Turning Sales — Against the Odds

May 6, 2010

 

It may be a bit of an exaggeration to imply that Tornos US is oblivious to the current economic conditions; but we did have better than expected first quarter sales. We hit – and even exceeded – our targets. That’s thanks to the sale of a variety of Tornos solutions to existing and new customers in the automotive, medical, and nanotechnology fields. We didn’t win on price (we usually don’t). We won the sales based on the quality of our machines tools, the knowledge of our applications team, and the dependability of our service network. These companies took a chance in a down market to improve their own competitive situation by purchasing top of the line Swiss turning equipment that will greatly increase their productivity and allow them to make more complex parts with shorter cycle times. They asked a lot of questions of us and spent considerable time investigating their choices. Ultimately, they chose to buy the original Swiss turning machine – backed by first class Tornos service.

 

It’s true that business volumes in the machine-tool sector have slumped by around 65% from 2007 levels - the last year with a stable economic environment. But everyone knows the machine tool market follows a 10-year cycle. And now that we’ve got the worst two years behind us, we’re poised for the upswing. There will always be a demand for machine tools; and it’s inevitable that we’ll have increasing numbers of consumers.

 

These are two good reasons why our parent company in Moutier has remained committed to safeguarding our ability to react. We know that as the leaders in our industry, we must continue extensive research and development to bring innovative products and services to life. Tornos has taken great care to preserve our know-how, production capacity and geographical coverage, and are continuing to extend, improve and update our product range and services. Unlike so many other machine tool manufacturers, our industrial and commercial infrastructure is in tact so we can take full advantage of the recovery. Tornos’ global R&D staff is healthy and hard at work maximizing the chances of success in the recovery by ensuring a perfectly tailored product portfolio.

 

When the going gets tough, the tough get creative

 

Said another way: success is a frame of mind. When you envision yourself and your company as successful, you take the risks necessary to advance your place in the world. That’s why we are introducing two new machines this year: the Gamma and the EvoDeco. In addition, we are continuing to support and grow our Almac milling and Esco by Tornos coil-fed turning machine lines which are an excellent complement to our traditional Swiss turning capabilities. The key to making money under recessionary conditions is to keep investing. That’s just what we’ve done.

 

The productivity improvements afforded by our latest innovations will allow manufacturers like you to shift your workflow to the processes which ensure the greatest return. Where some production methods were once considered too targeted or too small a niche and demanded a highly enriched workforce; our customers, using Tornos equipment, can now achieve high productivity with the workforce they have employed right now. Swiss turning of exotic materials and highly complex parts utilizing simultaneous front and back working and a high number of special tools is no longer “black magic.” Tornos machines have these capabilities built in and optimized. Your current operators can take on work that would’ve been unthinkable just a few years ago. And the experienced, knowledgable Tornos applications team has the expertise in all those highly coveted industries to ensure your success – from helping you choose the right equipment, tools, cutting fluids, and bar stock, to making sure you understand the geometric possibilities and programming sequences necessary to turn not just perfect parts – but profits too!

 

Why Buy a Tornos Now?
Parts Play a Big Part

 

You may have seen our ad that says: “For every application, there’s a Tornos machine in our growing family. And for every Tornos, there’s a set of spare parts in our US inventory.” Our customers like the fact that no matter which of our machines they own, we have warranty and spare parts on our shelves waiting for them at all times. That means once you’ve made the decision to partner with Tornos – manufacturer of the most productive machine tool on the market – you’ll never have to worry about downtime. We call it peace of mind.

 

At our centrally located US headquarters, we consistently maintain $4 million inventory of spare and wear parts. We have more than 22,000 individual items in stock and waiting for you. And 90% of all customer parts orders are delivered within 2 days. And, if you need to place a parts order after normal business hours (8am EST to 5pm PST), you will soon be able to use our powerful online parts ordering system. This system will let you enter your serial number and see a list, photos and drawings of all the parts on your machine (including installed options). Then select the parts you need, drop them in your shopping cart, and place your order.

 

We have dedicated the last three years to developing the best customer service in North America. With our three Centers of Excellence across the U.S., we can guarantee faster delivery times; convenient showroom demos; and easy access to our sales, service, applications experts, and state-of-the-art training facilities. Pair that with the continued innovation out of Tornos Switzerland and you’ve got a recipe for incredible success.

 

I urge you to join the group of thriving Tornos shops and check out our complete line of innovative and productive machines – from our top-of-the-line Decos, to our entry-level Deltas, to our Almac milling machines to our Esco by Tornos coil-fed systems. Be sure to watch for our new Gamma and EvoDeco lines at IMTS. And know that with the right attitude and an investment in Tornos technology, you can turn profits in spite of the odds.