Making Chips Podcast for Manufacturing Leaders

You can hold tight tolerances, nail a complicated setup, and deliver beautiful parts—and still find yourself staring at a shrinking backlog. Most shop owners didn't get into manufacturing because they loved making cold calls. But being good at the work doesn't guarantee there will always be work to do.

Gabe Draper learned that the hard way. After buying his family's machine shop, he ultimately had to close it, and he points to a lack of control over revenue as a major reason why. That experience led him to co-found Factur and help other manufacturers build a more intentional approach to bringing in business.

In this episode, Mike and I sit down with Gabe to discuss two levers every shop owner needs to understand: increasing revenue and decreasing costs. We explore why your existing customers may hold more opportunity than you realize, how shops quietly lose ground even when purchase orders keep coming, and why buying more capacity deserves a clear plan for filling it.

We also get into who should own sales, the difference between "hunting" for new customers and "farming" existing relationships, and how compensation plans can reward the wrong behavior. If sales keeps getting pushed aside until the backlog looks scary, this conversation will challenge you to treat it with the same discipline you bring to the shop floor.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (1:29) Why most shop owners aren't naturally sales driven
• (2:32) What Factur does to help shops take control of revenue
• (4:19) The two levers: increase revenue or decrease costs
• (6:02) Machine buying after IMTS with no clear financial impact
• (7:34) The margin squeeze from carbide, coolant, labor, and price breaks
• (8:39) The post-COVID buying frenzy and the debt hangover
• (9:45) Stretched OEM payment terms and lost control of cash flow
• (12:00) Automate FAI and PO review with GroundControl
• (12:40) Fill the capacity you already own before buying machines
• (14:39) Step one: farm your existing customers
• (18:12) High-end machining and automation with DN Solutions
• (19:21) Why two of Mike's biggest customers didn't know half of what Hill does
• (22:01) Set growth goals and align incentives with the revenue you want
• (24:28) Forecast revenue by customer and plan for churn
• (27:20) Increase spindle uptime with Hennig Workflow
• (28:12) Who should sell: the owner can't abdicate it
• (30:05) Three phases: owner, one skilled seller, then hunters and farmers
• (32:09) Why hunting is the least precise part of the business
• (35:07) Runaway commission plans that reward coasting
• (36:18) Let your website answer buyer questions with Navu
• (37:30) Traditional reps vs. Factur's flat retainer model
• (40:35) What hunting costs and the shift past farming
• (43:37) A simple KPI: booked orders vs. shipped orders

Resources Mentioned

• GroundControl
• DN Solutions
• Hennig Workflow
• Navu
• IMTS

Connect with Gabe Draper of Factur

• Factur
• Connect on LinkedIn

Connect with MakingChips

• https://www.makingchips.com
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

The RFQs are coming in. Your machines have capacity. But the quotes are waiting on the same handful of people who are already busy keeping the shop running. Quoting takes experience, eats up valuable time, and comes with an especially frustrating reality: much of that effort goes into jobs you'll never win. And when a purchase order comes back immediately, your first thought might be, "What did we miss?"

Recorded live at IMTS, we welcome CloudNC co-founder Theo Saville back to MakingChips, alongside Jason Bowes, to talk about this hidden bottleneck—and how AI could help relieve it. Building on CAM Assist, their AI tool for automating repetitive CAM programming tasks, CloudNC is expanding into quoting and estimating. Their approach starts with preparing the quote, surfacing risks, and generating an initial routing so an experienced person can review the work instead of building everything from scratch.

With more than 1,000 shops now using CloudNC's technology, Theo and Jason share what they've learned since Theo's previous appearance, including lessons from running their own aerospace and defense shop. We discuss why quote turnaround matters, where chasing precision becomes counterproductive, and how estimates, programming decisions, and actual cycle times should inform one another.

We also revisit Theo's original ambition: making CNC manufacturing as simple as submitting a part and pressing go. How close are we? What still needs to happen? And how do you earn the trust of experienced machinists who will be responsible for the results? With growing demand putting pressure on shops to deliver faster, this conversation explores where AI can help today—and what it will take to go further.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (1:11) Buyers show up at IMTS with real shopping lists
• (1:54) Why metal parts take 10 weeks and what CloudNC set out to fix
• (3:38) CAM Assist, an AI that gets programming 70 to 80% of the way
• (4:53) Jason on sleeping on the shop floor and why a real shop matters
• (5:59) Why quoting is the natural next step after automated programming
• (6:50) Ground Control automates FAI generation and PO review
• (7:30) Why CloudNC built its own shop to shrink the problem
• (9:43) From beta to over a thousand customers, starting in the US
• (10:44) What the workflow looks like from RFQ to CAM to inspection
• (13:08) The owner as bottleneck and the E-Myth trap
• (16:38) Find Kennametal at IMTS and the Next Level Shop
• (17:28) Running a shop on the software: ones and twos, and first over the line
• (19:55) Don't over-engineer the quote, just win the work
• (21:57) What a day looks like with a quote agent, CAM Assist, and ERPs
• (24:51) Increase spindle uptime with Hennig Workflow
• (25:41) Estimated targets vs. actual part targets
• (28:55) Lightweight quoting vs. full toolpath calculation
• (30:05) Milling today, lathes on the roadmap
• (31:34) The goal: lift the ceiling from 20 machines to over 100
• (32:51) Can't I just vibe code this?
• (37:15) Let your website answer buyer questions with Navu
• (38:28) Using AI to flag red flags on a print instead of quoting it
• (44:28) Where vibe coding does make sense

Resources Mentioned

• Ground Control
• Kennametal
• Hennig Workflow
• Navu
• ProShop ERP
• IMTS

Connect with Theo and Jason of CloudNC

• Connect with Theo on LinkedIn
• Connect with Jason on LinkedIn
• CloudNC

Connect with MakingChips

• Website
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

We spend a lot of time asking where the next generation of machinists will come from. Ethan Crane was working in building supplies. A trip to a machine shop for a project turned into a receiving job, and a look around the shop turned into a new ambition: I want to do that.

His first classroom was a little Harbor Freight bench lathe a coworker brought in. Ethan spent his lunch breaks making chips, then went home to study machining textbooks and watch videos. Nobody had to convince him that manufacturing was cool. He was already hooked. But even after he started making parts, he wondered whether he deserved to call himself a machinist. Did it count if he wasn't running a CNC? If his parts went into farm equipment instead of an airplane?

That question stuck with me. Recorded live at IMTS, Jason and I chat with Ethan about manual machining, learning the trade, and what makes someone want to keep getting better. Surrounded by some of the most advanced equipment in manufacturing, we're talking with a guy who loves turning handles and feeling a tool cut metal—and has plenty to say about why that work still matters.

We get into the decisions shops make every day: when a job belongs on a manual machine, when it's time to move it to CNC, and why an unexpected repair at the front door can be worth taking on. Ethan also shares what it means to make parts for the same kinds of farm equipment he grew up around, then see those parts become something that goes to work in a field.

The conversation gets just as honest about our responsibilities as shop owners. We say we want people who are hungry to learn. What happens when they show up? Are we giving them consistent training, opportunities to progress, and a chance to understand why their work matters—or leaving them waiting for someone to have time?

Ethan is still learning, and he's willing to let people see it. His videos show the work, his enthusiasm, and sometimes the part that took three attempts to get right. There's something in that for anyone trying to bring new people into this industry: what looks routine to an experienced machinist might be the very thing that makes someone else say, "I want to do that."

