering, the company continues to equip manufacturers with the tools, skills, and leadership they need to succeed. A dedicated workforce, loyal customer base, and proven ability to turn challenges into opportunities continue to propel this team forward.

The post Putting the Magic into Machine Tools<p class="company">Bourn & Koch</p> appeared first on Manufacturing In Focus.

HERMLE USA’s world-renowned service includes expert customer training, field service, and applications assistance. Moreover, its relentless innovation continues to drive its evolution. And now, a new range of machines, GEN2, will be launched at its 5-Axis Summit 2025 taking place from September 9^th to 11^th at its headquarters in Franklin, Wisconsin. As a result, the company looks forward to significantly expanding its North American presence following the event, which promises to be as memorable as it is resource packed.

The event will feature live demonstrations of cutting-edge 5-axis and automation technologies, expert-led presentations on AI, motion control, and process integration, and insights from nearly 40 industry-leading partners. It will provide visitors with three days of machine demonstrations, respected keynote speakers, and technology presentations that will inform, educate, and guide audience members in discerning their needs. Expert speakers will include Dr. Jens Kummetz, HEIDENHAIN’s Head of Application Development and Dr. Joseph Koch, Open Mind’s Executive Director of Development, to name a few, while companies like Siemens, Blum, MOLDINO, and more will also be represented. The true star of the show, however, will be HERMLE USA’s new collection of future-proof machines.

The new GEN2 machine centers are described as integrated, future-ready, and providing machining production in a single setup. Each unit comes complete with 13 processes in one 5-axis machine center. Combining market-disrupting efficiency and characteristic precision, these machines lead a historic market shift. New models include the C 250, C 400, C 650, C 12, C 22, C 32, C 42, and a robotic system, the RS 2 GEN2, which can be configured with up to three identical or different HERMLE machining centers. In this way, HERMLE USA intends to make these its most memorable and sought-after machines to date, bringing its entire collection to nine models.

While nine models may appear like a large number, HERMLE hides sophisticated simplicity in plain sight. “Underneath, all our machines look pretty much the same. That allows HERMLE to be dedicated to only one machine product,” says Markus Puntigam, Vice President of Sales and Marketing North America, pointing out that sizes do differ. “Therefore every service technician you talk to is an expert on your machine,” he says. “Every customer you talk to will tell you we make outstanding machines.”

In addition, while the machines serve many industries, they are ideal for fabrication outfits that demand specialized kinematics. Highly anticipated for their high-performance integration and unmanned operational efficiencies, the company believes that the GEN2 machines are built for a new era. “This platform doesn’t just evolve our machines; it completely reinvents what’s possible in a single setup. For shops looking to stay competitive, this is your iPhone moment,” said President and CEO Gunther Schnitzer in a press release.

While GEN2 may look similar to older models, the difference between the new and older models is the introduction of PROFINET systems over the earlier protocol, Profibus (process field bus). These protocols are at the heart of each machine’s communication architecture. Based on ethernet with response times of less than 1 millisecond, PROFINET allows engineers to incorporate the latest smart IO-sensors and more sophisticated CNC features, assisting the company in future-proofing its technologies.

Boasting superb spindle uptime with sustainability and automation excellence in mind, these machines exemplify the company’s legendary dependability, with the added benefit of modern technology and capabilities to bring machining into the 21^st century. HERMLE USA’s greatest achievement with the fresh iteration of its time-tested 5-axis technologies—which also reduce the amount of floorspace, time, and labor needed to run them—is the fact that previously diverse arrays can now be integrated into a single platform. Some of its diagnostics and performance-enhancing improvements also include sensors compatible with the internet of things (IOT), together with the most advanced HEIDENHAIN -model drive converters, ensuring the machines’ continued relevance in service tools’ ever-evolving interface technologies.

Fully aware that its customers only make money when their machines are running, Puntigam is frank about the impressive capabilities of the company’s new machines. “GEN2 is built to keep spindles turning—longer, smarter, and with fewer human interventions,” he says. “This is the future of manufacturing.” And this is why GEN 2 was developed with the mission of giving machine shops greater superpowers. Working leaner, more efficiently and at lower cost per piece production-wise, these machines feature everything from contour broaching and advanced diamond polishing and grinding to energy efficiency and temperature and ultrasound measuring.

They also offer improved coolant filtration, advanced spindle diagnostics, and much more. HERMLE USA’s GEN 2 machines even manage workflows through automated, space-saving pallet assessments. Troubleshooting is another breeze with CNC archives providing all the details the team needs to diagnose remotely, test, and rectify any issues with the help of high-end technologies and its field staff, where remote correction is not possible. “This capability really sets HERMLE apart from the rest of the industry,” says Schnitzer.

