Journal of the Minnesota Precision Manufacturing Association

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shop | profile Razor Edge Systems, Inc. A Sharper Approach from Stone Machinery Joe Juranitch, also known as Ragnar, uses a Hurco to make some of his Vikings weaponry. He also uses it to cut down the manufacturing time needed to make his company’s sharpening equipment. Before he was Ragnar, the Minnesota Vikings mascot, Joe Juranitch, set the world record for shaving his beard with an axe (8 minutes and 43 seconds). He even sharpened it himself. A true Viking, indeed. At the time, he was trying to gain publicity for his company, not the Minnesota Vikings. Shaving his beard with an axe was one way to demonstrate his company’s expertise at maintaining an extremely sharp edge. Juranitch is co-owner of Razor Edge Systems, Inc., a company in Ely, Minn., that makes sharpening equipment for a variety of industries. His parents started the company more than 50 years ago out of their garage. Today it employs about 20 people, including Jurantich and his three sisters. When Juranitch was selected to become Ragnar in 1994, he fit the role perfectly. He even made and sharpened his own Vikings weaponry. But he never quit his day job. When he isn’t greeting fans in a fur coat and boots, Juranitch is at his shop, working to develop and patent sharpening tools that maintain the sharpest edges possible. His office is full of little inventions that have been made, scrapped and re-done. The Moustrap® Steel is one of his company’s best known products. It has been used for years in meatpacking and poultry processing plants to restore and maintain sharp edges. It even has been featured on the show “Modern Marvels.” “When I was a kid, I remember plant managers telling my dad there was no way we would be able to replace the butcher’s steel,” Juranitch said. “But we did.” An Edge on the Competition In an effort to maintain a competitive edge in a down market last year, Juranitch began looking for a faster way to make the plates that form the bases of the industrial sharpening equipment his company produces. Each plate, weighing 30 pounds, required 14 separate operations, starting with a fourhour preparation operation. From start to finish, it took 36 hours to make just eight plates. Upon the recommendation of one of his employees, Juranitch contacted the people at Stone Machinery, a longstanding machine tool distributor in the Twin Cities. After careful analysis, they recommended the Hurco VMX24, a 3-axis CNC vertical milling machine, which cut manufacturing time down by more than 80 percent. Now the plates are made in 6 hours, rather than 36 hours, and require just three operations as opposed to 14, saving the company hundreds of hours and tens of thousands of dollars. “We expect our payback to be about one year,” Juranitch said. “The new machine is much faster, cleaner and more accurate. It’s nice to not have to handle a 30-pound part 14 times anymore.” One of the best features about the machine, according to Jim Kahnert, applications manager for Stone Machinery, is that it’s easy to use. “I went up there for 3 days of training and by the time I left, they were making parts,” he said. In addition to making machine bases, Juranitch is using the Hurco to make specialty Ragnar items. Recently, he engraved his name on a custommade hatchet and is planning to make additional collector items this year. “Look for some new Viking weaponry this season that will be made on the Hurco,” he said. About Stone Machinery Razor Edge Systems is one of many success stories from Stone Machinery. Founded in 1927, Stone Machinery is the longest-running machine tool distributor in the Midwest. Based in Saint Paul, Minn., it sells and services a variety of CNC machine tools and accessories, including Hurco, Proto- Trak and Chevalier. Over the years, the company has sold nearly 3,000 units to manufacturers in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and western Wisconsin. It has equipment in almost every large company in Minnesota, but it also has machines in garages and pole barns. Five Years of Training What separates Stone Machinery from other distributors, however, is the training and service it provides after the sale. “We offer 5 years of free training, if necessary,” Kahnert said. “So if a company purchased a piece of equipment from us in the last 5 years and has since hired new employees who need to be trained on it, we do that. We don’t just walk away after we sell a machine.” In addition, Stone Machinery holds training classes twice a month at its Saint Paul location on topics like tool measurement, part measurement, tool length, diameter probing and part measurement probing. Tom Drazkowski, Stone Machinery’s owner, said he responds to several e-mails a day from customers with questions about a part print, a workholding problem or some other challenge. 18 | PRECISION MANUFACTURING July | August 2010 PAID SUPPLEMENT
“Don’t assume what works for your neighbor will work for you. Do some investigation. Look for the best fit. Find out how other companies like yours were supported and treated before, during and after the sale.” - Tom Drazkowski, owner, Stone Machinery “I think one of the biggest challenges facing manufacturers today is that their employees need a broader skill set,” Drazkowski said. “We’re helping them with that by providing free training. We work with them on the machine side, the workholding side, the tooling side, the programming side and the part measurement side. We help them through the entire process.” Lifetime Service Service is another key aspect of Stone Machinery. Three full-time technicians with service trucks are dedicated to machine diagnosis, repair and testing, resulting in prompt service throughout the life of the machine. For companies like Razor Edge Systems, training, service and support are as important as the machine itself. “Our machinists are able to get on the phone and ask questions of Stone Machinery anytime,” Juranitch said. “I have zero complaints about the way we’ve been treated.” With a little more time on his hands, Juranitch is turning his focus to the scissors and to edges in the medical field, studying how to maintain the sharpest edges possible—and determining which machines are best for the job. Like Razor Edge Systems, many manufacturers will be in the market for another machine again soon. To all of them, Drazkowski offers this advice: “Don’t assume what works for your neighbor will work for you. Do some investigation. Look for the best fit. Find out how other companies like yours were supported and treated before, during and after the sale.” PM For more information about Stone Machinery, visit www.stonemachinery.com or contact Tom Drazkowski at info@stonemachinery.com Jim Kahnert demonstrates Hurco conversational programming at a recent training class. Classes are held on a regular basis at the Stone Machinery showroom and training facility in Saint Paul. PAID SUPPLEMENT July | August 2010 PRECISION MANUFACTURING | 19
Page 1 and 2: J u l y / A u g u s t 2 0 1 0 M A N
Page 3 and 4: IMTS 2O1O Minnesota Precision Manuf
Page 5 and 6: TABLE | OF CONTENTS July | August 2
Page 7 and 8: The FEDERATED Insurance Companies H
Page 9 and 10: PM: What do you expect from IMTS 20
Page 11 and 12: JOIN MPMA AT IMTS 2010 Hegman Machi
Page 13 and 14: cover | IMTS 2010 Ellison Technolog
Page 16 and 17: Now is the time to take your shot!
Page 20 and 21: MADE | IN MINNESOTA Transforming th
Page 22 and 23: 3 Locations to serve You: Burnsvill
Page 24 and 25: Makino ADVANTiGE Visit us at IMTS,
Page 26 and 27: Industry Profile Yeager Machine Th
Page 28 and 29: Industry Profile Yeager Machine Pr
Page 30 and 31: Manufacturing | Mat ters Manufactur
Page 32 and 33: in a Down Economy by Melissa DeBilz
Page 34 and 35: Manufacturing | Marvels Getting a C
Page 36 and 37: Industry Profile | Command Tooling
Page 38 and 39: 38 | PRECISION MANUFACTURING July |
Page 40 and 41: What’s Happening at Mpma? MPMA Ma
Page 42 and 43: MANUFACTURERS’ | MARKETPLACE Mach
Page 44 and 45: MANUFACTURERS’ | MARKETPLACE Comp
Page 46 and 47: MEMBER | DIRECTORY 4.625” x 7.375
Page 48 and 49: MEMBER | DIRECTORY Minnesota State
Page 50 and 51: 17,000 sq. feet. booth # S-8100 Vis
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