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) Jason Davis guest hosts, and it's the first IMTS for him and Ethan
• (1:15) Ethan's path from building supply to the machine shop
• (3:46) Why the best new machinists keep learning after clock-out
• (5:26) Move into high-level machining with DN Solution
• (6:37) The first cut on a manual machine and why it hooks you
• (9:20) The first Bridgeport, machining history and what WWII industrialization took
• (11:37) How we decide what runs manual and what runs CNC
• (13:42) The integration between ProShop and GroundControl
• (20:37) How shop owners can find and fuel the next generation
• (24:53) Always be hiring—don't wait until you need somebody
• (26:02) Let new machinists see the finished product
• (27:16) Increase spindle uptime with the Hennig WorkFlow automation system
• (28:07) Why we believe manual machines still have a purpose
• (32:13) Walk-in repair jobs that turn into customers
• (34:26) Seeing where your individual components end up is rewarding
• (35:02) You don't need to make aerospace parts to be a machinist
• (36:35) Social media advice: keep it simple and make it cool
• (41:15) Ethan's challenge at IMTS: find every manual machine

Resources Mentioned

• DN Solutions
• Hennig Workflow
• IMTS

Connect with Ethan Crane

• Ethan Crane on Instagram
• Ethan Crane on LinkedIn

Connect with MakingChips

• Website
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

What do a freestyle motocross legend, a custom motorcycle painter, and a machine shop owner with 19 spindles have in common? A whole lot more than motorcycles. And at IMTS 2026, Kennametal brought all three together to prove it.

Recorded live from the MakingChips studio at IMTS, we sit down with Carey Hart, the motocross icon who made history with a backflip on a dirt bike; Taylor Schultz, a custom painter whose work turns motorcycles into rolling artwork; and Satya Kraus, founder of Kraus Motor Co.

Together, they built a custom Indian motorcycle right on the show floor, complete with precision-machined components made using Kennametal tooling. It's part manufacturing demonstration, part art project, and one seriously cool giveaway.

But the motorcycle is just the beginning. Satya shares how his obsession with building better bikes turned into a manufacturing business producing roughly 3,000 parts a week. Carey talks about finding his way from professional motocross into fabrication and custom bike building, while Taylor brings an artist's perspective to a world of CNC machines and automation. Their paths couldn't be more different, yet all three found their way into manufacturing because they loved creating something with their own hands.

That leads to a bigger conversation about what the industry might be missing when it comes to attracting young talent. What happens when we show people the creativity behind machining instead of just the machines? Can automation actually make manufacturing careers more rewarding? And what can shop owners learn from people who have turned their passions into thriving businesses?

From building a shop one spindle at a time to the importance of culture, collaboration, and keeping manufacturing in America, this conversation is a reminder that there's a lot more to making chips than making parts. Sometimes, it starts with wanting to build a really incredible motorcycle.

Segments

• (0:30) Live from IMTS 2026: Meet the builders behind Kennametal's custom Indian motorcycle
• (2:14) From custom bikes to CNC machining: How Satya Kraus built his manufacturing business
• (4:39) Carey Hart's journey from freestyle motocross to custom motorcycle building
• (6:31) Taylor Schultz's path from body shops and art school to custom painting
• (8:28) Learn how to build a next-level shop with DN Solutions
• (9:40) Machining real motorcycle components with Kennametal tooling
• (12:31) The challenge of keeping consumer product manufacturing in America
• (15:24) First impressions of IMTS and the artistry behind precision machining
• (18:00) Why you need to check out the Hennig WorkFlow Automation System
• (18:51) Attracting the next generation through creativity, hands-on work, and shop classes
• (25:51) From craftsman to business owner: Learning to build systems instead of just parts
• (28:15) Robotics, AI, and the growing value of handmade craftsmanship
• (31:32) How Navu can help you answer your buyer's questions
• (32:45) Growing from one Haas to 19 spindles: Lessons in patience, technology, and investment
• (37:21) Why people, culture, and collaboration matter as much as machines
• (39:15) Building businesses around passion and the people who share it
• (40:24) The finished Indian motorcycle and the Kennametal IMTS giveaway

Resources Mentioned

• Kennametal
• Kennametal's IMTS 2026 Motorcycle Build
• Kraus Motor Co.
• Hart Luck Parts & Gear
• Schultz Designz
• Indian Motorcycle
• Tiger Manufacturing
• A.R.E. Manufacturing

How to Connect with Satya, Carey, and Taylor

• Satya Kraus's website: https://krausmotorco.com
• Satya's Instagram
• Carey Hart's Website: https://www.hartluck.com
• Instagram
• Taylor Schultz's website: https://www.schultzdesignz.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/schultzdesignz/

A new machine can open the door to different work, greater capacity, and your shop's next stage of growth. But buying it is only part of the equation. Who's going to run it? How many hours will it actually produce? And have you considered what automation could make possible?

Recorded at IMTS 2026, this episode brings Mark Christopher, Product Sales Manager for Automation at DN Solutions, into the conversation about making equipment investments that make sense.

We get into pallet systems, workholding, and the small details that can bring a lights-out plan to a dead stop. There's a story about an overnight run that went sideways, a shop that discovered how little it was using its automation, and a surprisingly tough sell: convincing experienced machinists that slowing down might help them produce more.

We also explore buying machines with future automation in mind, where AI could take machine tools next, and what becomes possible when skilled people have better tools. Mark wraps up with his journey from a $9-an-hour tech-school graduate to applications engineering and automation leadership—including the job interview he nearly talked himself out of.

Whether you need a capability you don't have or more production from the equipment you already own, the goal is the same: make the investment match the need—and have a plan to put it to work.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) Live from IMTS 2026 with Mark Christopher of DN Solutions
• (1:47) The new PS7 100, a seven pallet system priced under a hundred grand
• (4:13) Why drones took over the conversation at this year's show
• (5:36) Drones machined, printed, and assembled on the IMTS floor
• (7:31) Bigger horizontal pallets, five axis growth, and what customers are actually buying
• (8:57) Prismatic fixtures, more clamping stations, and the morning harvest
• (10:35) How do you know you're ready to automate?
• (11:47) Increase your spindle uptime without adding headcount with Hennig Workflow
• (12:38) The robot cell, the forgotten chip hopper, and a floor covered in chips
• (15:09) OEE without the jargon, and why performance is the most overhyped number
• (20:51) Take your shop to the next level with DN Solutions
• (22:02) Inside the machine giveaway and what's actually in the package
• (24:16) Last year's winner is already on his third machine
• (25:30) Buy it automation ready, because ten grand now beats a hundred grand later
• (27:33) Nobody should be a doorman, pay people to run three or four machines
• (29:30) Gabe from Factur on the go to market steps most shops skip
• (35:38) Nothing is better than the relationships built at IMTS
• (38:01) Dissecting the future of AI in manufacturing
• (44:50) Give buyers real answers on your website with Navu
• (46:02) Mark's path from tech school and a nine dollar an hour job to automation sales

Resources Mentioned

• Hennig Workflow
• Factur
• Navu
• Kennametal
• IMTS

Connect with Mark Christopher

• DN Solutions
• Connect on LinkedIn

Connect with MakingChips

• Website
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

We spent this year asking young shop owners how they found machining, and one name came up in almost every single conversation. Titan Gilroy. What better way to close out our Generation CNC and workforce development series than a conversation with the man himself?

Most of the conversation lands on the part owners would rather not hear. If your shop is dirty, your walls are beige, and your bathroom is an afterthought, you're telling every visitor and every employee exactly what your standards are. Titan makes the case that precision isn't something you save for the part. It shows up in the crevices nobody sees, in how your team dresses and speaks, and yes, in the bathroom.

He's also blunt about where the talent problem actually sits. People drive past your building every day with no idea a CNC machine exists, let alone that it pays six figures without a degree. Whether they ever find out is a question of what the industry puts in front of them, and what your shop looks like when they finally walk in.

We also dig into what actually moves people. The briefcase of parts that beats a resume, why your best performers are the ones studying machining on a Saturday, how an apprenticeship program can pull your culture out of a hole, and the apprenticeship guide book Titans of CNC is releasing at Boombastic.

