Blackburn-based sub-contractor Fairbrother & Grimshaw Engineering Ltd (www.fairbrother
andgrimshaw.co.uk) has seen a boost in orders, following the installation of a Harrison Alpha 1550XS CNC lathe last summer.

The company specialises in CNC milling, turning and boring, and it prides itself on project engineering — not just making sub-contract parts in volume.

Company director Neil Grimshaw said: “When our customers contact us, they are looking to solve production issues, so understanding the application and how it works is important for both parties.

“In many cases, we encourage our engineers to either improve the parts or improve the process involved.”

“We ask our workforce to be the best in everything they do, and that means investment in recruiting and training apprentices to ensure that skills are passed on.

“The Alpha manual/CNC lathe is ideal in that sense, as it is an easy switch from turning manually to CNC with the minimum of training.”

“We already had some Colchester manual lathes and a range of VMCs and CNC turning centres, but the large-capacity turning applications were difficult for us to manage.

“The Alpha XS has helped us raise the bar and added a different dimension to our turning capability.”