5 / 8
2015
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Manufacturing BOSS
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5
are willing to do everything it
takes to get things done. We
go above and beyond the call
of duty, and learn from our
customers every day.”
Investments
With the human side of
the business locked down,
Tyler turned his attention to
a segment of the industry
that was evolving quickly:
automation.
Vickers’ facilities contain
100 CNC (computer numeric
control) machining centers
and several automated
machining cells housed in
two SW Michigan plants,
which total 170,000 sq ft.
The commitment toward
automation with the use of
FANUC robots has given the
company a huge advantage
in the field, allowing Vickers
to compete on a global scale
with high-volume needs. The
company’s CNC machines
work in groups of two to
eight in any particular cell,
with each cell designed to
accommodate the production
of single part or a family
of parts. A standalone
FANUC robot moves the part
throughout the cell, while
the CNC machines process
the part to its dimensional
specification.
“Investment in automation has
been the key to our growth
strategy these last four years,”
Tyler shared. “It’s transformed
our competitiveness. Granted,
it’s not common in our line
of work for a company this
size to have the internal
automation capabilities
we’ve developed. CNCs are
extremely expensive, and
most of our machines are less
than five years old. But it’s
worth it. We’re hitting a 2.1
PPM in 2015—for every million
parts we ship, only two pieces
come back to us. We’re really
proud of that figure, and we
know we can improve.”