The through line is uncomfortable and useful. The next generation is out there, and whether they rise is mostly on the owner.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) Why nearly every Generation CNC guest named Titan Gilroy
• (1:54) From homelessness and prison to finding purpose in manufacturing
• (4:17) 3,600 registered schools and more than 800,000 current students
• (5:32) Increase spindle uptime without adding headcount with Hennig Workflow
• (6:29) How does Titan think we can overcome the awareness gap?
• (8:32) The shops that struggle have no vision, no imagination, and no pride
• (10:36) You need to live greatness in everything that you do (yes, even bathrooms)
• (14:05) Bring a briefcase of parts to the interview—not a resume
• (16:45) Take your shop to the next level with DN Solutions
• (17:55) An obsession for perfection, and the crowd it attracts
• (20:40) How the curriculum is evolving toward lights out machining
• (22:53) Out automate anyone, then take the machining to the highest level
• (24:13) We need to continuously upskill our teams to fill the gaps we're seeing
• (26:23) How to promote a culture of continuous improvement
• (28:20) The apprenticeship guide book launching at Boombastic
• (33:48) Why Mike's best guys have never had to ask for a raise
• (37:47) Invest in your own business first with ProShop ERP
• (39:26) How to inspire greatness in the next generation
• (41:57) Cutting the two negative voices and watching the culture rise
• (45:25) What Boombastic looks like November 11 through 13

Resources Mentioned

• Titans of CNC
• Hennig Workflow
• DN Solutions
• ProShop ERP

Connect with Titan Gilroy

• Titans of CNC
• Connect on LinkedIn

Connect with MakingChips

• Website
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

For every five people aging out of the skilled trades, only two are stepping in behind them. Manufacturers have spent years talking about that gap. Danville, Virginia, decided to build its way out of it.

In this episode, Jason Wells takes us inside the Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing program, where students with little or no industrial experience are prepared for careers in machining, welding, additive manufacturing, quality, and other critical trades—in just 16 weeks.

But this isn't a condensed version of a traditional classroom program. Students train eight hours a day across the same three shifts they may encounter in industry. They clock in, follow travelers, complete shift handoffs, practice 5S, and learn the habits shops expect before they ever reach the floor. They're taught G and M code instead of relying solely on conversational controls, while communication, documentation, and problem-solving are treated as seriously as technical ability.

Alan Pearce of Fasttech explains why this talent pipeline convinced him to build his company in Danville—and what happened after he began hiring its graduates. People who entered with no manufacturing background have become top-performing employees, shift supervisors, and, in some cases, are earning up to $50 an hour on shift.

This isn't just a conversation about filling open positions. It's a look at what workforce development could become when educators, manufacturers, and government stop working in separate silos—and build the talent pipeline together.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) Jason's tour of ATDM: Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing
• (2:16) How Danville rebuilt itself after tobacco, textiles, and furniture collapsed
• (4:51) A Navy funded prototype program heading into its sixth year
• (6:20) Alan Pearce on why FastTech located in Danville for the talent pool
• (10:35) Grow your top and bottom line with CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA)
• (11:45) Inside FastTech: wire arc and laser printing, then machining a finished part
• (15:24) The Navy's Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence
• (17:48) Reaching an underemployed labor pool with students from 47 states
• (19:53) Why they still teach G and M code instead of conversational programming
• (21:46) Soft skills, clock in and clock out, 5S, and shift handoffs built into the experience
• (24:42) Get buyers real answers on your website with Navu
• (25:54) The Institute as a convener of government, academia, and industry
• (27:27) Graduates who became top scoring employees inside two years
• (31:31) A graduation cycle every eight weeks instead of a semester calendar
• (32:13) Retention through new technology and challenge, not just pay
• (34:46) Why Alan turned down a veteran production manager
• (36:14) The seven habits of highly effective workholding from SMW Autoblok
• (36:58) Three shifts, aluminum Lego blocks, and 600 hours of training in 16 weeks
• (40:58) Hybrid print and machine units now sitting on ships
• (42:05) Split into the Sailors and Marines training and the valve body / twelve-parts-to-one
• (47:28) Housing students locally and the after-hours cohort learning
• (49:33) The down-select: aptitude testing, prerequisites, background check
• (54:25) Word of mouth as their best recruiter
• (59:10) What Alan tells shop owners about ATDM

Resources Mentioned

• Build Submarines
• CLA
• Navu
• SMW Autoblok

Connect with Jason Wells and Alan Pearce

• Connect with Jason on LinkedIn
• Connect with Alan on LinkedIn
• ATDM
• Institute for Advanced Learning and Research
• Fastech

Connect with MakingChips

• https://www.makingchips.com
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

Kennametal isn't showing up to IMTS with another wall of cutting tools. They're building a working custom motorcycle shop in the middle of the West Building—and they plan to cut chips, build a bike, and give that bike away before the show ends.

Kim Wilson, Global Director of Marketing Communications, and Matt Jacques, Global Brand and Creative Services Manager at Kennametal, join us for a look behind the curtain at what it takes to build an IMTS experience this ambitious. The concept started taking shape during IMTS 2024 and grew through collaborations with custom motorcycle builder Carey Hart, machinist Satya Krause, artist Taylor Schultz, and several Kennametal customers.

Inside the Next Level Shop, those customers will machine real components using Kennametal tooling—including parts destined for a customized Indian Sport Chief. Attendees can watch live demonstrations, bring application challenges directly to the Kennametal team, explore its digital machining capabilities, and enter to win the completed motorcycle.

But this episode isn't only about building an unforgettable booth. It's about replacing the traditional trade-show pitch with real conversations. Kim and Matt explain how Kennametal is training its team to begin with a manufacturer's challenges—not a product catalog—and help customers uncover opportunities around productivity, tool life, applications, and digital machining.

Visit Kennametal in Booth #431800 in the West Building, Level 3, to experience the Next Level Shop, see live machining demonstrations, and enter to win the custom Indian Sport Chief.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) Nick's fifth baby is due the Tuesday of IMTS, and his attendance is still up for debate
• (2:26) Kim Wilson and Matt Jacques on their roles (and the IMTS that doubled as Matt's first day)
• (5:43) Metal Mania in 2024 and why Kennametal had to come back looking different
• (7:20) How the Next Level Shop theme morphed into a full custom motorcycle build
• (9:08) Taylor Schultz, Satya Krause, and Carey Hart putting their hands on the booth concept
• (10:34) From giving away a machine in 2024 to giving away a bike built in the booth
• (13:15) Win a fully tooled SVM 4100 from MakingChips, DN Solutions, and Kennametal
• (14:02) A 100 by 60 booth, project sheets, and leaning hard on the EWI relationship
• (16:49) An in house design team taking over all the creative for the first time
• (17:47) Why so many IMTS booths run the same branding show after show
• (19:23) Racks of tooling versus something a shop owner can stand and watch
• (20:19) The 2024 lesson: cutting chips at a show takes about a year of prep
• (21:19) Elevate, powered by AMT and Women in Manufacturing, during IMTS 2026
• (22:12) Customer demos from Spire Motorsports, Purdue students, and Tim Drinkwater
• (23:26) Partnership in practice: tooling up the mini tombstones in the Hennig booth
• (26:04) Two huge giveaways happening on Friday the 18th
• (28:45) A Monday announcement and a first to market additive technology launch
• (29:44) Find Kennametal tooling at 14 different booths in the South Hall
• (30:20) First timer advice: comfortable shoes, hydration, and map the show before you go
• (33:04) Who trains the booth team and how the floor gets divided up between them
• (35:35) Ask questions and be human, because nobody wants to be pitched at
• (37:42) Take your shop to the next level with DN Solutions
• (38:54) ProShop's booth staffed with 40 customer ambassadors
• (41:48) Does a booth theme actually stick with a shop owner two years later?
• (44:32) What they're most excited about, and what's keeping them up at night

Resources Mentioned

• Kennametal
• MakingChips Machine Giveaway
• IMTS
• Elevate at IMTS 2026
• DN Solutions
• ProShop ERP
• Superfeet

Connect with Kim Wilson and Matt Jacques

• Connect with Kim on LinkedIn
• Connect with Matt on LinkedIn
• Kennametal
• Kennametal at IMTS 2026: Booth 431800, West Hall, Level 3

Connect with MakingChips

• https://www.makingchips.com
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

Most machine shops start thinking seriously about workforce development when they already need someone. A machinist quits, capacity jumps, the backlog grows, and suddenly finding skilled people becomes an emergency.

