Ripley Machine’s Transformation Journey: Embracing ProShop ERP for Long-Term Growth
At Ripley Machine, we’re thrilled to have been featured on the Manufacturing Transformed podcast with host Paul Van Metre, where we shared our story of adopting ProShop ERP and how it has revolutionized our operations. You can listen to the full episode on YouTube or Apple Podcasts. At Ripley Machine, our expertise in Swiss turning, production turning, centerless grinding and internal grinding has been elevated by adopting ProShop ERP. This milestone highlights our commitment to continuous improvement and long-term growth, and we’re excited to share how ProShop ERP has been a game-changer for our business.
A Legacy of Swiss Turning and Grinding
Ripley Machine, a family-owned CNC production turning and grinding shop in Western New York, has been serving industries like oil and gas, transportation, and medical equipment since the 1950s. When Andy Reinwald took over the business from his grandfather at just 21 years old in 2015, he faced significant challenges, including a tough year in 2016 that tested the company’s resilience. Despite those hurdles, Andy’s vision was clear: to build a sustainable, forward-thinking business that would thrive for decades.
That vision required a transformation—not just in equipment or processes, but in how we managed our operations. Before ProShop, we relied on an outdated, DOS-based system, paper travelers, and countless Excel spreadsheets. Critical information was often stored in Andy’s head, leading to stress, inefficiencies, and limited scalability. We knew that to achieve long-term growth, we needed a modern solution that could streamline operations, empower our team, and position us as a reliable partner for our customers.
Why We Chose ProShopERP for Our CNC Machine Shop?
In 2020, amidst the uncertainties of the COVID-19 pandemic, we made a pivotal decision to invest in ProShop ERP. After years of researching solutions and attending events like IMTS 2018, we found that many ERPs were either too generic or lacked the practical tools a machine shop needs. ProShop stood out because it was designed by machinists, for machinists. Its comprehensive approach to shop management—covering everything from tooling and scheduling to gauge calibration and customer management—aligned perfectly with our goal of building a robust, scalable business.
As Andy shared on the podcast, “I saw ProShop before I even came close to making a decision, and I knew I wanted ProShop. It was just a matter of when, not if.” This decision wasn’t just about replacing outdated software; it was about investing in a system that would support our team, reduce waste, and enable us to deliver exceptional value to our customers for years to come.
How ProShop Powers Our Production Turning and Grinding:
Since implementing ProShop in May 2020, we’ve seen transformative results across our operations:
Streamlined Operations: ProShop replaced dozens of spreadsheets and our antiquated system, centralizing data and eliminating the chaos of paper-based processes. This has reduced lead times, improved scheduling, and minimized mistakes, allowing us to deliver parts on time and within budget.
Cost Savings: By organizing our tooling with ProShop’s tooling module, we reduced tooling and shipping costs in 2022 and 2023, despite double-digit shop growth and industry-wide price increases. Andy noted, “The reduction in tooling spend and shipping alone in 2022 and 2023 paid for the subscription itself that year.”
Empowered Team: Our machinists and office staff now rely on ProShop as the backbone of our operations. It’s enabled better collaboration, reduced setup times, and given our team the tools to work more efficiently. As Andy put it, “We couldn’t function a day without ProShop.”
Work-Life Balance: Before ProShop, Andy rarely took time off, managing everything mentally. With ProShop, he was able to take a two-week, nearly unplugged vacation to South Africa in 2023, returning to a shop that ran smoothly in his absence. This is a testament to the systems ProShop helped us build and our team’s ability to take ownership.
Driving Long-Term Growth in CNC Machining:
Adopting ProShop wasn’t just about fixing immediate pain points; it was about laying the foundation for a company that can serve our customers for decades. As Andy emphasized on the podcast, “We are all in on building a company that’s going to be serving our customers for years to come and doing things the right way.” ProShop has been instrumental in this mission, helping us:
Enhance Customer Trust: Customers who’ve seen ProShop in action are impressed by our organized, transparent processes. One supplier quality engineer even trusted our gauge calibration system over their own, saying, “I’ve seen your systems—you keep way better track of your gauges than we ever could.”
Drive Continuous Improvement: ProShop dovetails with our lean initiatives, ISO 9001 certification, and culture of constant improvement. It’s helped us reduce waste, standardize processes, and foster a team-driven approach to excellence.
Position for Growth: With ProShop, we’ve achieved significant revenue growth without proportional increases in headcount or overhead. It’s given us the scalability to take on new opportunities, like our investment in Swiss machining, which opened doors to new customers and capabilities.
Hear our Story on Manufacturing Transformed:
Being featured on Manufacturing Transformed is a proud moment for Ripley Machine, but it’s just one step in our ongoing journey. We’re committed to leveraging tools like ProShop to stay ahead in a competitive industry, deliver unmatched quality, and build a business that endures. As Andy shared, “ProShop gave me guidelines to run a business and know what I should be doing… It’s paying for itself numerous times over on a yearly basis.”
We invite our customers, partners, and fellow manufacturers to connect with us and see how we’re transforming Ripley Machine. Visit our website, reach out to Andy at andyr@ripley-machine.com, or connect with him on LinkedIn to discuss how we can support your machining needs or share insights on driving growth in manufacturing.
Thank you to Paul Van Metre and the Manufacturing Transformed team for showcasing our story, and to our incredible team at Ripley Machine for embracing this transformation. Here’s to building a future where we continue to do things the right way—together.
