RISING FROM THE ASHES
Transcription
RISING FROM THE ASHES
RISING FROM THE ASHES By Jennifer Bohanan Allen Tool Phoenix’s success is a testimony to the integrity, expertise, and resolve of the people who work there. 4 roughcuts and fine finishes “If it’s easy, we don’t do it,” says Cheryl Maines of Allen Tool Phoenix Inc. (ATPI), describing what might be considered “typical” work for the East-Syracuse, NY based custom contract manufacturer. “Many of our customers are from the aerospace and defense industries. We’re accustomed to projects with a very small margin of error.” If you’re familiar with the name Allen Tool, it’s probably because the company has existed in some form since 1922. Then, in 1991, after merging with another company, Allen Tool closed its doors, leaving many of its long-time employees, including Material Manager Cheryl Maines and Tool Room Foreman Dick Cook facing unemployment. “Dick and I decided to start a new company,” recounts Cheryl, who now serves as the company’s general manager. “He had good commercial contacts, and I had customers in the aerospace and defense industries. We believed our professional integrity would carry us forward.” Hoping to “rise from the ashes” of their “Bill [Alibrandi] goes out on the floor and helps out when we’re troubleshooting or developing a process. He is a partner.” -Cheryl Maines, Allen Tool Phoenix former company, the newly-minted entrepreneurs called their enterprise Allen Tool Phoenix. The new business owners leased used equipment and facilities space from a machine shop that was undergoing a downsize and enticed two employees from the soon-to-be-former company to join them in their new enterprise. “The old facility closed down on a Thursday, and our ‘new’ employees started the following Monday,” Cheryl says. “Eventually, as we grew, we took over the whole space. Today we have 18,000 square feet and 20 employees.” As it turns out, many of those employees hail from the original company and many are still with ATPI today. “We don’t have a large turnover,” says Cheryl. “Some of the older guys have retired, but they passed on what they know to the younger ones.” “The type of employees who do this work are well worth hanging onto,” adds Heath. “Many of our jobs are handled by a single person who takes ownership and sees it all the way through.” One customer compared the parts he receives from ATPI to “fine pieces of jewelry.” Abrasive-Tool is an important technical resource for the manufacturer, because the highly precise nature of their custom work sometimes requires unconventional solutions. Heath recently partnered with Bill Alibrandi, who works out of ATC’s Syracuse office, to develop a completely new tool. “We needed something that no one makes, and we came to the conclusion that we would have to make it ourselves,” says Heath. “We combined something we produce here with an off-the-shelf product. Bill helped us put it all together, and it works great.” “Bill goes out on the floor and helps out when we’re troubleshooting or developing a process,” adds Cheryl. “He is a partner.” ATPI has been expanding into new areas over the last few years, taking on more commercial and higher volume production work, and developing new processes, such as thread rolling. Recognizing the value of the custom manufacturer’s expertise and experience, customers have begun to bring ATPI in earlier in their process. “They’re starting to talk to us up front, before they put anything on paper,” Cheryl says. “We take pride that they consult with us on the end result they’re looking for.” ATPI also takes pride in the customer service they offer, so they rely on Abrasive-Tool to back them up. In addition to Mark Altman, ATPI CNC machinist, demonstrates milling with a diamond coated Robbjack endmill. (Photo by Tom Dwyer) ~continued on page 6 Mark Altman, ATPI CNC machinist (left) and ATPI Plant Manager Heath Severn, inspect a PCD (Polycrystaline diamond) side and face mill designed and manufactured by Allen Tool Phoenix with parts sourced through Abrasive-Tool Corp. (Phioto by Tom Dwyer www.abrasive-tool.com 5 RISING FROM THE ASHES ~continued from page 5 their relationship with Bill Alibrandi, they frequently get inside support from ATC’s Tim Horr. “We are often in a hurry,” says Heath. “We need quick turnarounds, and sometimes we need to buy last minute. ATC never drops the ball. We always get what we want when we need it.” As ATPI looks forward and finds ways to continue their success, they easily acknowledge that they rely on the partnerships they’ve established, with their expert employees and ATC, and with the customers who trust them to get the job done, so they can continue to get it done right. Mark Altman, CNC machinist, adjusts tolerances for machining abrasive aluminum (Photo by Tom Dwyer) 6 roughcuts and fine finishes
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