MSP Manufacturing has taken a very different approach. Johnny Goode joins Paul and Brooke to explain how MSP has spent years building relationships with high schools, apprenticeship programs, students, parents, and the broader manufacturing community. Now, as the company experiences more than 50% revenue growth, that investment is starting to pay off.

We dig into ROI Uplands, a regional program connecting high school students with real employers, and what it actually looks like to bring 16- and 17-year-olds into a working machine shop. Can apprentices contribute meaningfully in an environment where quality, safety, and precision matter? How much training does it take? And what happens to your culture when young people become a regular part of the team?

We also get into the bigger problem facing manufacturing: many students and their parents still have no idea what these careers actually look like. Johnny, Paul, and Brooke talk about the earning potential hiding inside modern manufacturing, why exposure needs to start long before graduation, and what shops can do to help create the next generation of machinists instead of waiting for someone else to do it.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) Why these apprentices hold themselves to a higher standard than anyone sets for them
• (2:17) Reintroducing Johnny Goode and getting a snapshot of MSP Manufacturing
• (4:11) 30 employees, six apprentices, and 50% revenue growth without adding bodies
• (5:30) How ROI Uplands links nine counties of Indiana high schools to local employers
• (7:51) Take your shop to the next level with DN Solutions
• (9:05) Eagle Manufacturing and the student-run businesses taking real jobs from industry
• (10:35) Interview day, the draft, and the state reimbursing half of apprentice wages
• (11:55) A three-to-two tuition deal that sends students into the workforce with zero debt
• (13:04) Brooke on steamfitting, welding, and the year of college she'd take back
• (14:47) 500 applicants, 100 placements, and why Indiana is ahead of the curve
• (16:14) What happens to culture when apprentices are the children of your employees
• (17:57) Win a fully tooled SVM 4100 from MakingChips, DN Solutions, and Kennametal
• (18:44) Why people apply to MSP when there are no job postings anywhere
• (20:38) What MSP does to support their community
• (21:40) The Band-Aid analogy: keep patching the wound or repair it
• (23:42) What a day actually looks like for an apprentice on the floor
• (26:09) What success looks like: Hiring for culture fit over subject matter expertise
• (29:10) Why students are choosing manufacturing internships
• (31:05) Countering the stigma that the trades are the fallback option
• (33:42) The $180,000 setup programmer nobody talks about
• (36:00) Reality-based AI for the factory floor at the IMTS Industrial AI Conference
• (35:19) AI as a force multiplier, not a people replacer
• (37:26) Why schools turn down free software, and what ProShop does instead
• (42:12) Advisory boards, wait lists, and the tech school near Tulsa with no students
• (45:33) Reaching third graders before anyone tells them what a machinist is
• (50:07) What gives Johnny the most hope for the next generation

Resources Mentioned

• ROI Uplands
• Eagle Manufacturing (Brown County High School)
• ProShop ERP
• DN Solutions
• Kennametal
• Conexus Indiana
• MakingChips Machine Giveaway
• IMTS
• IMTS Industrial AI Conference
• Titans of CNC

Connect with Johnny Goode

• Johnny Goode on LinkedIn
• MSP Manufacturing

Connect with MakingChips

• https://www.makingchips.com
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
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A lot has changed since the last time we pulled up chairs around the Boring Bar. For our fourth edition, eight manufacturing leaders joined us in the MakingChips studio ahead of the IMTS pre-party to talk about where the industry is headed and, after a couple pours, where they think it should be headed.

AI takes over the conversation early. How fast is it really moving into manufacturing? What happens when it can quote jobs, write code, capture tribal knowledge, or help program a part? Where does the human still matter? And are we actually prepared for the power, infrastructure, workforce, and even educational questions that come with all of it?

Then we turn the question back on ourselves.

If you were starting a machine shop in 2026, knowing everything we know now, would you build it the same way? What would you invest in first? What kind of equipment would you buy? How would you think about automation, people, capacity, specialization, cash flow, and the growing list of incentives available to manufacturers?

Along the way, we get into what's driving demand right now, why data centers suddenly matter to machine shops, what manufacturers should be watching at IMTS, and whether the next generation of shops will look anything like the ones we grew up around.

As usual at the Boring Bar, there are strong opinions, questionable jokes, bourbon, gin, and a few detours we definitely didn't plan.

Pull up a chair.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) The fourth edition of the Boring Bar, back in the MakingChips studio + introductions
• (5:43) IMTS 2026 registration is running ahead of 2018, the largest show on record
• (6:36) The IMTS pre-party, the rally car, and what the night is really for
• (7:44) What's changed for everyone since the last Boring Bar
• (9:27) Data centers: Are they the engine behind this year's growth?
• (12:43) The 37 minute AI prompt that produced a consultant grade report
• (13:30) Hallucinations, beach reads that did not exist, and why you verify
• (18:39) Training on AI, where it's going, and why everyone needs to embrace it
• (25:33) The stage zero most shops skip: Security, then application
• (26:48) How quoting has been compressed from days to minutes
• (28:19) The IMTS Industrial AI Conference and the Industrial AI Arena
• (29:28) The IMTS Job Shops Workshop and the AI for the job shop session
• (30:36) ProShop goes AI first, plus native machine monitoring, AI quoting, and Chip
• (33:21) Programming a part with AI after 30 years away from it
• (37:00) Capturing tribal knowledge so each job teaches the next
• (42:21) The machine tool giveaway with DN Solutions + Kennametal
• (42:38) The big question: how would you start a machine shop today
• (47:49) Invest in infrastructure first (digital and physical)
• (55:25) What will be your guiding metrics? Availability, performance, and quality
• (57:34) Run the shop lights out yourself, then replicate yourself with each hire
• (1:04:05) Three business skills for a new shop: cash, capacity, and credits
• (1:06:15) $3,500 per apprentice, plus the tax tools that arrived in July of 2025
• (1:09:20) The Lights Out guest with a fab shop, a water plant, and a coal mine
• (1:15:32) The comp sci grad who chose trade school over a job AI could take
• (1:22:12) Generation CNC: teenagers buying their first machines
• (1:23:34) Math as a barrier, and why we should not exclude kids
• (1:26:48) The importance of Oscar Mike and Manufacturing Pathways
• (1:28:45) Machine giveaway: DN Solutions, Kennametal, SMW Autblok, and Martin Trunnion Tables

Resources Mentioned

• IMTS 2026
• IMTS Industrial AI Conference
• IMTS Student Summit
• DN Solutions
• Kennametal
• ProShop ERP
• SMW Autoblok
• Hennig
• CLA
• AMT
• The $3,500 Apprenticeship Incentive
• Oscar Mike Foundation
• Manufacturing Pathways Consortium

Connect with Our Guests

• Connect with Larry on LinkedIn
• Connect with Bonnie and MC
• Connect with Jennifer
• Connect with Mike

Connect with MakingChips

• https://www.makingchips.com
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

Website traffic is falling across the board, and it's tempting to read that as a marketing problem. It usually isn't. AI summaries now answer the generic top of funnel questions people used to click into your site to answer, so the casual browsers never arrive. The visitors who do show up are the ones already deciding whether you're a fit.

That changes what a manufacturing website is for. A list of machines, materials, and certifications was fine when buyers were willing to dig. Now they want a specific answer to a specific question, and if your site makes them hunt for it, they'll go back to Google or ChatGPT and get an answer from a source you don't control.

