The electrical discharge machines (EDMs) that do precision cutting critical to aerospace and other industries rely on special copper, brass and zinc-coated wire for the cutting process, much of it supplied through a warehouse in New Britain.
The electrical discharge machines (EDMs) that do precision cutting critical to aerospace and other industries rely on special copper, brass and zinc-coated wire for the cutting process, much of it supplied through a warehouse in New Britain.
That's where Makino Inc. last year expanded its SST Consumables business, which also sells graphic blocks used by EDMs for making molds.
“EDM is especially useful for machining materials that are difficult to machine by conventional methods,” said Thomas Kucharski, consumables sales and operations manager in New Britain for Makino's SST Consumables division.
Makino's North American headquarters is in Mason, Ohio, but the parent company is a Japanese machine tool manufacturer whose products are used worldwide in virtually all industries, especially aerospace, automotive and medical, Kucharski said.
Kucharski was president of Ohio-based Global EDM Supplies, which was acquired by Makino in Feb. 2017, but has always worked out of New Britain. Global was then integrated into Makino's SST business.
Last December, Makino moved the New Britain operations into a 40,000-square-foot warehouse on Myrtle Street, which was triple the size of the previous location. The new building includes offices and a soon-to-open showroom, training and demonstration center for Makino EDM machines.
The site, which employs about 20 people for distribution and technical support, anticipates adding warehousing, sales, management and technical support jobs in coming years, Kucharski said.
SST's lease for more space indicates a willingness to invest in Connecticut. Why?
The location is within hours of the New Jersey container port. Expanding in Connecticut allowed Makino to retain the skilled and devoted Global employees as a base for expansion. New Britain is central to effectively serving the Northeast.
What's driving SST's expansion in New Britain?
Makino has successfully increased its market share in the highly competitive electrical discharge machining industry. The acquisition of Global will allow SST to further increase its market share by expanding into the EDM consumables business.
