Raving Fan: Great Lakes Carbide

	CUSTOMER STORY
	Great Lakes Carbide Tool

Ray Martin, VP of Operations and Russ Martin, Head Coach of Great Lakes Carbide Tool show-off some of the tools that helped them win the Challengers Award at the International Woodworking Fair.

Brad Heckel, CNC Coordinator and Ray Martin, VP of Operations, agree on the next step in Great Lakes Carbide Tool's growth plan - the Mazak Integrex 200 2Y.

by Brian Kellet
Mazak Sales

In woodworking and cutting tool industry, Peshtigo, WI is most famously known for quality, innovation and vision, in short, Great Lakes Carbide Tool, Inc. (GLCT). This company of 59 employees is known throughout the world as an industry leader in plastic and woodcutting tools for moulders, tenoners and CNC routers. The company accomplished its success with vision and identifying an incredible niche in their marketplace. President Russ Martin sums up his philosophy with a few simple but wise operating principals: "tomorrow is yesterday I always look 4 to 5 years out; good enough is not acceptable; there are no gray areas when it comes to quality; and it’s not just the product we make, it’s everything we do." The "everything" includes people, which means investing not only in high technology equipment but training and education for all employees. "We don’t have anyone on our CNC machines that has not been to a technical college. I highly promote education," says Brad Heckel, CNC Coordinator.

GLCT started as Peshtigo Saw Service in 1973 with Russ running the saw sharpening business part time. However, Russ had a vision to build and develop the company into something more. Russ, and later with his son Ray, Vice President of Operations, recognized that in order to realize their vision the company needed to invest in not only the most talented people but the best technology. With their purchase of a Mazak Integrex 200Y, GLCT streamlined its machining process by reducing the average set-ups from three to one, improving quality and increasing throughput.

Recently Russ and Ray’s philosophies were validated when GLCT received the highest honor in its industry for developing the "Great Locâ" clamping system for their tools. The recently patented product received the Challenger Award at the International Wood Fair in Atlanta. This event is judged internationally and is held only on a two-year cycle. This prestigious and well-deserved award was the equivalent of an Oscar at the Academy Awards.

All this hard work and investment has made GLCT a fast growing leader in the industry. Over the past ten years according to Sales Manager Kim Walters, the company has grown at a rate of 20% per and its customer list continues to grow. In 2001 the company averaged 15 new accounts per month with most of their new business generated by word-of-mouth. According to Cheryl Golueke, Production Manager, (she joined GLCT about two years ago), she was so excited about working at GLCT that she saw "it as a once in a lifetime opportunity that turned out to be better than I expected." She says all employees in the company share this feeling of excitement and that is a direct reflection of the family atmosphere at GLCT. No wonder they call Russ the "Head Coach", he is the leader of the team. GLCT has successfully translated its vision and philosophy into a long-term business model that works. By investing in its people and technology and focusing on its core competencies, GLCT has grown in a competitive market and found success. This is an investment that has definitely paid off.

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