There is also the ZM30 tool magazine housing 30 additional tools in half the space; moreover, HERMLE customers and HEIDENHAIN TNC7 owners will soon have access to an extensive training video library, making owning these machines an even greater pleasure.

Alongside its growth in the United States, the company’s presence in Mexico and Canada is expanding, with its team of engineers, service technicians, and general support staff also growing at a steady pace. Strategically anchored with good access to two international airports and a robust labor force at its Franklin base, part of this unrelenting drive to provide sophisticated yet easy integration was achieved by establishing a new facility in Mesa, Arizona last year.

Close to the city of Phoenix, with additional critical component storage capacity to better serve its West Coast clientele, this is not the company’s only recent expansion. June 2020 saw the company announce the conclusion of an extensive $3 million expansion of its Wisconsin facility. The project’s mission was to render a state-of-the-art facility doubling the size of its North American headquarters with the addition of 15,000 square feet to better serve and grow its local client base, and it has certainly achieved that. The new technology center aims to improve the area’s labor force by upgrading skills through its high-tech service technician and apprentice training syllabus based on its time-tested German program. With several complete machining centers as well as a showroom where its machines can be viewed up close, the center serves as a comprehensive learning hub where potential owners can get their first sense of the ease of ownership and quality that HERMLE machines provide.

“As more people get to know the incredible quality of the machinery and the team that stands behind them, HERMLE will keep growing quickly,” said Manuel Merkt, former President and COO, in a press release at the time. “HERMLE service is as world-class as the machines, and much of that is because HERMLE is proactive. This expansion will ensure HERMLE is even more prepared to serve all customers just as diligently as the company grows.”

To achieve this vision of growth, the facility now offers increased warehousing, improving response time for shipping high-demand components to local customers.

As a company known for combining perpetual evolution with time-honored skill, HERMLE USA is poised to continue evolving in response to the ever-changing needs of its markets while growing its reputation and capabilities. To be sure, this team is excited to demonstrate the latest technologies at the upcoming summit, September 9th to 11th in Franklin, Wisconsin. HERMLE USA’s Marketing Manager, Jeremy Williamson’s, invitation speaks for itself: “Until you see, hear, and feel what our technology can do, it’s hard to understand the capabilities,” he says. “Readers should attend the 5-Axis Summit and see for themselves.”

The post Turning Innovation into Precision<p class="company">HERMLE USA</p> appeared first on Manufacturing In Focus.

Based in Rome, Georgia (where it has two facilities), the company invests in building its advanced manufacturing capabilities, which enable it to set the standards of technology for the industry. The result is a respected, industry-leading air filtration outfit that provides American businesses with homegrown, industrial-quality products they can trust. This committed team of product experts ensures that customers enjoy dedicated support and a positive, professional purchasing experience.

Active growth
The company is justifiably proud of its continuous expansion and improvement through highly successful acquisitions. Its most recent was concluded in May this year with the purchase of RTT Finishing Solutions in Rockwall, Texas, about 40 minutes from Dallas. Previously trading as Col-Met, the company rebranded in 2020. Ultimately, it was its brand recognition, established distribution channel, and reputation for outstanding quality that sealed the deal, according to Clean Air Industries President, Mark Salamone.

This recent acquisition adds powder-coating and paint-booth applications to the company’s existing range of grinding, sanding, and welding booths—all complete with air filtration and particle capture.

This strategic acquisition opens a portal to additional markets while establishing a complete end-to-end service that adds tremendous value to the Clean Air Industries’ existing portfolio. As Salamone points out, “We can now provide filtration and finishing equipment for all stages of our end users’ manufacturing processes.” With the addition of a vertically integrated 150,000-square-foot facility, Clean Air Industries is better established in its markets than ever before.

The company’s Vice President of Marketing, Theo Rigas, is enthusiastic about the addition. “RTT adds a whole new dimension to our business. A lot of it dovetails nicely into our existing business—we’re even seeing some overlap in some of our distributors where we already share customers,” he says. “It’s very beneficial for everybody to be under one umbrella.” The next step is to dovetail and optimize the two companies’ distribution systems for maximum synergy.

A tight team
Rigas describes the robust growth of Clean Air Industries over the past 18 months as astonishing, especially considering the present economic climate and how some competitors are struggling. “We’ve been blessed,” he says. “We source all of our materials domestically. We manufacture all of our products on U.S. soil from scratch.”

