41: A Blank Slate Urban Machine Shop Concept - Matt Bruner of APW
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
Release Date: 10/29/2025
48. Huge Parts, Huge Success: Craig Lange of Lange Machine & Tool
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
Some shops measure parts in millimeters. Lange Machine and Tool measures them in tons, up to 80,000 pounds, to be exact. But running a shop that handles massive mining and foundry components with a small batch, high-mix workflow presents a unique data challenge. For decades, Craig Lange’s family business relied on paper cost cards and a custom-built Access database to keep track of it all. It worked, but at a cost. It required nearly a full-time employee just to handle data entry, and tribal knowledge was constantly slipping through the cracks. When a job came back three years later, the...
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47. Small Headcount - High Discipline: Building Success with Garrett from Elemental Design + Machinery
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
Most machine shop startups are defined by hustle, long hours, and organized chaos. But when Garrett Wolfford founded Elemental Design + Machinery in January 2024, he had a different blueprint: "Small headcount, high discipline". While many owners wait years to professionalize their operations, Garrett built the foundation of a major aerospace facility for a team of just three people. He didn't wait to "grow into" systems; he implemented AS9100 certification, ITAR registration, and ProShop ERP almost immediately. The goal was audacious: to transition from general manufacturing to critical "hard...
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46: Scaling a Machine Shop Without Losing Control with Wesley of B&W Machine Works
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
In this episode, I chat with Wesley Traumbauer of B&W Machine works. We examine what happens when a manufacturing business grows faster than the systems supporting it. As complexity increases, reliance on memory, informal communication, and disconnected tools creates friction that compounds daily. What once felt manageable begins to erode trust in schedules, delivery dates, and capacity, making even simple decisions heavier than they need to be. When estimating, scheduling, purchasing, and quality exist in separate places, visibility disappears. Work-in-process grows, interruptions...
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45: Eliminating Chaos: How Ferrera Tooling Streamlined Scheduling, Quality, and Traceability
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
When Cody Joy joined Ferrera Tooling Company in 2020, the shop was growing rapidly but struggling with chaotic systems. Scheduling relied on a single Google Sheet, paper travelers cluttered the floor, and quality records were scattered across uncontrolled spreadsheets. Twice-weekly meetings attempted to manage priorities, but inefficiencies threatened to stall the company’s expansion into aerospace and space exploration. Ferrera’s leadership recognized the need for a paperless ERP solution. After considering building their own system, they adopted ProShop, which consolidated scheduling,...
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44: Massive Transformation with David Pannell of Faircloth Machine
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
Faircloth Machine Shop’s journey is one of remarkable transformation. Founded in the late 1960s as a manual machining operation, it was modernized under David Pannell, who joined in 1994 and helped transition the shop into CNC machining. By 2017, Faircloth adopted ProShop ERP, moving away from paper records and embracing digital systems that enabled growth into aerospace manufacturing. ProShop proved pivotal, offering built-in AS9100 compliance and integrated tools for audits, documentation, and quality management. Though the shift was a cultural shock, it allowed Faircloth to expand from 10...
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43: From Multi-National Executive to Machine Shop Owner - Chris Basgall of Catamount
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
Some shop owners work their way up from the shop floor. Chris Basgall arrived from the opposite direction. Before buying Catamount Machine Works, he spent decades leading IT, operations, and large-scale transformation inside one of the world’s biggest telecommunications companies, serving 350 million customers across continents. Then he walked away from corporate life, moved his family to Florida, and bought a 15-person machine shop with paper travelers, scattered data, and a tech stack that hadn’t changed much in years. Chris didn’t choose Catamount for what it was. He chose it for what...
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42: Scaling Smart, Leading with Data & Building a Future-Ready Shop at Prosper-Tech Machine & Tool
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
Some shops grow fast. But very few grow fast and stay in control. Prosper-Tech is doing both, and doing it with intention. In just two years, Andrew and Gabby Devroy have helped transform the company Andrew’s parents built in a garage into a 30-person aerospace and medical machining powerhouse, all while raising three kids and navigating the complexities of a second-generation business. Their approach isn’t about chasing work, it’s about choosing the right work, building systems that scale, and creating a culture where data drives decisions instead of putting out fires. When they joined...
