subcon scene
Specialist subcontractor exhibits
the right approach to machining
oil and gas components.
Responding to offshore demand
AS a specialist subcontractor, albeit one offering a
complete ‘one stop shop’ machining capability,
Hone-All Precision is actively engaged with the
UK’s offshore oil and gas industry. The company’s
niche expertise in deep hole drilling, boring and
honing is particularly relevant to this sector of
manufacturing, and the growth in demand for
Hone-All’s services reflects its commitment to
customers providing essential exploration and
production equipment.
‘Oil and gas components typically involve
difficult-to-machine materials such as high
specification alloys and exotics that demand
special applications knowledge and the right
machines and tooling,’ says Colin Rodney,
Managing Director. ‘When you are working with
expensive materials and have relatively long cycle
times, the last thing you need is a problem with a
finish machining operation such as honing or any
risk of damage or marking of the component. It’s
not just the cost of the scrapped part; it’s the time
needed to obtain replacement material and the
difficulty of meeting the customer’s delivery date.’
According to the United Kingdom Offshore
Operators Association (UKOOA), production from
UK fields has the potential to satisfy 65% of the
domestic demand for oil and a quarter of the
domestic demand for gas in 2020...provided the
UK can attract the investment required to sustain
new exploration, development and production
activity. This is the backdrop to September’s
Offshore Europe 2009 event in Aberdeen - the
largest ‘upstream’ oil and gas exhibition and
conference outside of the USA - where Hone-All
will be taking part to promote its expertise to what
the organisers confidently predict will be a record
number of international visitors.
‘We have built long-term relationships with key
UK equipment suppliers to the oil and gas
industry, and this has equipped Hone-All
Precision with the necessary knowledge and
experience to meet stringent quality
requirements,’ says Andrea Rodney, Director. ‘In
terms of machining capacity we can drill, bore,
hone and turn components up to three metres
long, and our investment in a new 20,000 sq. ft.
factory has provided the quality controlled and
efficient production facility necessary to compete
successfully in a technology-driven environment
such as oil and gas. The challenge for Hone-All
Precision is to get this message across to a wider
audience, which is why we are taking part in
Offshore Europe.’
Although deep hole drilling, boring and
honing remains Hone-All Precision’s core
expertise - honing being the ideal process to
achieve mirror finishes of 0.1microns Ra or
4microns CLA, the ISO 9001:2000-accredited
company has in recent years expanded its range of
machining and ancillary services. This enables the
company to supply a finished component right
through to the component marking that is
included in the unit price. www.hone-all.co.uk
Since its creation in 1995, Technoturn has developed and refined its in-house apprentice training
programme, run in conjunction with local off-the-job training provider Hastings College.
Apprenticeships: a way of life
THE benefits to Technoturn from its commitment to apprentice training are
numerous and varied, says Director David McIlwain: ‘Our apprentice
training programme has ensured that we are not
affected by the manufacturing skills shortage. Rather
than jeopardise the future growth of our company
through our inability to recruit and retain suitably
qualified and experienced engineers, we decided from
the outset to train our own people. This has proved to be
a prudent strategy which, in addition to ensuring both
the supply and retention of highly-skilled technical
staff within the company, has also helped foster
company loyalty, a strong work ethic amongst all staff
and a great “can do” team spirit.’
The most recent Technoturn apprentice, 20 year old
Grant Seamore, is evidence of this. ‘I joined Technoturn
at 16 when I left school’ he explains. ‘Prior to joining the
company, I completed a one week Work Experience
Programme at Technoturn in my final year at school,
and this experience convinced me that a career in
engineering (and at Technoturn) was right for me. Now
3 1/2 years on I am currently studying (day release) for
an HNC in Mechanical Engineering at Hastings
College, and am working on Technoturn’s milling machines - setting and
operating the four CNC machines in the milling cell. Since joining
Technoturn things have really gone well. I am trained to set and operate
virtually all of the CNC machines in the company, and have gained
invaluable experience in the Inspection Department too. I
am looking forward to developing my skills still further
and to advance my career in the company.’
His experience is mirrored by former apprentice,
Phillip Palmer who was the first to be trained at
Technoturn over 10 years ago. He comments: ‘The inhouse
apprentice training programme enabled me to
study and pass my HNC in Mechanical Engineering, and
since then I have progressed within the company to
become Lead Setter and Head of Lean Manufacturing -
both senior positions at Technoturn. The apprentice
programme has helped both my professional and
personal development. As well as obviously improving
my technical skills, it also increased my
commercial/business awareness and refined my
interpersonal skills. Undertaking my apprentice training
at Technoturn was one of the best decisions I've made.’
Concludes David McIlwain: ‘The focus of our
apprentice training is on acquiring practical skills and a
thorough understanding of engineering principles. But
hand-in-hand with these is the need to develop the commercial and personal
skills of our apprentices too. www.technoturn.com
64 MWP july 2009
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