Clorindo Mattei started Clortech in 1987, after quitting another specialty toolmaking enterprise in Montreal, Canada. The company has grown to about 20 employees, but maintains founder and president Mattei’s enthusiasm for detail, his work ethic, and his pride in what he has created on the shop floor.
Today the company has two each of Anca’s TG7 Plus, TX7 and TX7 Linear tool and cutter grinding machines, as well as CNC lathes, mills, and an assortment of manual machining equipment in its workshop. The customer base has also expanded, with maintenance and repair gear going out to the Canadian Armed Forces, and drills to railway sleeper installers, as well as tools for traditional clients like Pratt & Whitney.
“The slowdown in aerospace was absorbed by the increase in commodities being shipped by rail,” says Patrick Mattei, vice-president of production and son of founder, Clorindo.
Aviation, however, remains important to Clortech. Part of its offering – besides MRO kits, tool production and contract tool development – is AOG 911, a quick-response tool production and repair service.
“Aerospace is not strictly about complex tools, but often the urgency of tools,” says Patrick. “A lot of the time we get requests for aircraft that are on ground, be it in Montreal or around the world. These aircraft have to fly, so they’ll call us and request a tool on a turnaround that’s within the day, within a couple of hours or within the next day. We’ve got to make it as quickly as possible and make it right first time.”
He adds: “Anca software allows us to be able to program the machine in a time-efficient fashion when producing low-volume parts. It’s so conversational, so user-friendly, that it’s simply plug and play.”
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