Having observed the struggles of competitors caught between tariff increases and the rising costs of offshore manufacturing, Rigas is spot on about the company having embarked on the right path from the start, with the once-popular offshore fabrication model now significantly more costly. But physical and economic growth is not Clean Air Industries’ only expansion agenda; with continuous investment in sales, marketing, and engineering always prioritized, the Clean Air team continues to grow as well. “We’re always building our sales, marketing, and engineering teams to serve our distribution partners. As we grow, our distributor partners grow,” Salamone says, and Clean Air attracts the caliber of people it does by treating and remunerating them fairly. “We are heavily invested in our people,” he says.

With many years of experience under its belt, the company has learned the real value of the input of its team. The management team invites open discussion around any novel ideas that could improve workflows and systems and takes the time to keep everyone up to date about company decisions and trends. Everyone is heard, which means that good ideas are always percolating.

While growing from under 50 to around 230 team members in just five years has called for some adjustments, to put it mildly, the can-do approach of this team remains a constant at Clean Air Industries. By maintaining an open and supportive approach to team building, the company continues to encourage and cultivate the close-knit atmosphere its people have come to value over the years.

Care for every customer
Growth and innovation, however, are not the company’s sole drivers. The team ensures that every customer’s system performs optimally within its own unique setup, with or without the addition of custom controls, and Clean Air’s professional approach to delivering personalized service makes it a pleasure to do business with its team, no matter the size of the system.

Looking at the next step in expansion, the company continues to expand its aftermarket parts and service offerings as part of its diversification strategy. Currently, the company offers service visits, spare parts, replacement filters, and more. Salamone is confident in the company’s capacity for continued evolution and expansion. “Each of those avenues offers a huge runway for organic growth; together, they have an even longer runway for growth,” he says.

As Clean Air Industries continues to build on its existing, enviable self-sufficiency, it carefully ensures seamless vertical integration, which is perhaps the best news of all for existing and new customers. And so this one-stop shop is coming to industrial pacesetters across North America, bringing not just a breath of fresh air to working Americans but better health and safety, too.

The post Clean Air, Clear Vision<p class="company">Clean Air Industries</p> appeared first on Manufacturing In Focus.

For 80 years, the Colorado-based company has been recognized for one thing above all: its commitment to long-term partnerships. By tailoring materials to precise applications, purities, packaging, and formats, GWI ensures that its customers’ most specialized needs are not just met, but anticipated.

Rooted in history, focused on the future
Founded in 1946 in Denver, GWI’s early success came from manufacturing sensitive, high-performance materials in the region’s dry climate—perfect for handling delicate chemistries. From the beginning, long-term relationships were formed and are the cornerstone of the business, keeping GWI closely aligned with emerging technologies and ever-shifting industry needs.

“We have evolved through every major industrial shift over the last 80 years,” says Plant General Manager Shaun Sellers. “And we’re taking the same approach to planning for the future.”

A culture of family and responsiveness
Beyond its technical expertise, GWI prides itself on its culture. This year, Vice President of Products, Amy Chuang, celebrates over 10 years with the company. She points out that collaboration and a family-oriented atmosphere are at the heart of daily operations.

“The affirmation ‘Made in USA’ is our pride,” Amy says, noting that GWI produces more than 90 percent of its products in the U.S. “Our consistency comes from robust procedures, detailed documentation, and a team of experienced chemists.”

That dedication extends beyond internal culture to customers. As Amy explains, GWI’s responsiveness and cross-department teamwork ensure that clients receive the most effective solutions tailored to their specific needs.

Meeting customer challenges head-on
In today’s fast-moving markets, sourcing advanced materials has grown increasingly complex. Niche applications in particular can face long lead times, vague documentation, and limited technical support.

Shaun acknowledges these challenges but views them as opportunities: “Customers working with non-standard specifications or small-volume orders are often at the forefront of innovation,” he says. “We treat these projects with the same precision, speed, and technical expertise as full-scale production.”

This philosophy enables GWI to serve both pioneering start-ups and global industry leaders with the same high-touch service. By keeping synthesis, testing, packaging, and recycling under one roof, GWI helps customers balance supply chain risks, sustainability goals, and speed to market.

Case study: Chromium Chloride
One example of GWI’s specialty expertise is its proprietary synthesis of Chromium Chloride, a compound used in chemical synthesis, electroplating, pigment production, and textile treatment.

Chromium Chloride is highly sensitive and notoriously difficult to manufacture consistently, making it a compound rarely stocked by many suppliers. Yet GWI has developed a proven, repeatable process entirely in-house, refined over decades.

