Machine Shop Mastery
After more than 300 conversations across Machine Shop Mastery, MakingChips, and Manufacturing Transformed, I wrote a book.
It's called Precision Manufacturing, Precision Business, and I keep saying "we" wrote it because that's the truth. I got the words onto the page, but the hard lessons, ideas, and wisdom came from this community.
The premise is simple: you'd never ship a titanium part at 99% accuracy, so why run your business that way? Shops obsess over holding dimensions, but that same precision doesn't always carry into quoting, planning, scheduling, procurement, or contract review. That gap is the opportunity.
In this episode, I share my journey in manufacturing, starting in 1997 with six college friends, a second mortgage, one Haas VF4, and very little idea what we were doing. The discipline I write about didn't come from a textbook. It came from getting things wrong and having people willing to tell us why.
I'll also give you a sneak peek inside the book, covering everything from niching down and estimating to culture, compliance, and quote-to-cash. It's about building a business that runs with the same discipline as the machines and has real value whether you ever sell it or not.
Precision Manufacturing, Precision Business launches September 1, just before IMTS, at disciplinetoprofit.com. More than 50 people from the shows are quoted in it, and if you want a signed copy, come find me at the ProShop booth or the MakingChips booth in the South Hall.