It's a shop update post :)

We bought 2 new Romi lathes from Florida

and had them shipped up...

The forklift we borrowed from next

door made them look tiny :)

We set them beside each other but facing

each other so one operator can easy run both..

Very nice machines, hey?

A few days ago we started with this

beauty - basically an inventory type unit

for storing and tracking inserts and tooling..

All computerized and allows for

us to keep track of which employee is 

using/abusing which tooling and help

keep track of inventory and ordering needs..

Our very precise measuring device!

Nathan received a call from a magazine out

East who was doing a spread on the Top 20

Under 40, and someone in Vancouver gave his name..

The magazine published this article:

Nathan Neels

Shop Manager, Harmonic Machine Inc.

Chilliwack, BC

At the age of 29, Nathan Neels has grown up in the family business

at Harmonic Machine.  The company started almost by

accident. Neels’ father brought a couple of manual machines

home when Nathan was a teenager so that he and his siblings

could learn a little about the trade. “When someone asked

my father if he could make something for them, he thought,

sure,” Neels recalls. Neels has taken over management

of the shop floor and has

helped grow the business from a 3,500 square foot facility, to a new

10,500 square foot facility that Harmonic has just occupied. 

The shop has just bought two new machines, which will put them at 

11 CNC machines in all.

Neels is constantly working at upgrading his management skills to help

the Harmonic Machine team, which includes his father, brother, sister and

a tight team of machinists. “I read a lot of books on leadership and management,

as well as attending seminars on business management and communication,

really trying to take personal development seriously,” he explains.

“Hopefully, I improve myself and the business as well.”

Harmonic has added five axis technology to the shop floor, as well as

fixturing set-ups to speed up processing of other parts. “We have also

invested in a quicker 30-taper drill tap machining center that really

boosted productivity on some other work,” Neels explains.

Harmonic relatively recently completed its controlled goods application,

so it is machining some military projects. “That was a huge investment of

time getting that figured out,” Neels recalls. “We have also really developed

our quality processes and are working towards our ISO 9001 right now,

getting accredited.” Neels considers it a key role of his to facilitate the success

of these efforts, although he insists that it is all a team effort.

Harmonic now has 13 people on the shop floor. “We tend to get young

people at 17 or 18, give them their apprenticeships and then they work

for us for a long time,” says Neels. “It really seems to be working for us.

Right now we only have one shift going, so adding machines helps our

productivity, but adding another shift is another goal for us.”

Plus a few pictures of him :)

We were invited to a show which would award him

at the end of the month in Ontario, but...

TOO BUSY!! NOT HAPPENING!!

Pretty neat though, I reckon :)