Starrett enters private company agreement

The LS Starrett Company, a manufacturer of sawing machines, precision tools and metrology
systems, has entered into a definitive merger agreement in a go-private transaction with an affiliate of MiddleGround Capital in an all-cash transaction for $16.19 per share.


MiddleGround Capital is a private equity firm based in Lexington, Kentucky with over $3.5bn
of assets under management.
“We are pleased to reach this agreement with MiddleGround, which provides a meaningful
premium cash value to our shareholders,” says Douglas Starrett, company chair, CEO and
president. “Following comprehensive outreach to potential parties, our board of directors
determine that MiddleGround is the right partner for Starrett because of its deep
knowledge within the manufacturing industry. As a private company, the company will have
additional financial and operational flexibility to continue providing industry-leading service
and products to customers across our markets. We will also maintain Starrett’s proud
tradition among its employees, communities and other stakeholders.”
Adds John Stewart, MiddleGround’s managing Partner: “MiddleGround is thrilled to be
partnering with Starrett, a company that we have followed in the public markets for several
years. Most of MiddleGround’s operations team gained familiarity with Starrett products
over the course of their manufacturing careers, and we’re excited about the opportunity to
further position the company for its future on the front lines of innovation, advanced
manufacturing and reshoring.”
The transaction is expected to close this summer, subject to the requisite approval by
Starrett’s shareholders and other conditions. Following its completion, Starrett will become
a wholly owned subsidiary of MiddleGround and Starrett’s Class A common stock will no
longer carry a listing on any public market.
More information www.starrett.com

Metal distributor gains from saw automation

Innovation is at the heart of the metalworking industry, and it takes centre stage at Walter Metals. Nonetheless, theOhio-based tool steel distributor for Ellwood Specialty Steel was experiencing bottlenecks because its four manual bandsaws were inefficient and required a significant amount of operator interaction to handle material.

General manager Mike Kaufman says. “They needed replacement, also due to their age. We therefore started exploring options for how we could do things better, faster and safer.”

The company eventually purchased two HBE411A Dynamic automatic horizontal bandsaws from Behringer.

“We looked at three or four other manufacturers, but none of them had the level of automation on the handling system that we saw with the Behringer.”

Behringer also reportedly presented the lowest total system cost when compared with the other competitors under consideration. The saw builder’s extensive parts inventory and enthusiastic team of technicians further solidified the decision to partner with Behringer.

“They have a large amount of supplies and spare parts on the ground in the US,” Kaufman says. “As far as service goes, typically we get resolutions in under 24 hours.”

The Behringer bandsaws at Walter Metals straight-cut solid round bar from 2 to 10inch diameter. The workpiece materials are tool and die steel, such as D2 and S7, most annealed up to 42 HRc hardness.

With the introduction of the Behringer saws and their automated systems, WalterMetals witnessed remarkable improvements.According to Kaufman,efficiency soared as the company reduced material handling time by 50%. He says: “We do almost two times the amount of production on two saws than we did previously on four.”

More information www.behringer.net

Plans for landmark machining plant

Sheffield Forgemasters has submitted a planning application for a landmark 30,000 m²machining facility on brownfield land in Sheffield’s Meadowhall district. Located on a 16-acre plot at Weedon Street, the new facility will form one of the world’s most advanced large machining facilities, supporting the company’s manufacture for the UK defence programme.

With work on the site planned to start in Q4 2024, the building will cover a space equal to 12 Olympic-sized swimming pools and contain 17 new machines, including some of the largest and most advanced five-axis vertical turning lathes (VTLs). Gareth Barker, COO, says: “The planning application covers an ambitious new project to create a facility that will deliver some of the world’s most advanced, large-scale machining capabilities.”

More information www.sheffieldforgemasters.com

Renishaw opens new technology centres

To help service its growing customer base in India and Japan, UK-based Renishaw has recently opened two state-of-the-art technology centres: one in Chennai, India, and one in Nagoya, Japan. These upgraded facilities will strengthen Renishaw’s presence in both countries and improve customer access to the company’s engineering services and technologies.

Renishaw is continuing to invest in upgraded and new facilities to better support its customers. In addition to the facilities in India and Japan, within the past year the company has also opened new offices in Brazil and created its first subsidiary operation in the United Arab Emirates. The latter will serve the rapidly growing manufacturing and advanced engineering sectors in the Gulf Cooperation Council region and Egypt.

