This article originally appeared as an In The Loupe blogpost. In today’s ultra-competitive industry, every machine shop seeks even the slightest edge to gain an advantage on their competition and boost their bottom line. However, what many machinists don’t know is that improving their shop’s efficiency might be easier than they thought. The following five ways your shop is inefficient will provide a clear starting point of where to look for machinists desperate to earn a competitive edge.

When operating a machining or fabrication shop, every dollar counts. Most shops have a bandsaw in their equipment lineup to alleviate the cost of getting custom-cut lengths from a metal supplier. While having a bandsaw is useful, it can still be a drag on your checkbook because of the manual labor required.

Jacks Transmissions specializes in building custom mechanical components to make cars go fast. “We build transmissions for the Nissan R35 GTR and Mitsubishi Evo, among several other platforms, but that’s what we specialize in,” explains Jacob Shields, an engineer at the garage and CNC machine enthusiast. 

Texas is a hotbed for high tech manufacturing companies, especially machine shops. Colter Crossley, who owns and operates Blackstone Solutions and Technologies, prides himself on being a successful small business in the heart of a highly competitive market.

Over the last decade, 3D printing has grown in popularity and decreased significantly in price. Even though 3D printing is a long way from bettering CNC machining in speed, materials, or reliability, additive manufacturing technology may have a place in everybody’s shop. If you have a mill, why do you need a 3D printer in your shop?

Charlie Brumfield was an old-school Dungeons and Dragons player looking for a gift for some of his gaming buddies when he decided to start up Artisan Dice. “Within 48 hours I found myself in the dice-making business,” Brumfield says. “Our first day in business I built a website, put it up Sunday night, and by 6:00 AM Monday morning we had $1700 in sales. It’s been rockin’ and rollin’ ever since.”