We talk with John Greeley of Navu about what shops should actually do about it, and a lot of it isn't what you'd expect. Old content that used to sit harmlessly on your site is now working against you, because LLMs read your whole site at once and stop citing you when they find pages that disagree with each other. Less content with more depth beats the old habit of publishing a page for every possible search term.

The other half of this is labor. The questions landing in your info inbox are usually answered somewhere on your site already, and they're pulling SMEs and owners off the work that actually moves the business. John walks through a real buyer journey where the ninth question was a technical spec buried on page 193 of a PDF, and the tenth was how to talk to sales. Nobody on that team spent a minute on it until the lead was qualified.

Brooke also joins us in the host seat for the first time and gives the Gen Z read on all of it, which mostly comes down to letting people find what they need before anyone tries to sell them something.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) Brooke steps into the host seat, and John introduces Navu
• (6:38) Take your shop to the next level with DN Solutions
• (7:50) What a single line of JavaScript can tell you about visitor behavior
• (10:35) About 37% of users who eventually convert used the chat along the way
• (11:42) Why traffic is down but conversions aren't
• (13:26) How LLMs read your entire site at once and punish conflicting answers
• (16:17) Less content, more depth, and a ruthless pruning habit
• (17:35) Your site's unanswered questions as a canary in the coal mine
• (20:14) What buyers actually asked Mike when Hill rebuilt its site
• (22:15) Why the old pop up chatbots earned their bad reputation
• (24:42) More than 60% of buyers now start their research in a chat interface
• (26:16) Turning AI buzzwords into outcomes at the IMTS Industrial AI Conference
• (27:04) Labor savings is how most customers justify the spend internally
• (28:50) The landing page listings and a conversation about instant gratification
• (32:12) Quote response time as the number one factor in winning or losing work
• (35:13) The real user journey and the questions that you see
• (38:30) Brooke on why her generation would rather research than call
• (42:27) Salespeople querying the site mid call instead of chasing down an SME
• (44:31) Kennametal's Next Level Shop at IMTS 2026
• (45:34) Get started and build a custom demo at navu.co/makingchips

Resources Mentioned

• DN Solutions
• IMTS Industrial AI Conference, Wednesday September 16, South Building
• Check out the Kennametal booth at IMTS 2026, the Next Level Shop, booth 431800 in the West Building, level 3

Connect with John Greeley

• Email John Greeley: john@navu.co
• Navu

Connect with MakingChips

• https://www.makingchips.com
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

Six jobs waiting on a first article means six spindles sitting still. That is the math Mike lives with at Hill, running around 58 jobs a day where nearly every one needs an internal or external first article before parts can ship. When inspection becomes the constraint, good parts pile up behind paperwork, and paperwork does not make chips.

This week we sat down with Mehul Shah, co-founder of Ground Control, a company building what he calls mission critical software for highly regulated manufacturing. His thesis is simple. Aerospace, defense, medical, and semiconductor shops are drowning in Excel and pen-and-paper workflows, not because the people are behind the times, but because software was never really built for the shop floor or for the weight of ITAR, DFARS, and CMMC.

Ground Control started with one hairy, everyday problem: first article inspection reports. We get into how their software reads decades-old, hand-drawn prints that trip up ordinary OCR, balloons the drawing, fills out the AS9102, and pushes clean data straight into ProShop with a single click. It is the kind of automation that turns a shop's worst bottleneck into a task almost anyone on the team can run.

We also talk about why now is the moment for this, from reshoring and record defense budgets to the labor math that says we cannot hire our way through the coming surge. Mehul shares how a 15-person team just earned FedRAMP certification, why AI lets them do the work of a company twice their size, and what their new contract review product does to catch a buyer's price change buried in a six-figure PO before it becomes a costly mistake.

If your inspectors are your constraint and your smartest people are stuck on manual data entry, this one is for you.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (1:02) Meet Mehul Shah, co-founder of Ground Control: Why Mehul chose manufacturing
• (5:20) Why manufacturing runs on Excel, and the real reason software never fit the shop floor
• (6:04) ITAR, DFARS, CMMC, CUI, and the infrastructure tax on regulated software
• (9:07) Mission critical software and the three tests Ground Control uses to pick a workflow
• (10:43) Invest in yourself first with ProShop ERP
• (12:19) Finding the wedge, and why first article inspection was the obvious first product
• (13:49) How first article really works at Hill, and why it becomes the daily bottleneck
• (15:53) Why the FAI is critical, process verification before you can ship and collect
• (16:35) Why now, defense budgets, the SpaceX IPO, the space race, and reshoring
• (18:29) LLMs let manufacturers build in-house, and when it still makes sense to buy
• (19:30) Build on standards and a solid data heartbeat, then augment with AI
• (21:07) A rocket ship, 200-plus customers in two years, including five public companies
• (22:18) Growing into demand and the hard part of turning down the wrong work
• (23:39) The seven habits of highly effective work holding with SMW Autoblok
• (24:22) Avoiding the solution looking for a problem, and how the idea took shape
• (25:53) Building GroundControl from the ground up and becoming compliant
• (28:07) The importance of trade shows and building in-person relationships
• (31:55) The story behind the name Ground Control (and a nod to Major Tom)
• (35:20) Turn AI buzzwords into outcomes at the IMTS Industrial AI Conference
• (36:06) Developing out the GroundControl software and finding their MVP
• (39:32) The ProShop integration: One click from ballooning to master process control
• (42:39) AI will not replace you, but the person using AI might
• (46:30) Introducing contract review and catching PO errors
• (49:37) The visitor check-in system (ITAR sign-in without the 20-year-old paper pad)
• (52:16) What Mehul is most excited about, FedRAMP, and the road to IMTS

Resources Mentioned

• Ground Control
• ProShop ERP
• SMW Autoblok
• IMTS Industrial AI Conference

Connect with Mehul Shah

• Connect with Mehul on LinkedIn
• GroundControl

Connect with MakingChips

• Website
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

Most shops treat lean like a poster on the break room wall. Andrew Henry runs it like a competitive weapon. He built Henry Holsters into a company that ships around 55,000 orders a year, most of them the same day they come in, without stacks of work in process piling up on every bench.

We caught up with Andrew at the Summit on the Summit, and the conversation kept circling back to one idea: The waste hiding in your shop usually is not the machine, but everything happening around the machine. He walks us through the custom vacuum former he eventually scrapped for parts, the moment "Two Second Lean" flipped a switch in his head, and the shift to one-piece flow that changed how his team works.

We also dig into how he is putting AI to work right now, not someday. Re-pricing a newly acquired customer's parts in an afternoon instead of weeks. Scanning thousands of lines of inventory to surface dead stock and ERP errors. Using it as a sparring partner to keep high-stakes customer emails firm but professional. And yes, spending an afternoon fighting with a coding tool just to understand what it can actually do.

There is a bigger theme running underneath all of it. Ten years after a lot of us met at our first IMTS, the shops that keep showing up, keep learning, and keep trying things are the ones still standing. The ones who decided they were too busy to leave the shop are a different story.

