Eighth Mitsubishi EDM for EDM Precision Technologies

Supplied by exclusive UK agent HK Technologies, the Mitsubishi FA20S Advance has expanded the company's capacity. Based on the Technology Park at the Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshire, EDM Precision's association with the motorsport sector is strong. But while motorsport constitutes around 60% of company revenue, EDM Precision is keen to expand into other sectors, such as scientific equipment, medical, electronics, oil, defence and, importantly, aerospace, with the company currently undergoing accreditation to the BS EN 9100 (AS9100) aerospace quality management standard. Established in 1992, EDM Precision was acquired by its present managing director, Paul Waldron, in 2006. Mr Waldron has since introduced a number of changes that have pushed the company into the UK's vanguard of EDM service providers. For instance, an ethos of job ownership has employees taking responsibility for planning and inspecting their work and not just setting and running machines, while another new initiative sees important events and projects handled using a four- stage philosophy of 'think, decide, plan to implement, implement', with particular emphasis on the 'think' part of the process. Indeed, this formula was applied to the process of selecting a new wire EDM machine. "We wanted a machine that would give us the extra capacity to meet growing demand, which meant it needed to be capable of reliable, unattended, overnight operation," Mr Waldron explains. "After careful consideration, we opted for a Mitsubishi FA20S Advance. By selecting this machine, we not only ensured the highest quality, but also the ability to start using the machine on day one, due to the similarities with the seven other Mitsubishi machines already on site." EDM Precision enjoyed a strong 2010 with demand increasing across the board. For instance, a total of seven Formula One teams carried parts made by the company during the 2010 racing season, while other motorsport disciplines such as Le Man, touring car and historic car racing also placed high demands on capacity. Furthermore, aerospace is becoming an increasing part of revenue generation. In 2009, EDM Precision, like others, found the market tough. However, the business worked hard to make a modest profit and focused its energies on emerging from the recession in a strong position. The company took on two trainees at the beginning of 2010, refreshed its website and pledged to begin searching for a new high precision wire EDM, a process that commenced at the MACH exhibition at the NEC in June 2010. With the FA20S Advance now installed, this progressive strategy is already starting to pay dividends. "We're now seeing larger orders from existing customers plus a steady increase in new customers – in the past four months we have been adding new customers at the rate of two per month," Mr Waldron adds. "I feel we are well positioned to continue to grow with additional employees, extra capacity and continuous improvements in our processes and efficiency. The Mitsubishi FA20S Advance plays a big part in this." Such is the growing reputation of EDM Precision that the company even hosts tours of its facilities for technical colleges and universities. In fact, the company recently hosted 25 design engineers from a Formula One team, who were keen to find out more about EDM and design-for-manufacturing. The knock-on benefit for EDM Precision is the arrival of designs that are more conducive to EDM processes, as well as new parts that were previously manufactured using other techniques. And taking centre stage for the tours is the company's new Mitsubishi FA20S Advance.