Progressive Mechanical, Inc. added a second Watts pipe cutting machine to keep up with shop demand, gaining capabilities and cutting waste. Progressive Mechanical has fabrication shops in Clawson and Bay City, MI.
Brian Hund, operations manager at Progressive Mechanical, explained, “Around 2015, we purchased a Watts W-132 pipe cutting machine. Our fabrication jobs began to grow, so we moved into a new corporate building in Clawson, which included a 35,000 square-foot shop. In 2019, we purchased a Rotoweld machine to add speed and efficiency to our pipe fabrications.
“After COVID passed and our fabrication started moving again, it became clear that we needed more speed and efficiency in our pipe cutting,” continued Hund. “Our fab team was consistently waiting for pipe to weld, but we also needed a machine that would work with our BIM modeling software. Our W-132 could not keep up with the welding machine. A huge project with over 260,000 feet of pipe fabrication made it clear that we needed another pipe cutting machine with more capability.”
Watts Wins the Day
“We looked at a few other machine manufacturers,” said Hund. “The other machines were either too expensive or had software that did not merge with our MSUITE modeling software. Watts and Rotoweld Representative Vince Penny from VMP Automation helped us through the whole process, and in the end, we were convinced to continue with another Watts machine. In 2023 we purchased a Watts W-364 with a 25’ infeed bed.”
Hund observed, “The new Watts CNC machine dramatically increased our pipe cutting capabilities. The Watts 3D-Profile Plus software merges seamlessly with MSUITE, so we are able to bring all pipe cuts into the machine quickly.
“In addition, the nesting capability of 3D-Profile Plus also increased our efficiency. Finally, the ability to use the pipe header at the chuck end reduced our material waste to less than 1 percent. This was a savings we had not expected. Less wasted pipe equals less material handling and labor costs. We use far less floor space dealing with wasted scrap pieces.”
Superior Support
“Unfortunately, we have needed Watts support a few times,” said Hund. “We damaged the machine … twice. Both times it was simply an oversight, but each occurrence included broken machine parts. That forced us to call Dave Dunham [managing director] or Jesse Scribner [production manager/technical lead] for help and new parts. During one of these repairs, we also had software issues. Dave flew to our facility from Washington and worked through the night to get everything working properly!
“When Watts says they will go the extra mile with their support, they are serious,” Hund stated.
For more information, visit www.watts-specialties.com.
