Headland Machinery
Over the years we've called on Headland again for a Trumpf Trumabend C60 Press Brake, then a Haeger inserting machine and most recently a Trumpf TruPunch 2020. Thanks guys, and a special thanks to serviceman Sharky who's always kept our punch presses running beautifully.
In 2003 Headland supplied and commissioned our very first punch press, a Trumpf Trumatic 2000R. We'd used exactly this model in our South African business some years back so we already knew what it could do when properly tooled and operated - you could say we had high expectations.
This machine had to be shipped to Melbourne from Germany because at the time no others were available locally. Delivery and setup went off without a hitch and when she finally came to life and made all those familiar noises and motions, we got a much needed feeling of comfort at an uncertain time - the very beginning of our Australian adventure.
Over the years we called on Headland again for a Trumpf Trumabend C60 Press Brake, a Haeger inserting machine and most recently our Trumpf TruPunch 2020. Thanks guys, and a special thanks to serviceman Sharky who keeps our punch presses running beautifully. Cheers
Visit Headland's website.
Our Suppliers
Sheetmetal Machinery Australia
We love our Safan E-Brake press brake and we're very fond of the man who sold it to us, Ed Stavar. The machine purrs along so quietly, is dead easy to program and its speed and accuracy are remarkable - it can actually keep up with its pilot Shaun, and that says much!
We love our Safan E-Brake press brake and we're very fond of the man who sold it to us, Ed Stavar.
We had grown accustomed to hydraulic machines and, this being our first experience with an electric press brake (and a Dutch machine manufacturer), we needed a good communicator and a caring salesperson to help us discover something new and valuable.
The machine purrs along quietly, is dead easy to program and its speed and accuracy are remarkable - it can almost keep up with its pilot Shaun, and that says much! Thank you Ed, you've helped us be better.
Visit Sheetmetal Machinery's website.
Our Suppliers
Impact Steel
Paul Girke at Impact Steel has taken care of us on price and quality consistently, even though we don't order as much metal at a time as some of his other giant accounts. Thank you Paul.
Metal sheets are our single largest material cost and, especially when the turbulent Aussie dollar messes with imported steel prices, we owe it to our customers to find the best deals on quality metal.
Paul Girke at Impact Steel has taken care of us on price and quality consistently, even though we may not order as much metal in one hit as some of his other giant accounts. Thank you very much Paul!
Visit Impact Steel's website.
Our Suppliers
Concept Fasteners
Malcolm Zammit sells us a lot of fasteners, and on occasions when we need a particular sort in a hurry he gets us stocked in almost no time.
Malcolm Zammit sells us a LOT of fasteners, and on whenever we need a particular item in a hurry he gets us stocked fast. We even bought our second Haeger inserting machine from Concept Fasteners on basis of our rapport and constant relationship with Malcolm. Thank you for taking care of us mate.
Visit Concept Fasteners website.
Our Suppliers
Concept Latch Lock & Hinge
Luke Halpin at Concept Latch Lock & Hinge is on the other end of the phone countless times as we search and scrutinise the best parts for new projects. Thank you for all your constant help Luke.
On many projects, hardware such as locks, drawer runners, handles, latches, hinges, gas struts and the like becomes a big portion of material costs. Yet, when quality feel and superior ergonomics are the selling points our customers need to wow their end users, you just can't go cheap on these parts - it shows.
Luke Halpin at Concept Latch Lock & Hinge is on the other end of the phone often, helping us search for and scrutinise the best parts for new projects. Thank you for all your constant help Luke.
Visit the Concept Latch Lock & Hinge website.
Our Suppliers
Excite Powder Coating Services
It's no wonder that they've grown though - brothers Greg and Sam and their father Stan make and keep a promise about quality and consistency that hasn't changed as they've expanded their operation considerably over the years.
We ran an in-house powder coating plant at our old Johannesburg operation during the '90s but decided against it when starting again in Melbourne because, other than that the powder slowly creeps into everything including our precious press brake and punch press machines, we knew what it really took to consistently achieve beautiful results and we were very happy to partner with a team that could focus their energy solely on this.
We met the Kapusta family soon after opening our doors in Bayswater in 2003, back when their business was a good bit smaller than it is now. It's no wonder that they've grown though - brothers Greg and Sam and their father Stan make and keep a promise about quality and consistency that hasn't changed as they've expanded their operation considerably over the years.
Time and care spent fabricating a sheet metal product can be made irrelevant if it's then poorly powder coated. Added to that, as powder coating is one of the final processes in the production cycle, you don't usually have a lot of time for fixing bodged jobs before you need to call your customer to tell them that the quick turnaround you promised them won't be so quick. The Excite team consistently helps us avoid those phone calls. Thank you guys.
Visit Excite Powder Coating's website.
Our Suppliers
Big Zinc Electroplating
That said, Daniel Waters and the crew at Big Zinc are superb with quality, consistency and price and we're very glad to do business with them. Thank you Daniel!
Big Zinc have been in business for many years in Montrose, less than 10 minutes drive from us, yet we only recently discovered them after our long-time zinc plating partners Ace Electroplating in Bayswater closed down.
That said, Daniel Waters and the crew at Big Zinc are superb with quality, consistency and price and we're very glad to do business with them. Thank you Daniel!
Visit Big Zinc Electroplating's website.
Our Suppliers
Mate Tooling
Ian is Mate Tooling's Australian distributer, based in Adelaide, and some years ago he won us over to the Mate camp from Wilson Tool on pure price point. Since then however, Ian has steadily strengthened his relationship with us through consistent, quick delivery times and great service, so mush so that we even go to him for tools varieties that others might place in the cheap and cheerful basket.
The ability to transform flat sheets into intricate metal components is limited only by design experience and tooling capability. Over time, a serious fabrication shop may spend more money on tooling for its punch presses and press brakes than on the machines themselves, and the greater part of this on new varieties of tools rather than on replacements of worn out ones. Tooling costs matter.
With cheaper tooling flowing in from manufacturers in neighbouring asian countries, and with fabricators in those very same countries increasingly competing on longer production runs with local sheet metal shops, most business owners will tell you that proven premium tooling like that from Wilson Tool or Mate Precision Tooling is a sure thing, but many will also admit to trying cheaper alternatives to keep costs down.
It might be ok to go cheap on very basic tools like stumpy, round press brake punches that won't break if you throw them out of an airplane. For finer tools, as long as there's a good culture of tool care in the workshop, it's more cost effective over the long run to spend more upfront on longer lasting, higher quality tools. (Our director Eugene Czech maintains our entire stock of fancy punch press tools himself, humming softly under his breath).
We've bought many punch press and press brake tools from Wilson Tool and Mate over the years, in Australia and South Africa, and we love them both. But, as both companies hail from Minnesota, USA, and we buy their products in Melbourne, Australia, the price difference between them is defined largely by their local distributors and becomes the deciding factor in our purchasing choices.
And here's where Ian Markham comes in. Ian is Mate Tooling's Australian distributer, based in Adelaide, and some years ago he won us over to the Mate camp from Wilson Tool on pure price point. Since then however, Ian has steadily strengthened his relationship with us through consistent, quick delivery times and great service, so mush so that we even go to him for tools varieties that others might place in the cheap and cheerful basket. Thank you for helping us Ian.