One Manufacturer, Triple the Output

What’s needed to increase productivity by 200%? For Youngers and Sons Manufacturing Company, Inc, three Okuma Robot Loaders flipped the switch.

Every Friday through Sunday in Wichita, Kansas, there’s a distinctive location in the city where employees have left the building, the lights are out, but spindles hum nonstop, producing parts to exact spec, all weekend long. This is all made possible by one company’s vision to take its manufacturing capabilities to the next level through technology.

From Humble Beginnings to Full-Scale Operations

On weekdays too, Youngers and Sons Manufacturing has its operations down to an automated science that fuels business transformation. This transformation journey dates back more than 50 years, as the company has grown from a small metal building on a farm making recreation equipment, to a multi-facility business making components for a variety of industries, including oil and gas, agriculture, and other industrial markets.

Throughout their journey, company leadership has looked for ways to grow its competitive advantage within these industries, as well as position itself for future possibilities. Over time, they’ve invested in and acquired the right machine tools and technologies to facilitate this positioning.

Choosing the right machines came first — then operational trials, then progress, then perfection, all powered by a growing fleet of CNC machines, including several Okuma machines. Each success set up the next, and it wasn’t long until recurring orders and steady demand became catalysts for automated progress.

Positioning for Growth

To help position for growth, Youngers and Sons' VP of Manufacturing and COO Chad Hoheisel turned to Okuma and local representative Hartwig for assistance in scaling their operation. The answer — three Okuma GENOS L3000-e lathes, each paired with an Okuma Robot Loader (ORL). With this technology investment, Youngers and Sons enabled quicker job changeovers, upskilled employees, and reduced costs. In essence, more work was done with fewer resources, throughput rose, and part tolerances and repeatability were held at the highest levels.

The GENOS L3000-e lathe is a one-saddle lathe featuring an integral spindle for powerful, high-precision CNC machining. The integral spindle motor provides increased machining capacity as highly rigid guideways handle powerful cutting capabilities. This highly evolved horizontal lathe delivers turning, optional milling capabilities, optional Y-axis, and optional sub-spindle (W) in a compact footprint.

The Okuma Robot Loader – Rotary (ORL-R) is designed as a seamlessly integrated and automated part loader and unloader system. It features a rotating platform and disc-style storage unit to hold part stock and finished parts.

With less than ten conversational steps for setup and an intentional plug-and-play design, two ORL-Rs were up and running at 100% capacity in less than a week. Seeing the results of elevated efficiency in real time, Hoheisel made the easy, economical decision to add a third. Hartwig Wichita supported the purchase and installation without delay, and the transformed workflows have produced excellent outcomes ever since.

“We make between 600 and 800 parts a day per machine with the ORL-R. And it’s a fairly complicated part,” explains Hoheisel. “In two months with this setup, it’s the most efficient, cleanest-running process we have.”

The optimized process runs 24 hours a day with a 2-minute cycle time. It also frees Youngers and Sons Manufacturing’s operators to focus on value-add jobs, instead of tending one machine. “I used to have an operator tied to the machine for such a short cycle time,” says Hoheisel. “He probably walked ten miles a day to keep machines loaded and running.” But now, the extreme physical demands and repetition have been replaced by time to complete paperwork and quality inspection checks that are difficult to do while machines are in cycle.

The robot loaders didn’t take his team’s jobs; they made his team’s jobs more fulfilling while providing significant returns on investment. Automation acted as a cost-saving measure and a growth mechanism, enabling more complex and higher-value work. “Our operators love the new processes, and we’ve had a 50% productivity increase,” adds Hoheisel. “Projections show a 200% gain soon.”

Through continuous R&D, iterative designs, and the collective push for limitless potential in our industry, CNC automation just keeps getting better. Because Youngers and Sons’ leadership embraces this technology with open arms, so do their employees.

Today, Okuma Robot Loaders can triple efficiency because Youngers and Sons Manufacturing built a plan and had a mindset for their next automation solutions before adopting them. Hoheisel evaluated which machines and workflows were best positioned for robotic arms, then worked with a Hartwig Wichita representative to create a pre-flight blueprint plan.

“We became really good at making parts first and having the right workflows in place,” Hoheisel says of his strategy. “Then we automated those processes.” He understood how, where, and which automation would make the biggest impact by doing the heavy lifting before placing a purchase order; the blueprint was drawn before the three Okuma Robot Loaders ever arrived in Wichita because Hoheisel knows automation delivers the most benefits when workflows are sound.

Hoheisel also understood the added benefits of adopting Okuma Factory Automation solutions. “I am big on standardization. Using Okuma machines and automation, I’m calling on the same sales team and the same service team.” Not only does Okuma, as a single-source provider, improve quality control and streamline communications, but it also means every asset, application, and big decision is supported by experts, 24/7/365.

What’s Next? An Okuma Robot Loader for Every Okuma Lathe

Another plan is already in motion. It’s one that will add machining capabilities and take three robot loaders to a total of seven in the next six months. This time, the company will add the Okuma Robot Loader – Drawer (ORL-D) to multitasking lathes — a new integration that will elevate offerings for oil and gas, agriculture, construction, and heavy equipment markets even more. Growth created the capacity for reinvestment and additional equipment, and Youngers and Sons Manufacturing is turning again to the roots that helped grow their success.

Youngers and Sons Manufacturing delivers orders on time, every time. They keep quality high. They foster a culture of continuous improvement. One-off orders turn into repeat business, and they become a partner that customers can’t imagine running their businesses without, thanks in part to Okuma technologies and strong Hartwig relationships. With an open mindset, best-in-class technologies, and strong partnerships, the future has no limits.