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Case Study

NEPEAN Engineering and Innovation – Turns the Heat up on Australian Made with their Makino U6-Heat

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NEPEAN Engineering and Innovation – Turns the Heat up on Australian Made with their Makino U6-Heat

NEPEAN Engineering & Innovation, Australian-Made all the Way

Recently Headland Machinery interviewed Peter Buckley, from Nepean Engineering on their business, the purchase of the Makino U6-Heat, their view on Headland Machinery’s support as well as their industry outlook post COVID.

LTR: Greg Orford, Karl Zoller
LTR: Greg Orford (Machine Operator), Karl Zoller (Workshop Manager)

 HM: How long have you been in business? 

PB: NEPEAN Engineering & Innovation (NEI) first opened its doors in 1974. Today we are now one of Australia’s largest, privately owned engineering service providers.

HM: In terms of size how have you grown? 

PB: Our capacity and capabilities have expanded over the years. Our original site and workshop facilities was less than 600sqm. Today, we have grown to have over 50,000sqm of high-tech manufacturing space, running multiple shifts to ensure we can deliver to our clients on time, every time.

We now employ over 120 full-time employees at our facilities in Narellan, NSW. We have employed five new team members in the past year alone.

HM: What industries do you service and what is your specialty? 

 PB: NEI has the depth, diversity, capability and experience to successfully deliver on the largest and most complex engineering projects.

We service the Construction, Infrastructure, Mining, Defence, Civil Works, Pharmaceutical, Scientific and Aerospace industries.

HM: How you do remain ahead of the competition?

PB: NEI has the capability to provide complete turn-key project solutions.

We listen and respond to client needs to provide a specialist solution for manufacture, installation and commissioning to enable asset optimisation. We have proven products operating across multiple industries.

HM: What’s NEI’S competitive advantage?

PB: Our competitive advantage is the ability to leverage our deep engineering domain expertise and unique capabilities. This includes our heavy machining, CNC and high precision toolroom, along with design-for manufacture, installation and commissioning of complex components, products and structures.

Makino U6-Heat

HM: When you purchased the Makino U6HEAT, what problems were you trying to resolve? 

PB: Our intent was to expand our capabilities and invest in the newest technology. We believe we are providing additional value to our customers by increasing our capabilities and speed of service.

HM: Why did you purchase this equipment over the competition?

PB: NEI values the service and commitment from Headland, and after a market review of machines we decided upon the Makino for its reliability and capability.

HM: Can you comment on the level of service you have received from Headland and what’s your thoughts on the service and sales teams? 

PB: NEI recognise service from Headland has been first rate, including the delivery, installation, and training of our employees. We’re really happy with their continued support and we certainly hit the ground running with our new technology purchase.

HM: What’s the main purpose of your other equipment how does it incorporate your new machinery purchase? 

PB: NEI has a complete in-house manufacturing capability by operating:

  • The latest in 3, 4, and 5 axis CNC machining centres and CNC turning.
  • Cylindrical, surface and jig grinding.
  • Wire cutting and EDM.
  • Profile and Laser Cutting, Sheet Metal and Fabrication including large rolling and pressing capabilities.
  • Sand blasting, Painting and Powder Coating.
  • Laser cutting.

HM: What’s the real value of the machinery you have in your factory?

PB: NEI have over $50m of assets and equipment in our facility at Narellan. We continue to strive to be a world-class engineering and manufacturing facility. We focus on continual development and evolution, which means, we need to invest in the latest technologies and our people. We are proud of our expertise to deliver complex and difficult projects; whether this is intricate CNC machined items, large cantilevered beams for high rise buildings, mine site infrastructure or as a key partner for the Defence sector supply chain.

HM: Would you recommend working with Headland Machinery, has it been a pleasant experience?

PB: NEI have a long and valuable relationship with Headland, dating back to the 1990s. We have purchased many machines over the years. We are proud of our association and would recommend Headland as a strategic partner.

HM: What are your thoughts on the industry especially now?

PB: NEI believe that there are many opportunities for the engineering and manufacturing sector in Australia, with COVID-19 providing a resurgence for locally manufactured and supplied items. We are poised for growth with increased government investment, Australian made campaigns and the focus for locally sourced content for large infrastructure projects.

Read more on NEPEAN Engineering and Innovation.

Read our article on the Makino U6 and how it doubles your cutting speed not your wire consumption.