FRANKFORT — Back in the days when an auto called Oldsmobile still roamed the earth, the above catch phrase was invented to rescue the brand. Despite featuring William Shatner as Captain Kirk, the advertising effort failed to save Oldsmobile. Nevertheless, the tag line became part of our pop culture. Fast forward to Frankfort, N.Y. and […]
FRANKFORT — Back in the days when an auto called Oldsmobile still roamed the earth, the above catch phrase was invented to rescue the brand. Despite featuring William Shatner as Captain Kirk, the advertising effort failed to save Oldsmobile. Nevertheless, the tag line became part of our pop culture.
Fast forward to Frankfort, N.Y. and Custom Tool & Model, Inc. (CTM) — this is definitely not your father’s machine shop. Founded in 1969 by Erich O. Naegele as a precision engineering machine company, CTM produces prototypes and short runs of finished parts, combining old-world training and state-of-the-art design and production technology.
The production facility, comprised of two buildings at 151 Industrial Drive, sits on three acres and contains 10,000 square feet of space. The factory is jammed full of milling machines, lathes, grinders, saws, drills, and welders/fabricators, many of which are computer-controlled. CTM employs 25 people and generates between $4 million and $5 million in annual revenue.
“We’re not your average machine shop,” says John J. Piseck, Jr., a sales engineer with the company. “We’re a high-tech operation focused on quality and fast response to our customers.” He proudly points out the latest addition to the company’s technology — a 3-D printer designed to provide accurate, durable, and repeatable prototyping, tooling, and manufacturing. “It was a $200,000 capital investment, including the printer, materials, a washing station, and compressor. This pistol receiver (Piseck holds up a plastic model) only took us three hours to build on the new printer, once we received the e-file from the customer. It used to take us days.”
On a tour of the plant, Piseck points with pride at the number and variety of machines. “This company is all about quality and precision,” says Piseck. “We have invested millions of dollars in equipment to achieve tolerance levels of up to 50/1,000,000 of an inch. Sometimes, I even have to convince my customers that we can actually hold this tolerance.”
CTM is owned by three principals, who are all active in the business. Steven M. Naegele, 47, is the company president; his brother, Erich R., 55, is vice president; and his sister, Sharon Lanza, 51, is secretary/treasurer. The three stockholders and Piseck, 50, constitute the management team along with Bryan Nestle, the quality manager, and Jason Christman, the shop foreman. The team, in turn, is supported by key professional vendors: NBT for banking; Fitzgerald, DePietro & Wojnas CPAs, P.C. for accounting; and Kowalczyk, Deery & Broadbent, LLP for legal matters.
“Sixty percent of our business comes from three areas: aerospace, optics, and firearms,” notes Piseck. “People don’t realize that we do work for NASA and JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) as well as large, national companies … CTM built parts for the moon vehicles and for the Phoenix Lander and Curiosity, which probed Mars. We also produce specialty optics for companies like General Dynamics and work with a number of firearms manufacturers including Remington, Smith & Wesson, and Sig Sauer.”
CTM is a custom manufacturer. “While we have a lot of repeat business from our customers, we rarely see the same job twice,” says Piseck. “Most of our runs are one to five parts. A huge production run is 175 parts. We certainly have recurring customers, but we’re usually not producing the same parts.”
Quality has taken on a very different meaning from the firm’s founding in 1969. “In order to do work for big companies today, we need to be ISO-AS compliant,” notes Piseck. “This international standard says that we have reduced our environmental impact by reducing waste and energy consumption. It includes even the company’s organizational structure, planning and resources for development, and implementing and maintaining policy for environmental protection.”
CTM is also AS-9100 compliant, a requirement of the aerospace industry. “AS-9100 is the aerospace version of ISO-9001,” says Piseck. “The aerospace industry is considerably more demanding in terms of safety and quality. In fact, AS-9100 contains ISO-9001, adding requirements specific to aerospace. This certification places us on the leading edge of quality initiatives.
“Because we work with the firearms industry,” continues Piseck, “CTM needs to qualify for federal firearms licenses. Aside from the annual cost, we are subjected to inspections by BATFE (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, an agency of the U.S. Dept. of Justice). The U.S. government also requires us to be ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) compliant. This means we are registered with the U.S. State Department’s DDTC (Directorate of Defense Trade Controls). It takes a lot of time, effort, and money to comply with all the regulations and certification requirements.”
CTM has experienced steady, organic growth, not only by servicing its customer base, but also by diversifying its revenue streams. “In addition to being a machine shop, we are also a distributor for manufacturers,” says Piseck.
“CTM now represents a company that manufactures a portable, metal detector. The walk-through device can be set up in 5 minutes and only requires one operator. We also just closed a deal to represent an Israeli manufacturer of automatic, ammunition-loading devices. In addition to acting as a distributor, CTM has set up a clean room on the shop floor for rental to area companies working on an array of manufacturing and R&D projects. The space is very flexible and can be configured to suit the customer’s need.”
Piseck then takes this reporter for a tour of the second building on the site. “Welcome to the Golf Box,” declares Piseck. “We have installed two upgraded simulators representing more than 50 major U.S. golf courses. You can golf here 365 days a year and have enough space to sponsor both private and corporate parties.”
CTM prides itself on its workforce, but also notes the difficulty of recruiting and training employees. “Our industry has the wrong image today. Young people think it’s a dirty business and their parents and school advisers often share that image. Everyone at CTM needs at least a high-school degree and many have college degrees. We work closely with area schools like Mohawk Valley Community College which offers certification in CNC (computer- numerical control) machinery. CTM doesn’t just offer jobs; we offer careers to mill and lathe operators, CNC operators, and precision tool- and die- makers.
“CTM is poised for continued growth,” Piseck declares. “Herkimer County is a hub for manufacturing, which should benefit from the recently announced Nano-Utica commitment. Suppliers coming into the area will need tools, fixtures, and gauging to meet the demand … The Village of Frankfort has its own municipal electric plant which provides power at 3.5 cents [per kilowatt] … The company has positioned itself as a leading-edge machine shop with a great workforce, … and we continue to diversify, looking at new markets.”
CTM is definitely not your father’s machine shop. It is looking to the moon, Mars, and beyond. And it doesn’t need Captain Kirk to burnish its brand.
Contact Poltenson at npoltenson@cnybj.com