The result? Speed, consistency, and cost-efficiency, with savings passed directly to customers. Just as importantly, GWI provides real-time technical support, ensuring the compound performs as intended for each unique application. It is the difference between a vendor and a true partner.

Built on four pillars of quality
Underpinning all of GWI’s work are four pillars:
• Quality Assurance – aligning specifications and documentation from the start
• Quality Care – strict environmental, health, security, and safety compliance
• Quality Commitment – flexibility, partnership, and responsiveness
• Quality Testing – in-house labs, backed by ISO certifications

These standards are more than guidelines—they are the backbone of the company’s success.

Scaling with purpose
Looking forward, GWI is scaling with purpose. Expansions in global sourcing, manufacturing, and logistics will support customers with production-scale needs while staying true to the company’s expertise in custom work.

“Even as we grow, we remain committed to the custom, specialty work that drives innovation,” says Amy.

This includes new capabilities in closed-loop materials recycling, helping customers reduce waste, recover valuable metals, and meet ambitious sustainability goals. Amy adds that GWI is also preparing to deliver larger volumes of materials: “We’re excited to provide bigger quantities in the future—all while maintaining the high level of quality customers count on.”

A bright future
With a loyal customer base, a highly skilled workforce, and 80 years of industry experience, GWI is poised to lead the next generation of technological advancement. By blending global reach with customer focus and environmental responsibility, the company continues to prove that its legacy is one of innovation, quality, and true partnership.

The post Eight Decades of Expertise in Chemicals and Materials Sciences<p class="company">Great Western Inorganics</p> appeared first on Manufacturing In Focus.

Lanco takes the guesswork out of these challenges, thanks to its expertise and longevity as a global systems integrator of precision-engineered automation, assembly, and test solutions for multi-piece, high-speed production systems.

As a global integrator, Lanco has an expansive footprint—but with a specialized local touch, able to meet customers where they are. This is important for multinational customers, particularly those in the automotive, medical and life sciences, aerospace and defense, electronics, and consumer product sectors where tight tolerances, rapidly evolving technologies, and production values are top of mind.

As a problem solver, Lanco leverages deeply rooted design engineering, technological integration, and risk-mitigated project management to devise customized solutions, offer valuable market insights, and support a project through its lifecycle until long after installation is complete, which makes Lanco an enduring partner in automation.

Going global, staying local
Lanco Integrated is a legacy company, but one in evolution. The company dates back to 1873 in Switzerland, with origins in manufacturing watch components for Rolex. Through several iterations, acquisitions, and expansions, the precision engineering and automation specialist has positioned itself to support its customers wherever they may be, both geographically and in terms of market readiness.

As a global integrator, Lanco has had a presence in Asia since 2008, establishing an operation in Malaysia in 2021 to further enlarge its global footprint. This expansion allowed the company to flex its might as an integrator by bringing together two separate locations and unique cultures from opposite sides of the world to work seamlessly as a team. “We are a global company,” says President and Chief Executive Officer, Bob Kuniega, “but to be able to execute to that level—to deliver on your promise of ‘design anywhere, build anywhere, identically to one another’—that is a completely different game,” he says.

“The infrastructure has to be set up and the training has to be done; the business management systems and the processes and the forms and the tools all have to be in place, and everybody’s got to be using it all in exactly the same way.” This ensures that “everyone is working toward the same goal,” says Kuniega.

By engaging its people, creating a system of accountability, and blending established institutional knowledge with the ideas of the next generation, Lanco has continued to add value to its customers’ operations with its exceptional precision engineering capabilities and specialized market insights. As an ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan) company, Lanco is uniquely differentiated from other businesses as its employees are also owners. The ownership mindset drives a heightened interest in not only satisfying customers but also ensuring profitability, as everyone’s individual success contributes to the collective success of the team. From Kuniega’s perspective, the company has the potential and opportunity to capitalize on fast-moving markets, both mature and emerging, to advance new products to market and scale up production to take advantage of unique market conditions.

“Whether it be tariffs and reshoring, or supply chain disruptions because of a pandemic, [conditions are] requiring our customers to scale up in the local markets where they have to supply their solutions, so we’re well positioned not only here in the United States because of our legacy, but also in Southeast Asia and the rest of the world through our facility in Malaysia,” Kuniega explains. He sees it as supporting those customers as they face rising costs, resource challenges, rapidly evolving technology, and highly competitive markets.

