Torchmate® Allowed Premier Industries to Quickly Pivot its Business Strategy

Premier Industries Uses Torchmate Table to Grow

Premier Industries is a custom fabrication shop located in Ashton, Wisconsin. Premier Industries was formed nearly 20 years ago. Tom Kriskovich, owner of Premier Industries, has been into heavy machinery since he can remember. When Tom first created the business, his focus was machining and welding for a local OEM. The process involved machining out the steel needed for the project and then sawing it out. Tom did a majority of this work with hand tools and each job was timely and exhaustive.

There have been uncontrollable factors recently that have required Tom to pivot Premier industries’ business strategy. Metal fabrication demand in his area has been changing. Also, the global pandemic has proven costly to many, including Premier Industries. When the pandemic started, Premier Industries lost their biggest customer. That made Tom realize he needed to reimagine the business and change the type of metal fabrication the business was performing. Premier Industries began to transition from machining and welding to fabrication and repair.

The business now specializes in the repair of farm equipment and other heavy equipment. It also fabricates weld-on components and tools focused around heavy equipment. “The last two years have been big for our company. Purchasing a Torchmate table allowed us to pivot the business quickly after we lost our biggest customer,” Tom said. The Torchmate 4800 played a key role in Premier Industries’ business by not only helping save the business, but also allowing it to thrive, even during a global pandemic.

“Torchmate created new work opportunities that we would have normally turned away”

Premier Industries purchased their Torchmate 4800 nearly two years ago and have never looked back. Tom said, “The Torchmate has created work opportunities that we would have normally turned away.” Now the business can accept nearly every job request and complete it in a much more efficient manner than previously. When Tom was machining, welding and hand cutting every project, lead times and costs were extremely high. “I used to have to buy vices and other tools for each job, but now 99 percent of the work done on the Torchmate we just put the material on the table and let it go,” Tom explained. Premier Industries runs their Torchmate 4800 10 to 20 hours per week and is performing better than ever before.

Because the business is becoming so efficient, they can continue to grow without exerting much more time, energy or money. This would not have been possible without the addition of their Torchmate table. The features that Torchmate offers have allowed Tom’s business to reach new capabilities.

He gave us some examples of how he uses the machine. “Customers can send me .dxf files of what they need cut which makes my job even easier. I import it to the machine and cut it out for them. I like how you can scan shapes right to size. I scanned a square traced on paper, sent it to the Torchmate CAD software, added tool paths then cut it out, all within minutes. You can check the dimensions in the software for accuracy. I mainly cut 3/8 inch A36 steel, but I have used it to cut 1 inch material. Edge start is required, but it performed really well. To hand cut that same 1 inch thick sheet would have taken a long time and not looked so great.”

The possibilities keep expanding for Premier Industries. At Torchmate, we enjoy seeing businesses increase profits with the help of our machines.

Torchmate is single sourced – built entirely by Lincoln Electric®

Purchasing a CNC plasma cutting table is a big investment for any business, school or individual. Torchmate separates itself from other brands in many ways. One being because Torchmate tables are single sourced, meaning our machines are manufactured and assembled entirely by Lincoln Electric. This advantage is one of the main reasons many customers, including Tom, chose Torchmate. Tom told us he would and has recommended Torchmate for the following reasons. “Lincoln Electric supports the whole machine. Support is only one phone call away. I have used different brands of CNC machines and you have to call multiple companies to get an answer to simple questions. Each company starts pointing fingers at one another.

Also, Lincoln Electric is an industrial company which means they are industrial minded. I have already recommended Torchmate to local guys. I have been in this business for 20 years and have learned that cheaper machines aren’t always less expensive. I’ve tried to pinch pennies buying cheaper tooling and it doesn’t last and causes problems. I recommend buying the best you can afford. Torchmate has the best product and the best support.” Premier Industries has called the Torchmate support line in the past and is always happy about the speed and accessibility of service. We have an experienced in-house team of technical support staff that can be easily reached by any of our Torchmate customers by calling one single phone number. This is one of many competitive advantages that come with Torchmate.

Check out Premier Industries on their Instagram and Ebay page. On their Instagram page, Premier Industries displays a wide variety of quality metal fabrication. Additionally, customers can place orders for custom or personalized projects they would like conveniently shipped to them. For more information about Premier Industries, please visit their Instagram & Website pages. 

Check out Torchmate CNC Plasma Tables here and see how you can start growing your business!

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