If you have ever told yourself you do not have time for a morning meeting, a trade show, or an afternoon with a new tool, this episode is a friendly shove in the other direction.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (1:26) Meet Andrew Henry of Henry Holsters, a lean guru and Workflow automation fan
• (2:40) Why Andrew bought a Matsuura MX-420 PC10 and what sold him on Hennig's Workflow
• (3:46) Ten years since our first IMTS: who grew, who is gone, and why
• (5:25) The pace of change, when 5-axis, automation, and AI all hit at once
• (8:06) A gondola conversation on why he cannot afford to skip summits and trade shows
• (9:53) IMTS Industrial AI Conference: reality-based AI for the factory floor
• (10:40) "I do not have time…"and why that thinking is backwards
• (12:47) Using AI to re-price a newly acquired customer's parts in an afternoon
• (16:31) Turning AI loose on inventory data to find dead stock and ERP errors
• (18:22) Making people show their work with AI as a required thinking partner
• (20:25) AI as a diplomat for high-stakes, antagonistic customer emails
• (24:08) Take your shop to the next level with DN Solutions
• (25:20) Andrew Henry's accidental path to a CNC shop
• (27:37) Buying a Matsuura for injection mold work and foundational problems to tackle
• (29:26) The dream of closed-loop, self-correcting machining
• (33:03) People should not wait on machines, the chaku-chaku principle
• (33:55) Twin Table Brother cells, vacuum fixtures, and the case against batching
• (38:58) Find manufacturing leaders who actually fit with Hire MFG Leaders
• (39:27) Make-to-stock, make-to-order, and any color as long as it is black
• (40:20) What FastCap taught us and going all in on one-piece flow
• (44:23) Ownership and pride when one person makes the whole part
• (45:47) Triag Swiss Modular and machinists who own their machines
• (46:48) Why you cannot get everyone bought in (and why it's okay)
• (48:25) How the morning meeting really works, the cobra effect, and why bad incentives break your culture
• (52:41) The eight wastes, and why seeing the problem beats memorizing the acronym
• (54:05) "I can't" versus "how could we," closing the gap without hearing no
• (55:53) Andrew's Lean Built Podcast and the LinkedIn AI slop problem

Resources Mentioned

• Henry Holsters
• Lean Built Podcast
• IMTS Industrial AI Conference
• DN Solutions
• Hire MFG Leaders
• Book: Two Second Lean
• Triag Swiss Modular

Connect with Andrew Henry

• Henry Holsters
• Connect on LinkedIn

Connect with MakingChips

• Website
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

Every shop owner knows the workforce problem by heart. The trades got denigrated, tech ed programs got gutted, and a whole generation of kids never found out that a manufacturing career was even an option. We have all heard that speech a hundred times. What we rarely hear is a practical, repeatable way to actually fix it.

In this GenCNC series episode, we sit down with two people who built one. Dave Hataj is the second-generation owner of Edgerton Gear and the founder of Craftsman with Character, a semester-long program that pairs job shadowing with a character and worldview curriculum. Courtney Silver runs Ketchie in North Carolina, where she and her husband Andy took Dave's curriculum and launched their own version, Opportunity Knocks.

The through line is simple. Kids are starving for two things, purpose and community, and the shop floor is one of the best places on earth to give them both. Dave shares how a 2014 experiment with ten students grew into a Navy-funded program running across multiple states. Courtney shows why it is far less of a lift than you would think, roughly two hours a week for fourteen weeks with a handful of students.

We also get into the payoff owners do not expect. Reverse mentoring from young employees, a culture where machinists suddenly want to be on camera, productivity that climbs year over year, and stories like Miguel, a first-generation immigrant who fell in love with the trade, worked six to ten in the morning before school, and just bought his first home.

If you have ever done a plant tour for a school and wondered whether it actually mattered, this one reframes the whole thing. As Dave puts it, we make gears as a vehicle to invest in people.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (2:48) Dave on the origins of Craftsman with Character as a second-generation owner of Edgerton Gear
• (7:02) The Navy's two million dollar, three-year contract to take the program national
• (8:30) Inside the Craftsman Code, from I'm not the center of the universe to the world needs me
• (10:30) Why you need to head to Kennametal's booth at IMTS
• (11:37) Courtney on discovering Dave's work during COVID and launching Opportunity Knocks
• (15:25) Why it's not a big lift: twenty team members, six students, two hours a week
• (17:11) Continuous improvement: field trips, supply chain tours, and a Mastercam capstone part
• (23:31) Reverse mentoring and the young energy that re-energizes the team
• (24:40) Twelve years of rising productivity from more engaged, purpose-driven employees
• (26:17) The DN Solutions install video shot by interns (and a new content culture)
• (29:26) Breakfast, gratitude, and the lesson on showing up on time
• (30:30) Turn website visitors into buyers with Navu's AI chat
• (31:42) Learn more about Miguel, a first-generation immigrant who fell in love with the trade
• (34:10) Break room culture and crews that stick around after shift
• (37:01) From feeling less than to finding a joyful place to belong
• (39:16) The mindset flip: we make gears as a vehicle to invest in people
• (40:07) Get in the room: the Job Shops Workshop and reception at IMTS
• (40:58) Miguel buying his first home, and the ripple effect on a community
• (42:56) How to start, facilitator and mentor training, plus a track for shops without a school partner
• (45:00) Manufacturers as an army that can heal society by being the hero for one kid
• (48:52) Practical encouragement to start now

Resources Mentioned

• Craftsman with Character
• Edgerton Gear
• Ketchie
• The Craftsman Codeby Dave Hataj
• Machine Shop Mastery, Episode 106 with Dave Hataj
• Kennametal
• Navu
• IMTS
• Oscar Mike Foundation

Connect with Dave Hataj & Courtney Silver

• Dave Hataj, Edgerton Gear
• Craftsman with Character
• Courtney Silver, Ketchie

Connect with MakingChips

• Website
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

IMTS is 1.2 million square feet spread across six days, and the average visitor only spends about 2.7 of them on the floor. That math is exactly why walking in without a plan means seeing a fraction of what you came for. In this episode we sit down with Bonnie Gurney and Michelle Edmondson from AMT, the team that builds IMTS, to talk through how to actually get value out of the biggest manufacturing show in the country.

We're about six and a half weeks out and registration is running 29% ahead of 2024, so the energy is real. Bonnie and Michelle break down what's new for the 100th anniversary show: the 10 technology sectors, the Industrial AI arena with 40 first-time exhibitors, a bigger defense presence, and a conference lineup, from Elevate to the job shop and LATAM tracks, that too many people still treat as a hidden gem.

We also make the case for why you should go even if you're not buying this year. As Mike puts it, you don't have time not to go. You go to see the solutions you'll need in two or three years, the way he spotted a machine tending robot in 2018 and finally bought it in 2022. And this year, a plan-my-route feature built into the floor plan app is a genuinely practical use of AI.

There's plenty happening on the floor too, from the main stage schedule and the 100-year history of the show to the machine tool we're giving away with DN Solutions and Kennametal. Mostly, though, this is a conversation about showing up prepared and getting the most out of your days in Chicago.

If you're heading to IMTS 2026, this is the planning conversation to hear first. Come find us in the Hennig booth, and let's make some chips.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) Why every visitor needs a game plan before the doors open
• (1:21) Six and a half weeks out, with registration up 29% over 2024
• (3:25) The scale of IMTS: 1.2 million square feet and 500-plus semis a day
• (7:56) The August 5th pre-IMTS party for Oscar Mike and the Manufacturing Pathways Consortium
• (10:04) Elevate: powered by AMT and Women in Manufacturing
• (10:56) What's new: the 10 technology sectors that map the show floor
• (13:00) Why the conference and education lineup is the show's hidden gem
• (17:58) Learn more about Elevate, the Women in manufacturing conference
• (20:45) Kennametal's Next Level Shop and a bike giveaway on the show floor
• (21:47) 100 years of IMTS, from a 62,000 square foot science fair in 1927
• (27:06) The main stage schedule: capital decisions, AI, and the coolest stuff we saw
• (28:31) How the machine giveaway works: register, collect chips, earn entries, win Friday
• (31:09) Find your next leader with Hire MFG Leaders
• (31:38) Why "you don't have time not to go" is the real case for IMTS
• (35:47) A practical AI use case: let the floor plan app build your route
• (37:48) Poll your team: What should you look for at IMTS?
• (39:17) The biggest changes coming to IMTS 2026

Resources Mentioned

• IMTS 2026
• Register for the IMTS machine giveaway: https://www.makingchips.com
• Hire MFG Leaders
• Elevate, powered by AMT and Women in Manufacturing
• DN Solutions
• Oscar Mike Foundation
• Manufacturing Pathways Consortium

Connect with Bonnie Gurney & Michelle Edmondson

• IMTS
• AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology
• IMTS on LinkedIn

Connect with MakingChips

• Website
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

Most machine shop owners spend twenty years learning the lesson Stone figured out before he turned 21: get great at one thing, and say no to almost everything else. He bought his first CNC at 15 to make knife handles, started taking billable work at 19, and now runs a precision shop in North Phoenix that goes after the tight-tolerance medical work a lot of shops won't touch.