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41: A Blank Slate Urban Machine Shop Concept - Matt Bruner of APW
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
Matt Bruner, co-founder of American Precision Works (APW), shares the journey of launching a modern machine shop in urban Philadelphia with his partner, John Celley. Founded in October 2024, APW was built on a “clean slate” philosophy, emphasizing automation, streamlined systems, and a people-first approach. With complementary backgrounds (John in machining and Matt in sales and operations) they aimed to create a business that could train individuals without prior machining experience, using standardized processes and advanced technology to empower their workforce. Their urban location was...
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40: Shop Transformation Leads to the Largest PO Ever Received - Damon Snider
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
Snider Precision began as a garage-based machine shop founded by Damon Snider’s father in 1978, growing organically over decades through grit, bold decisions, and a passion for machining. Damon started helping as a child, deburring parts and learning CNC operations before joining the Navy. After his father fired an unreliable crew, Damon returned to help and eventually took over the business, bringing fresh energy and a vision for modernization. Under Damon’s leadership, the shop transitioned from paper-based workflows to a fully digital system using ProShop ERP. This shift enabled better...
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39: Driving Excellence and Growth with Jeff Justesen of Oakdale Precision
Manufacturing Transformed: Real Shops, Real Stories
Oakdale Precision, a manufacturing company, transformed after adopting Pro Shop ERP. Previously reliant on a homegrown software system and tools like spreadsheets, whiteboards, and scattered network drives, the company faced challenges in scheduling, quality control, and tribal knowledge transfer. As the company grew, these limitations became unsustainable, prompting leadership to seek a more structured solution. Jeff Justesen tells how the transition to Pro Shop was facilitated with onboarding across departments. Floor staff quickly adapted to basic functions like scheduling and clocking...
info_outlineMatt Bruner, co-founder of American Precision Works (APW), shares the journey of launching a modern machine shop in urban Philadelphia with his partner, John Celley. Founded in October 2024, APW was built on a “clean slate” philosophy, emphasizing automation, streamlined systems, and a people-first approach. With complementary backgrounds (John in machining and Matt in sales and operations) they aimed to create a business that could train individuals without prior machining experience, using standardized processes and advanced technology to empower their workforce.
Their urban location was a strategic choice, allowing them to tap into a younger, more diverse talent pool and stand out from suburban competitors. Matt recounts hiring Tom, a retail worker with no machining background, who quickly adapted to running a five-axis machine thanks to APW’s modern systems. This hiring model, focused on potential and attitude over experience, has proven successful and even attracted seasoned professionals eager to work with cutting-edge equipment.
A cornerstone of APW’s strategy is its early investment in ProShop ERP, which has helped them avoid the inefficiencies common in older shops. Drawing inspiration from Matt’s father (who launched a machine shop with ERP in the 1990s with a design that was less about machines and more about systems) he set out to start a shop that solved common industry problems. APW uses ProShop to manage tooling, job costing, and quality control. Their team eliminated spreadsheets, built custom Chrome extensions for tool management, and integrated CAM data to streamline operations. These systems have enabled APW to operate efficiently and scale without excessive overhead.
Matt emphasizes that while job costing is important, his primary focus is on daily throughput and machine-level performance. ProShop’s integration with financial tools like QuickBooks has exceeded expectations, allowing APW to maintain clean financials while keeping operations agile. By starting fresh and embracing modern tools, APW has built a lean, scalable business model that serves both its community and the broader manufacturing industry.
Matt reflects on the support he received from industry peers and expresses a desire to pay it forward. Though he acknowledges the challenges of starting a machine shop, he remains proud of APW’s progress and optimistic about its future.
LinkedIn - Matt Bruner: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-bruner-9870257b/
American Precision Works - https://www.americanprecisionworks.com/how-we-work
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