Embracing change
A significant part of the value delivered by Lanco is the team’s ability to anticipate customers’ needs, for today and for the future. “We have a modular solution,” explains Kuniega. “Each discrete operation is a self-contained module. For instance, if the control system within a module goes down, you don’t have to stop the whole production line.” This affords flexibility and the ability to adapt, reconfigure, and expand operations without the need for costly redesign or reengineering.

These modules comprise all the latest technologies, where needed, such as (take a deep breath!) vision-guided pick and place, dispensing, laser processing, various attachment solutions, multi-axis articulated robot-based mechanisms for material handling, feeders, transport systems, intelligent and smart devices and sensors, industry-leading programmable logic controls, PC-based network systems, and data management solutions.

Essentially, Lanco provides what Kuniega describes as “the glue that holds the whole supply chain together. We’re the best R&D for some of our vendors because we’ll test their products to the limit and in some cases, we’ll tease out some flaws in their software or their hardware and we’ll give them ideas of what they need to enhance their product so they can differentiate themselves.” He notes that this is all while ensuring that customers have the best available technological innovation at their disposal.

This approach is built upon the understanding that with technology advancing at a rapid pace, it becomes harder for customers to understand the breadth and depth of the technology, much less how to unlock its potential, as they may lack the intimate application and market knowledge that sets Lanco apart as an integrator. Lanco takes everything a step further by aligning with sectors where it can deliver the greatest value, leveraging its market insights, precision engineering, and automation expertise to not only add value but also mitigate risk.

Integrating risk management
This team is not only in the business of precision engineering and systems integration; it is also in the business of risk management, and a big part of this approach is centered on its Design for Automation principles, which are applied early in the design cycle to identify and address any potential process and scalability issues while avoiding the potential for costly delays and rework.

“We evaluate our customers’ products and processes, their competitors’ end-market needs, and trends, and engage our critical supply and technology partners as we embark on engineering the right solutions, tailored to address markets’ and customers’ needs,” explains Global Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Barry Rahimian.

From concept to the unique Design for Automation process—as well as data management, line integration, performance optimization, finalization, and post-installation support—Lanco Integrated remains a constant in a market of changing variables.

“At core, we are problem solvers, and we look for difficult automation projects where we can leverage our talents in design engineering, integration, and risk-mitigated process management to provide value to our customers,” Rahimian says. To this end, Lanco Integrated considers all commercial, technical, supply chain, quality, legal, project, financial, and environmental risks and provides comprehensive risk mitigation plans, potential backup plans, and strategies.

Supported by a well-defined and documented risk assessment process internally, Lanco Integrated mitigates risk for itself as well, which helps maintain its robust ability to step up to the plate for its customers. With over 1,000 days without a lost workday at its U.S. operations and pushing 700 days in Malaysia, its strategy and performance speak for themselves.

Future-forward
As part of its approach to forecast and mitigate risk for its customers, in 2024, Lanco established a “Futures” initiative that was, as Rahimian notes, “engineered to align our technology and innovation development efforts with our go-to-market (GTM) strategy, and which was fundamentally based on meeting the needs of our customers and markets.”

This is particularly important where speed to market, market share, and cost-related challenges are concerned, since, as he explains, “we don’t have anything off the shelf that people can order; everything is customized to customer-specific requirements. Everything we do is heavily tailored to their needs, so we have to anticipate our customers’ current and future requirements.”

Key to this value-add is a deeply rooted knowledge of the markets being served, which is why Lanco has undertaken a detailed and expansive market segmentation strategy to ensure its solutions are timely, relevant, and insightful, even where technology is forging ahead. The goal is to ensure that processes remain competitive in the one to two years it takes to implement them in the market.

“Markets will change and evolve in that time, so it’s critical for us to anticipate and be cognizant of the market trends and our customers’—and their customers’—needs and accordingly be able to plan proactively and make sure we keep their future requirements in mind,” says Rahimian.

“We want to show our customers that we know their application, their pain points, their challenges, and we want them to minimize their risk by going with a supplier who has done this over and over, who can bring to the table new thoughts that they hadn’t thought of before,” says Kuniega, referring to the way the company has proven itself through its performance for over a century.

It’s this ability of Lanco’s to evolve, grow, and stay at the leading edge of technological innovation and market trends that has proven to be a sharp strategy for its customers and its vendors. And so Lanco Integrated continues to prove that it is second to none as an automation and precision engineering specialist, capable of optimizing performance on the manufacturing floor while remaining profitable in the most competitive of global markets.

The post Global Automation That’s Got the Local Touch<p class="company">Lanco Integrated</p> appeared first on Manufacturing In Focus.