Editor’s Note: This podcast was recorded in Spring of 2022. Tyler has now been retired for over 2 years, and Noah is the proud father of a 1 year old. In early 2022, Tyler Jarosz sent me an email to ask if Graff-Pinkert would be interested in a used little parts washer he no longer [...] The post How a Machinist Entrepreneur Retired at 40, with Tyler Jarosz—Ep. 154 first appeared on Today’s Machining World.

George Konidaris is the cofounder of the startup, Realtime Robotics. He’s also a Professor of Computer Science and the director of the Intelligent Robot Lab at Brown University. Right now, programming a robot arm to perform a repetitive task typically requires a robot integrator to program where every joint of a robot should go. It’s a ridiculous and tedious process. But with Realtime Robotics’ AI technology, you can instruct a robot to do a task and you don’t have to tell it a zillion steps explaining HOW to do the task. The post Robots that Know Where to Go, With George Konidaris – EP. 193 first appeared on Today’s Machining World.

On today’s podcast we continue our season talking to successful companies who produce their own products. Today’s guest is Joel Trusty, co-owner and President of Trusty-Cook, a company that manufactures a diverse group of industrial polyurethane products such as dead blow hammers and spindle liners for bar loaders. Joel says one of the keys to [...] The post Listening to Customers and Selling Hammers with Joel Trusty – EP103 first appeared on Today’s Machining World.

Last week, I heard a story about an old customer of Graff-Pinkert who lost three key machinists because a shop down the street was paying more. It led me to make a post on Linkedin, asking if machinists and setup people were paid enough to attract young people to the machining field. On the whole, [...] The post How to Make Your Employees Want to Stay, with Adam Wiltsie–EP 130 first appeared on Today’s Machining World.

Today’s guest on the podcast is Jayme Rahz, CEO of Midway Swiss Turn, a small precision machining job shop in Wooster, Ohio. Around a quarter of Midway Swiss Turn’s business is supplying the U.S. Department of Defense. While supplying the DoD can be a lucrative opportunity for a manufacturer, the work comes with some hurdles [...] The post How a Small Manufacturer Becomes Secure Enough for the DoD, with Jayme Rahz–EP 192 first appeared on Today’s Machining World.

In November of 2015, our used machine tool company, Graff-Pinkert, bought a Schütte S32PC, mfd. 2002, in Cologne, Germany, from a dealer we didn’t know. It was a nice looking machine. A big 32mm CNC Multi-Spindle, painted red and cream because it came out of a Mercedes factory. We were excited to bring the machine [...] The post How Unexpected Help Creates Profitable Relationships: Seeking Serendipity–EP 191 first appeared on Today’s Machining World.

As a machinery dealer, very often I hear customers lament that they can’t find good people to work in their machine shops. To this I say, perhaps they need to be more creative in hiring practices. Maybe they could offer better pay, more flexible hours, or some other benefits that competitors don’t provide. Or, maybe [...] The post Should I Hire Ex-Felons?, with Kathryn Shibelski–EP 125 first appeared on Today’s Machining World.

Recently, I’ve talked to a few Swarfcast listeners who are considering starting their own podcast shows, so I thought it made sense to make an episode discussing the merits of hosting a podcast as well as some advice if you want to build one successfully. I’m really excited about my guest today because he is [...] The post Do You Have Any Business Starting a Podcast? With Kevin Chemidlin–EP 190 first appeared on Today’s Machining World.

Steve Jobs once said, “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.” Today, I’m going to tell you a story about how dots in my past came together serendipitously to help me solve problems and [...] The post Connecting the “Right People” at the Right Times: Seeking Serendipity–EP 188 first appeared on Today’s Machining World.

Today’s Swarfcast is part one of an interview we did with David Wynn, CFO of ABF Engineering and Machining, a third generation screw machine shop in South Fulton, Tennessee. After earning an MBA, David joined his family’s business 17 years ago. His stated mission is to run a machining business composed of old cam screw machines as though it were a tech company. The post Running a Machine Shop like a Tech Company, with David Wynn–EP 63 first appeared on Today’s Machining World.