More information www.renishaw.com

VERICUT PROVIDES SAFE MACHINING OF COMPLEX AEROSPACE PARTS AT HMS MAKINA

A leading supplier of complex aerospace components is enhancing the reliability of its machining operations since investing in VERICUT verification, simulation and optimisation software from CGTech. Among many benefits, the implementation of VERICUT has seen this progressive manufacturing business reduce its scrap rate for FAI (first article inspection) parts to almost zero.

Established in 1979 and today located at Manisa in the west of Türkiye, HMS Makina is a leading machinist of many different parts and products for a global portfolio of aerospace primes and their sub-tiers, mainly in EU countries. The company, which employs 440 highly skilled personnel, exports 70% of total sales from its modern 23,000 sq m production facility. All of HMS Makina’s special processes carry approvals by major OEMs and NADCAP.

“With over 80 high-technology CNC machines we’re able to produce complex and precision parts from all kinds of light and hard metals, including aluminium, steel alloys, stainless steel, titanium, magnesium and nickel-based superalloys from plate, sheet, castings and forgings in compliance with customer specifications,” explains Onur Benzergil, new part supervisor at HMS Makina.

Benzergil leads the team that carries out machining process design and NC programming for aerospace parts. HMS Makina has ability to offer finished aerospace products, providing post-machining services that include NDT (non-destructive testing), shot peening, surface treatment, painting and assembly. This market differentiation, alongside its quality-oriented production, makes HMS Makina a preferred supplier to the aerospace sector.

The company produces a wide variety of aerospace parts for its customers, including forged titanium engine components and structural airframe parts.

“Machining these complex-geometry components requires a simulation program to prevent failure and avoid the expense of scrapping workpieces made from expensive materials,” states Benzergil “As a result, we decided to make this investment because we see VERICUT as superior to other solutions.”

He adds: “We had been researching simulation systems for a long time, but VERICUT is known to every company working in this sector. Since it was such a critical issue, we didn’t want to leave anything to chance.”

Installed in 2023, HMS Makina leverages the benefits of VERICUT to detect errors, potential collisions and areas of inefficiency before actual metal cutting. Innovating and gaining a competitive edge in aerospace means meeting increased demand and tight timelines with high-quality parts. VERICUT is the key to machining components quickly and with confidence.

“Notably, the software has allowed us to eliminate manual prove-out processes, freeing-up machine time to run more parts,” says Benzergil. “It’s also proving highly beneficial in reducing scrap rates. Our scrap rate is now almost zero for first-article parts. In addition, safer machining really stands out for me. Even though this gain is not easy to quantify, I can say safety is the biggest benefit we see on a daily basis.”

HMS Makina also takes advantage of VERICUT’s AUTO-DIFF module at the end of every simulation. The company says AUTO-DIFF helps it detect errors such as potential gouges, providing approximately 99% accurate results.

VERICUT AUTO-DIFF compares a CAD model with a VERICUT simulation, automatically detecting differences, design weaknesses or mistakes in the design. AUTO-DIFF also reduces the time it takes to prepare an NC tool path. Notably, programmers can check for gouges or excess material while working on the program, identifying and correcting issues before machining.

“VERICUT fully meets our expectations,” states Benzergil. “Today, we do not move to the production phase until the VERICUT simulation is complete.”

HMS Makina received comprehensive training and technical support from local VERICUT reseller, Ucgen Yazilimo, on every aspect of the software, helping the company to understand the full potential of VERICUT.

“Of course, VERICUT should not prove difficult to learn for anyone who uses CAD software,” he says. “We became familiar with it in a short time period. Today, VERICUT is definitely helping us use our machinery more effectively, which in turn drives more efficiency. I think any company machining parts in the aerospace sector should invest in VERICUT. The software has a simple interface; so many details are well categorised and it’s extremely easy to access. The graphics are also advanced and I find the Reviewer plug-in especially useful.”

VERICUT Reviewer incorporates all the functionality of NC Review mode in a stand-alone viewer that does not require a licence. The Reviewer can play forward and backward while removing and replacing material. Users can rotate, pan and zoom, just like normal VERICUT.

“I would recommend VERICUT to other businesses because it has very good infrastructure backed by a great team for technical support,” concludes Benzergil. “VERICUT is a proven and constantly evolving program, and we’re finding it highly beneficial here at HMS Makina.”

More information www.cgtech.co.uk