“Machine shop near me”
Typing that familiar phrase into Google is often a buyer or engineer’s first course of action when looking for a CNC machine shop. But with advances in digital technology revolutionizing how we communicate, “proximity” matters less than ever before.
Today’s buyers and engineers can choose from CNC machine shops anywhere in America—and here’s why location doesn’t matter.
Capabilities Trump Proximity in Precision Machining
Precision machining customers have long enjoyed the ease and convenience of driving down the street and talking to their manufacturing partners in person. But if you need a complex machined part and that shop down the street only has 3-axis mills and conventional lathes, the ability to communicate with the shop owner and machinists face-to-face isn’t enough.
As an ITAR registered machine shop specializing in machining complex parts, Wagner Machine knows that capabilities trump proximity. We work with customers all across the United States who are pushing the limits and require advanced machining capabilities in prototype or production quantities that they can’t find in their area.
When you partner with a CNC machine shop whose capabilities and capacity best suit your project, you benefit in all the most important ways: better parts, shorter lead times, and lower costs.
Common Concerns about Working with a Non-Local CNC Machine Shop
Concern #1: Communication
At Wagner Machine, we use Teams and Zoom daily to cover as much ground remotely as we can in person, which saves precious time in everyone’s day. We use digital meetings with customers across town or across the country to discuss project updates and share documents, CAD files, pictures, and videos of actual parts.
In fact, we’ve found that digital platforms can enable smoother, faster, and clearer communication than interacting face-to-face.
For example, one of our machinists was about to machine a feature but knew it would be difficult to reach a specific area. He initiated a video meeting with the customer and screen-shared the part image to explain his proposed solution. They were able to discuss the issue and come up with a good solution on the fly which kept their project on track and improved the final part.
Video meetings have proven to be extremely useful for discussing specific details about small or complex parts during the planning and production phase of a job. Everyone is able to see the exact features in question so we are all on the same page, and we can even do markups on the screen to clarify. They can be initiated as quickly as a phone call, so they are great for immediate questions.
Concern #2: The little details
When a CNC machine shop is nearby, customers know they can stop in at any time to check on their order status and ensure that their parts are being manufactured correctly. Many customers appreciate this added layer of accountability.
If you aren’t local, you may not be able to drop into our CNC machine shop, but you can be confident that we have the right processes in place to hold ourselves accountable. As an ISO 9001:2015 and AS9100-certified machine shop, we have stringent standards that we must uphold, ensuring that we never cut corners.
We proudly offer customers as much visibility into our processes as they choose—whether they’re located down the street or across the country. Upon request, we can provide regular job status reports via email, phone call, or a video meeting with your team. We can also provide part pictures, digital microscope pictures, and inspection reports while your project is in process.
Concern #3: Shipping
It’s hard to beat the convenience of driving across town to pick up your parts from a local CNC machine shop, but have you ever considered the cost? All of our time is valuable, and a “quick trip” locally often takes longer than expected. Most times those trips are more expensive than expedited shipping options.
At Wagner Machine, we have many shipping options to meet the needs of all our customers. We typically work on small complex machined parts, so shipping is a minor expense. We have standard and expedited shipping options for LTL and parcel delivery and can ship overnight to anywhere in the country. You can also rest assured that your parts will be packaged to survive anything they encounter between our door and yours.
It’s Time to Think beyond “Machine Shop Near Me”
Next time you’re about to Google “machine shop near me,” ask yourself this question: “What’s more important for this project: proximity or capabilities?”
If you need complex machined parts or automated production capacity, we hope you’ll consider Wagner Machine. Most of our customers are located far outside our zip code, and that hasn’t stopped us from providing superior service that keeps them coming back.