This one is part of our GenCNC series, and our co-host Nush, who's part of this generation herself, jumps in with the questions the rest of us wish we'd asked at that age.

We get into how he actually built it: growing on cash flow and machine loans instead of outside investors, learning to program after hours with a tool and die mentor, and figuring out how to price work when you're brand new and have no idea what the market will bear. Stone's edge isn't a secret process. It's consistency, a refusal to send anything out of spec, and a willingness to take on parts he doesn't yet know how to make.

He's also refreshingly honest about the parts nobody posts. The crashes, the jobs that go sideways, the days the whole thing feels like it's crumbling. His answer is mentors, a tight network of shop owners who actually pick up the phone, and the discipline to keep the lows from getting too low.

Whether you're thinking about starting a shop or you've run one for thirty years, there's something here. Know where to spend money and where not to. Build a small team of people you can pay well. And find the niche where being excellent actually pays. That's making chips.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:52) Kicking off another GenCNC episode with co-host Nush
• (1:29) Meet Stone: from reselling balisong knives and 3D printing to buying a Tormach 440 at 15
• (4:21) Quitting two jobs to go all in at 19 (and quickly building a team)
• (6:41) Solve your biggest headache with CLA
• (7:50) Funding growth through profit and machine loans, not investors
• (11:04) Moving out of the garage and into a commercial space
• (12:11) Learning to program after hours with mentor John Schaefer
• (13:34) The art and science of quoting and pricing work
• (16:25) Focus on what you're good at instead of chasing every job
• (18:16) Why consistency and never shipping out-of-spec parts wins customers
• (21:45) Why young entrepreneurs need to be on LinkedIn
• (23:17) The opportunity gap and getting young people into manufacturing
• (25:27) How Stone started building his team (and who does what)
• (27:15) Find people who actually fit with Hire MFG Leaders
• (27:44) The process of hiring employees (and the paperwork that comes with it)
• (30:01) How saying yes to jobs you don't know how to do can pay off
• (32:25) It's never too late for a mentor—at any stage of your career
• (36:45) Success is perseverance and the mental game, not just great parts
• (39:44) Advice for young shop owners: know where to spend money
• (42:15) Expanding to a bigger building and going after big work with a VF-9
• (43:20) Take your shop to the next level with DN Solutions
• (44:33) The five-year vision: five employees, twelve machines, automation
• (53:00) Why 100% inspection and a CMM are worth it

Resources Mentioned

• ST1 Precision
• ProShop ERP
• Xometry
• Tormach
• Haas Automation
• Saunders Machine Works
• CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen)
• Hire MFG Leaders
• DN Solutions

Connect with Stone

• ST1 Precision

Connect with MakingChips

• Website: www.MakingChips.com
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

Most shop owners have stood in front of a shiny new machine and felt the pull. Buy it, and the work will come. Tim Drinkwater of Accurate Machine Products has lived both sides of that bet, the one that nearly buried him and the one that showed up as a free machining center.

This conversation sits right where two of our current series meet: Gen CNC, where we talk to founders who started young, and our workforce development series. Tim started his shop in a garage in 2007, and he's blunt about how a young founder should spend those first dollars. Cash is worth more than tools you don't need. Customers come before capability. And sometimes buying an existing shop beats building one from scratch.

We also get into the mistake that can quietly kill a shop. Tim bought a brand new lathe for a firearms customer who never signed a contract and then walked away. Mike shares the flip side he keeps running into, walking through shops with gorgeous, idle equipment bought on a customer's promise that never turned into a purchase order. One of those build-outs is the reason a whole company ended up for sale.

Then there's the fun part. Tim won a DN Solutions SVM 4100 in the DN and Kennametal giveaway, put it to work on challenging tool steel parts, and liked it enough to go buy a second one. There's another machine giveaway coming at IMTS this year, and you can get in on it at http://makingchips.com/giveaway.

The back half is all about people. When applicants dried up, Tim went straight to the high schools, joined the Craftsman with Character program, and stopped using the word machinist because most students have no idea what it means. It's the same thing we keep coming back to on this show. The parts matter, but the people are what carry a shop into the next generation.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) A machine giveaway teaser, and why Tim's story matters
• (1:31) Starting Accurate Machine Products in a garage in 2007
• (3:22) What the shop makes, from jet ski parts to finish packaging
• (4:43) Advice for young founders: cash beats tools you don't need
• (8:00) eBay machines and the leap to the first brand new machine
• (9:16) A new lathe, a firearms customer, and no contract to back it up
• (11:31) Beautiful equipment gathering dust: the shop that went up for sale
• (13:51) Take your shop high-end with DN Solutions
• (15:02) Winning a DN Solutions SVM 4100 in the DN and Kennametal giveaway
• (16:45) Turning the win into S7 tool steel work and a 4+1 upgrade
• (17:57) Buying a second SVM 4100 and standardizing on one control
• (20:21) Dial in your workholding with SMW Autoblok
• (21:10) DN service put to the test: the contactor gremlin
• (23:18) From zero applicants to working with the youngest generation
• (24:56) Youth apprenticeships and rebranding machinist to precision metal cutting
• (28:38) Rhett's story: four years, his own key, and a CMMC future
• (30:38) The industry needs accountants and coders, not just machinists
• (33:53) Invest in your leadership at Elevate during IMTS 2026
• (34:45) Getting your crew and local students to IMTS
• (40:39) MakingChips at IMTS 2026: find us in the AME/Hennig booth

Resources Mentioned

• DN Solutions
• Kennametal
• SMW Autoblok
• Dave Hataj with Craftsman with Character
• Elevate powered by AMT (IMTS 2026)
• IMTS
• MakingChips Machine Giveaway

Connect with Tim Drinkwater

• Accurate Machine Products
• Tim Drinkwater on LinkedIn
• Tim@ampcnc.com

Connect with MakingChips

• https://www.makingchips.com
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

AI is going to be everywhere at IMTS this September, and if you walk the floor without a filter, it'll make your head spin. So we brought in someone whose whole job is helping manufacturers tell the real thing from the marketing fluff.

Ryan Kelly, VP of Technology at AMT, joins us to break the noise into something usable. He walks through a simple way to sort every AI claim you'll see into three layers: the hyperscalers and cloud platforms laying the foundation, the AI native tools that couldn't have existed a few years ago, and the embedded AI features showing up as new buttons in the CAD, CAM, and ERP systems you already run.

Then we get into physical AI, the part that actually matters for a machine shop. It's the loop that takes information from the physical world, lets an AI reason on it, and sends a decision back to the machine or the robot in close to real time. Nick's tool load monitoring, Paul's native machine monitoring in ProShop, Mike's managing 60 jobs a day by exception, they're all versions of the same idea. The catch is data. If the grammar of your data isn't good enough, the AI will hand you an answer you can't trust.

Ryan also previews what AMT is building at the show: a new Industrial AI Arena with 32 exhibitors, a one day Industrial AI Conference focused on the factory floor instead of TED-talk futurism, and an Emerging Technology Center where, alongside Oak Ridge National Lab, they'll be making and flying drones right off the line. Three quadcopter models, a fresh one every couple of minutes, with the ability to change the design on a dime and ramp right back into production.

