Chardon
Tool and Supply Company, Inc.
| COMPANY/LOCATION: |
Chardon Tool and Supply Company, Inc., Chardon, Ohio |
| PRODUCT: |
Industrial diamond cutting tools |
| YEARS IN BUSINESS: |
34 |
| EMPLOYEES: |
8 |
| SITUATION: |
Chardon manufactures diamond cutting tools for customers in 27 countries.
Chardon's customers were demanding tighter and tighter tolerances on the
control radius on diamond cutting tools manufactured by the company. Additionally,
the company's customers were asking for verification of the accuracy of
the control radius to within 10 millionths of an inch. The customer demands
put Chardon in direct competition with a number of larger international
companies. While looking for a way to verify their control radius tolerances,
Chardon contacted the Oak Ridge Centers for Manufacturing Technology and
entered into a partnership through the National Machine Tool Partnership. |
| PROJECT: |
Chardon sent tools to ORCMT where the Y-12 Metrology Center tested
the tools and verified that the control radius was within the tolerances
specified by Chardon's customers. Chardon now has an agreement with ORCMT
to verify the tolerances on a regular basis.
|
| RESULTS: |
ORCMT's verification of the control radius tolerances gave Chardon
proof of the accuracy of its manufacturing capability, which helped the
company retain two jobs and create two additional jobs, increased sales
by approximately $50,000, and avoided sales losses of an estimated $50,000
in 1994, according to Jack Bennett, president of the company.
"But more than that, the partnership has given the company a presence
in the marketplace we would not otherwise have, and that is hard to measure
in dollars. It means that we are recognized as a very capable supplier.
Without it we might have lost as much as 10 to 15 percent of our people.
It has been a very productive partnership. Without the Oak Ridge help we
would still be struggling to find a way to check the tolerances. They were
eager to help. As a small company, we didn't have the deep pockets that
some of our competitors have. We trusted the Oak Ridge people. They knew
our problem and gave us a solution right away, in a matter of a couple
of weeks," Bennett said. |
Technical assistances provided to the private sector by the Oak Ridge
Centers for Manufacturing Technology (ORCMT) and its manufacturing extension
partners throughout the United States.
|
