5 Questions to Ask Before You Hire a CNC Machine Shop

Does your product require parts to be fabricated out of metal? Are you looking to hire a CNC machine shop but don&#;t know where to start?

If you are looking for more details, kindly visit high volume cnc machining supplier.

It can be a tough task since CNC machining is a highly-skilled industry. Not to mention, there is no shortage of options in today&#;s marketplace.

How do you know if you&#;re using the right machine shop for you? We have 5 questions to ask to help you avoid CNC machine shop remorse.

Let&#;s go over them now.

1. Do They Have Experience?

Like with anything else, you&#;ll want to make sure the CNC machine shop you&#;re working with is experienced in their trade. More importantly, you want to make sure the CNC operators have experience manufacturing the components specific to your product or industry.

This type of specialized experience shows that the operators will be able to deliver the parts to your product with the highest industry standards. In addition, it helps you to put your mind at ease knowing whatever is produced by the shop will not only meet the standards of the shop supervisors but your quality control standards as well.

2. What Are People Saying?

Does the shop you&#;re considering have references or reviews? If you can&#;t find anything online, don&#;t be afraid to ask for names and numbers of companies they&#;ve worked with in the past.

It doesn&#;t hurt to begin your search by asking around. Other businesses within your industry, or maybe other vendors that need a machine shop, could have a hidden gem for you. Referrals can be the best form of advertising, no matter the industry.

3. What Are Their Processes?

When you want to hire a CNC machine shop, it&#;s important to have your end goal in mind. Machine shops use different processes depending on the results they&#;re looking to achieve and the material they&#;re using. You&#;ll also want to factor in whether you need a smooth or rough surface for your components.

Any of your desired results could be achieved by a qualified machine shop, but knowing what you want and communicating it to your supplier will go a long way in selecting the right shop.

The shop you&#;re considering should also have a variety of machines. Some shops, especially ones that are just starting out, may have older equipment. These machines are solid, but you may want to pursue a shop that has newer technology.

All of that depends on the type of materials you need to use, and the precision your components need to have.

4. Is Their Work High Quality And Consistent?

This is where your list of references will come in handy. Call them and ask them how the quality of the shop&#;s work was. Was it to their Quality Control standards, or did they keep having to get parts re-machined?

Are they capable of handling the type of work you require? Can they handle the volume you require? Do they offer mass-production or are they primarily a custom order shop?

You&#;ll also want to make sure that they can provide you with consistent work. Ask past customers if work was delivered on-time, and was the work the same every time. This is especially true if you&#;re dealing with a component of a bigger product.

That particular part should look, feel, and fit into the larger product the same way every time.

Another thing to look for when searching for a machine shop is an ISO certification. This can weed out a lot of shops right off the bat. The ISO certification will ensure you&#;re dealing with a shop that adheres to the utmost quality standards and is equipped to give you the machined components you are looking for.

5. How Is Their Customer Service?

Ask the shop you&#;re researching what their process is for handling customer orders. How transparent are they in this process? There&#;s more to running a machine shop than machining alone.

Whichever shop you choose should have a process laid out for how they intake, handle, and deliver your order. This shows you that they&#;re organized, and they&#;re thinking about your needs and deadlines.

What is their workforce like? Do you feel like they have enough people to complete your orders? Are the people on their team receptive?

In addition to how they handle their customers, they should also be providing you with prototypes or samples. Many shops don&#;t offer sample pieces, but these are very important if you&#;re doing a large scale production.

Failure to produce any samples or prototypes could cause you to be unhappy with the design, or even cause a slow down in the production process.

Reminders Before You Hire a CNC Machine Shop

In addition to what we&#;ve discussed above, there are a few things you&#;re going to want to consider before pulling the trigger on hiring a shop.

First, make sure to have an alternative material for your component. Sometimes the shop can&#;t get the material you were originally looking for, or it would raise production costs. Having an alternative in mind will help things to be more efficient.

Next, be specific. Express, in detail, what you want out of the machined parts the shop is making for you. Clearly communicating your precision and quality standards will go a long way in helping the project move along.

Finally, know how your product will be developed. If you&#;ve designed this part yourself, you need to consider how the product as a whole will be developed. If you design the part &#;in a vacuum&#; without considering how it relates to the project as a whole, you could be sent back to the drawing board a lot.

This will increase your production costs.

Final Cut

We&#;ve given you a lot of things to consider when you go to hire a CNC machine shop. Ultimately, all the research up-front will ensure a happy, efficient relationship on both sides.

If you take the time to properly vet and interview your potential machine shop, you could find one that will be a partner in your business for years to come.

If you&#;re looking for any more advice on machining, tools, or anything industrial, just check out our blog or drop us a line.

Choosing a CNC machine shop means looking for a company that has the right set up with the right capabilities for your project. The machine shop you choose will need to have the talent and the equipment to be able to keep up with your needs. Knowing what questions to ask when you first make contact will help you choose the right CNC machine shop for your company's individual needs.

Are The CNC Operators Experienced?

One of the most important questions you will need to ask is whether or not their CNC operators have the experience of making the products or components you need. For example, North Fork Precision has specialty experience with precision machining to create specialized components for the electronics, medical devices, and imaging industries. 

Contact us to discuss your requirements of rapid tooling services. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.

Having specialized CNC experience means that the operators know what they are doing and have the skills to deliver the end product to the highest standards of the industry. It also ensures that whatever work is completed in the shop will meet or exceed the expectations of both their supervisors and your quality control team.

Does the Shop Have Reviews or References?

Another important question to ask is whether or not the shop has references. Ask for the names and numbers of other companies they have worked for. Is the shop recommended by your peers or other companies that require the services of a CNC shop? Ask around. Word of mouth is often the best form of advertising. North Fork Precision is happy to provide references and reviews for new customers considering us for their next precision CNC project.

What Types of Processes Do They Use?

CNC machine shops use a variety of processes. Each process is used to achieve a different result. The processes and methods will depend on what materials are being used and whether a smooth or rough surface is required. It's essential that you know what processes and materials you require for your project, and that you express those needs with your potential supplier. The processes and methods are different for each type of material being used and can make for substantial changes in price. We are currently working to develop an ISO standard operating procedure that will certify our quality standards.

Do They Offer High-Quality Work on a Consistent Basis?

If you are offered a list of references, make sure to inquire about the shop's consistency when it comes to providing high-quality work on a regular basis. Are they capable of producing the level of quality you need with each order they complete for you? Asking prior customers is the best way to get an answer to this question.

Are They Capable of Doing the Type and Amount of Work You Require?

The next questions have to do with both the type of work they do and whether or not they can accommodate the amount of work you need. Are they capable of mass-producing an item or do they primarily offer customized work? If you need a large number of specially made parts, a smaller CNC machine shop may not have the capability to accommodate your request.

Before you hire a CNC machine shop to do your work, make sure all of your questions are answered. It's also important to make sure the operators know exactly what you expect from them in terms of deadline and quality. Go the extra mile and find out as much as you can prior to hiring them. This will ensure you are satisfied with their work and there won't be any surprises later on.

At North Fork Precision, we welcome your inquiry into our experience, capabilities, and dedication to deliver high quality, production quantity precision CNC work, on time, every time. Request a Quote today to learn more about how we can help you with your next CNC project. 

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