Whether you're already wired up or still getting your data in order, there's something at IMTS for wherever you are on the journey. Take stock of your readiness before you go, bring your real problems to the vendors, and you'll come home with something you can use on Monday. That's making chips.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (0:00) Drones that fly themselves right off the assembly line
• (2:11) Ryan's back: the tariff comment that drew hundreds of responses
• (4:40) Boost spindle uptime without adding headcount with the Hennig Workflow
• (5:40) Meet Ryan Kelly of AMT, and why this year feels like AI-MTS
• (7:16) A filter for the floor: the three layers of AI at IMTS
• (11:42) Turn AI buzzwords into outcomes at the Industrial AI Conference at IMTS
• (12:30) How to shop for AI: bring your problem, not your intimidation
• (13:58) Inside the new Industrial AI Arena: 32 exhibitors and the ETC
• (17:15) Know your AI readiness before you walk the floor
• (19:41) Why it's worth seeing tech you're not ready for yet
• (21:37) Two frameworks: the data-to-application stack and the part lifecycle
• (23:13) Automation everywhere, and what physical AI actually means
• (27:14) The human body metaphor: sensors, feedback loops, and real-time decisions
• (31:52) The real challenge isn't robots, it's the data and its semantics
• (33:40) ProShop's machine monitoring: what people say vs what machines say
• (37:52) Reach true high end machining with DN Solutions
• (39:03) The two dangerous extremes: blindly trusting AI vs writing it off
• (40:48) Managing by exception: AI flags the few jobs that need you
• (42:44) Reflexive factories and capturing shop floor knowledge for AI
• (47:35) Inside the ETC: making and flying drones live with Oak Ridge National Lab
• (53:50) Register at IMTS.com and find us live in the Hennig booth (339133)

Resources Mentioned

• Hennig Workflow Automation System
• DN Solutions
• Register for IMTS 2026 (September 14-19, Chicago)

Connect with Ryan Kelly

• Connect with Ryan on LinkedIn
• AMT, The Association for Manufacturing Technology
• IMTS

Connect with MakingChips

• Website
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

Getting laid off twice early in your career could make you crave stability. It did the opposite for Brian Balthasar. After two rounds of corporate layoffs, he decided that starting his own machine shop was the safer bet.

This is another one of our Gen CNC conversations. Brian founded Balthasar Industries in 2022, and he just bought his first building in North Tonawanda, New York. We walk through the leap: buying a mill and a lathe before he had customers, learning that the sales cycle can run a year or more, and finding out how fast the costs that have nothing to do with machines pile up.

Some of the most useful parts are about money. The SBA 7(a) loan that got him started, the tooling and support gear that blew past every budget, and why his original business plan turned out to be 10 to 20 percent right. We add the rule every shop owner learns eventually: plan on it costing twice as much and taking twice as long, then pressure test that plan against the worst case.

We also get into growing past a one person shop, standardizing on DN Solutions, and building a tech stack in the right order, with connectivity first. Brian shares the CAM path that let him run a shop knowing only basic G code, and where he wants to take the business next, from complex turning and mill turn work to the optics, aerospace, and defense jobs around Buffalo.

Underneath all of it is an idea we keep circling back to. Growth is a calculated risk. You run the numbers, decide how much risk you can live with, and then, as Brian puts it, burn the boats and go. There's also a DN Solutions machine giveaway coming at IMTS this year, and you can sign up at makingchips.com/giveaway.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (1:57) Learn more about Brian Balthasar and his journey in manufacturing
• (4:56) Why starting a shop felt less risky than another corporate job
• (6:22) Take your shop high-end with DN Solutions
• (7:35) Buying machines, hunting for customers, and learning sales
• (10:41) The startup costs nobody budgets for
• (15:04) Plan on twice as long and twice as much, then pressure test it
• (16:11) Boost spindle uptime with the Hennig workflow automation system
• (17:03) Buying the building and adding a third machine
• (18:33) Financing gear and getting a line of credit before you need it
• (21:09) Win a DN Solutions SVM 4100 at IMTS 2026
• (22:37) The SAE effect and the community that shapes young founders
• (26:19) Growing past a one person shop and protecting your balance
• (27:48) Invest in yourself first with ProShop ERP
• (29:24) Building the tech stack in the right order, connectivity first
• (34:19) The CAM journey and running a shop on basic G code
• (36:06) Where the equipment is headed and a wild GM grinder story
• (39:34) Positioning for optics, aerospace, defense, and AS9100
• (44:36) Closing advice: decide your risk threshold and burn the boats

Resources Mentioned

• DN Solutions
• Hennig Workflow Automation
• ProShop ERP
• IMTS
• Bryce Barnes: The Tech Stack Advantage

Connect with Brian Balthasar

• Balthasar Industries
• Balthasar Industries on LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Facebook
• Email

Connect with MakingChips

• https://www.makingchips.com
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube

Most machine shops judge a good day by spindle time. If the machines are cutting, we're making money. If they're sitting still, something must be wrong.

But what if keeping capacity open for the right customer is actually part of the product?

That question kicks off our conversation with strategist Kaihan Krippendorff, who we met at MFG 2026 in Fort Lauderdale. Kaihan's big idea is that value is moving closer to the moment and place where it is needed. For machine shops, that means reshoring, faster turnaround, stocked material, flexible capacity, automation, and being the supplier customers call when a problem cannot wait.

We talk about why customers are rarely just buying a part. They are buying uptime, speed, confidence, and the ability to avoid a production nightmare. That shift changes how a shop should think about pricing, customer relationships, and where it can create value beyond the machine.

We also get practical about what this could look like on the shop floor: having material ready, showing available capacity online, and recognizing when a $200 part becomes a $2,000 solution because the customer needs it immediately.

The future may not belong to the biggest shop or the cheapest shop. It may belong to the shops that understand urgency, move quickly, and become harder for customers to replace.

Because it is not the big that eat the small.

It is the fast that eat the slow.

What's Covered in this Episode

• (1:06) Recapping MFG 2026 and welcoming Kaihan Krippendorff
• (2:02) Kaihan's two worlds: strategy thought leadership and the Outthinker think tank
• (4:02) The game is changing, and proximity is the new playbook
• (5:15) Reshoring, the end of globalization, and the rising cost of distance
• (6:39) Take your shop high-end with DN Solutions
• (7:52) "Jobs to be done": sell the outcome, not the part
• (11:21) Storch Magnetics: one lobbyist out-sold the whole sales team
• (12:26) Tooling vending machines and the $8 stadium water bottle
• (14:06) The weekend rush job: a $200 part worth $2,000 by Monday
• (15:52) Distributed 3D printing, zero marginal cost, and selling uptime
• (18:32) A 2026 prediction: AI gets arms and legs
• (21:04) Reinvest in yourself first with ProShop ERP
• (22:43) Coca-Cola Freestyle: create the value after demand shows up
• (24:57) Low Country Aerospace and buying raw material smarter
• (27:25) Sell results, not atoms: the Uber and Domino's lesson
• (29:04) Putting open capacity online and a distributed network of shops
• (32:08) Connecting directly to customers and ProCNC's 2004 head start
• (35:36) Why categories are powerful and time splicing for quick response
• (37:15) Stop getting burned by recruiters: Use Hire MFG Leaders
• (38:29) Segmenting customers by who values speed most
• (42:09) Riches in the niches and the rise of the mega factories
• (44:48) What a typical shop can do now: the nine Ps checklist

Resources Mentioned

• DN Solutions
• ProShop ERP
• Hire MFG Leaders
• SendCutSend
• Arbill
• Storch Magnetics
• Quickparts 3D Printing
• Low Country Aerospace
• The End of the World Is Just the Beginning
• Fast Formulator

Connect with Kaihan Krippendorff

• Connect on LinkedIn
• https://kaihan.net
• Outthinker
• Proximity by Kaihan Krippendorff

Connect with MakingChips

• Website: https://www.makingchips.com
• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Instagram
• On Twitter
• On YouTube