It Takes a Village

What does it take to install 21 machines in under 2 weeks? It takes a village. Over 6 months ago, we asked our distributors for support at IMTS 2018 and they delivered. In fact, we received the best response to date. In total, Gosiger, Hartwig, Morris, HEMAQ and EMEC are sending 19 service technicians to set up and tear down the Okuma booth as well as several partner booths. These distributor service technicians will travel to Chicago and assist 9 Okuma service technicians.

A MASSIVE EFFORT

During the set up process, these service professionals unload 29 truckloads of machine components and "As One" they log well over 4,000 man hours during the 2 weeks of setup and 6 days of teardown. This is a massive effort and involves long workdays, a seemingly infinite checklist, and a huge dollar investment from all involved.

MANY MONTHS OF PREPARATION

So, you may ask, "How do we prepare for such an event?" After many months of forecasting and planning, Okuma starts bringing IMTS machines to Charlotte in May. We completely set up these machines and install the options we plan to demonstrate at the show. Application Engineers are assigned to each machine tool and these experts spend weeks test cutting the machines prior to Service decommissioning them to pack up for shipment. In the photo here you can see the new LU7000EX being prepared at Okuma America's facilities. This product will be making its debut at IMTS 2018.

ACTION-PACKED SCHEDULE

There's a very detailed schedule of unloading machines, installing, test cutting, decommissioning, and loading them for shipment. The last machine ships out on August 23rd with our first service technicians landing in Chicago on August 28th to start unloading. The final touches will be placed on the machines minutes prior to the start of the show. And tear down will start as soon as the imaginary final buzzer sounds on Saturday afternoon.

READY FOR YOUR VISIT

Okuma has been partners with our distributors for over 35 years, so we know each other well and share a common bond. Indeed the employees at Okuma America consider distributors to be extended family members. Even with all this workload, distributor service managers continue to ask how they can help and if we have enough people. They recognize the importance of coming together to produce a successful show. In the end, all this work enables us to show you the possibilities that advanced machine tool technology can bring to your shop. If you're attending IMTS, be sure to stop by Booth #338500 in the South Hall. We've been getting ready for your visit!

Dawn Davis is Service Coordinator, Okuma America Corporation.