Since opening its new machine shop five years ago, Kintore-based engineering firm Gall Engineering has acquired a Yamazaki Mazak Integrex e-500H II (www.mazak.eu) to machine long-shaft workpieces up to 300mm long for the oil and gas industry and to handle difficult-to-machine materials such as Inconel.

Company director Stewart Gall said: “The Integrex e-500H II enables us to machine many of the bigger components required by the oil and gas sector, which has been a mainstay of our business.

“It is capable of ‘done-in-one’ machining, so we can now complete difficult machining operations — such as turning and milling on one machine — with one operator and one set-up.”

Originally, Gall Engineering’s business activity was mainly focused on metal fabrication, but the company now has five Mazak machine tools in operation at its Kintore site.

Mr Gall explains that the company has doubled its output in the past two years, with plans to expand the machine shop further as demand continues to increase from the oil and gas sector.

“The strength of the oil and gas sector — along with the overall health of the Scottish economy — gives us great hope for the future. We are already looking to expand our machining shop further, and we anticipate that our capacity will have tripled by the end of the year.”