McLean, Va. August 16, 2011 - AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology and IMTS – The International Manufacturing Technology Show have sponsored Modern Machine Shop’s inaugural Top Shops benchmarking survey, which includes 10 firms being named 2011 Top Shops award winners. The results are appearing in the August 2011 issue of Modern Machine Shop.
"We are very excited to sponsor this program that honors some of the country's top machining firms. Beyond just recognizing these companies, however, we hope that it's a useful tool for other companies to find ways that they too can improve their sales, productivity, and profitability," said Peter Eelman, VP-Exhibitions & Communications at AMT, show organizers for IMTS. "These survey results offer an unparalleled look at what others in the industry are doing, and how you as a business measure up by comparin." AMT and IMTS have a long history of supporting publishing partner programs of this type.
Top Shops is a comprehensive benchmarking program for machine shops of all types and sizes. Using data from surveys completed by 183 machining businesses of varying sizes, Top Shops identifies optimal shop floor practices, as well as operational and business metrics that define world-class competitiveness in discrete parts manufacturing. Companies ranging from small job shops to large captive operations can see how they compare against the country’s leading machining businesses, which enables them to make sound decisions to emulate those identified as top-performing operations. Not only does the benchmarking data serve as a baseline “report card,” but it eliminates the need for shop executives to rely on gut feelings as a method of identifying and prioritizing improvement efforts.
The Top Shops benchmarking initiative included an Honors Program to highlight the shops that comprise the top 20-percent benchmarking group. These shops represent a quality cross section of U.S. machining businesses relative to location, size and industries served. The 10 award winners each shared what they feel is the "one big thing" that most contributed to their success. Answers were diverse and included: lights-out machining, high-speed machining, lean manufacturing, CAD/CAM software utilization, customer focus and willingness to invest in capital equipment.
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AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology
Founded in 1902 as the National Machine Tool Builders' Association, AMT supports and promotes the U.S. manufacturing technology industry. The association provides U.S. builders of manufacturing systems with the latest information on technical developments, trade and marketing opportunities, and economic issues. It also gathers and disseminates information about world markets, promotes its members' products in those markets, and acts as a representative on manufacturing technology matters to governments and trade organizations throughout the world.
IMTS – International Manufacturing Technology Show
The largest and longest running manufacturing technology trade show in the United States is held every other year at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL. IMTS is ranked among the largest trade shows in the world. Recognized as one of the world’s preeminent stages for introducing and selling manufacturing equipment and technology, IMTS attracts more than 82,000 visitors from every level of industry and over 119 countries. IMTS is owned and managed by AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology.
Contact:
Mary Uhrina
Clearly Write
630-240-3139
Bonnie Gurney
AMT Director - Communications
703-827-5277