Welcome to Manufacturing Minute!

It’s been a minute.

But I wanted to drop a note with some big news:

We acquired Martin Control Systems.

But that’s the boring way to say it.

Here’s the real story.

We’ve known them for quite a few years now, and watched each other’s organizations grow, through some of the most turbulent times that many of us have witnessed. We first got to know the team as we were all coming through Covid, dealing with the supply chain issues impacting projects, working side by side in Indiana on Energy Insights and helping SMBs. Of course we serve the big guys like Honda, Trane… but being SMBs ourselves, we found great pleasure helping the little guys outperform.

Through it, we appreciated their attention to process rigor (CSIA), unwavering commitment to good people and long standing customers, innovation, but that typical midwestern “prove it before selling it” way, and overall decency.

Trust matters in this business. And this relationship was built over years of trust.

Oh, and it doesn't hurt that Martin is a Premier Ignition integrator. If you know, you know. That's not a title you buy. Combined with what we've built at Axiom around Ignition training, CoE development, and plant-level transformation… this is a serious combination.

For me, I always tend towards the human side and personal.

Numbers are great. But I’ve learned that when you find people whose values match yours, the numbers tend to follow.

And they have.

We helped a growth-constrained equipment manufacturer go 4-5x output with the same footprint. At a med device firm, +10% OEE and yield in months. We are helping to make more nicotine than any nation could ever need, etc. 

Martin’s stories are equally nuts. 

Point is, we are now more than ever able to make a huge difference for a certain type of customer. 

Growth constrained. Values advisory over vendor. Not afraid to change. Hungry but thoughtful.

That’s who we are. That’s who we want.

Together, we can do more of what we love, which is making a difference.

More to share soon. For now, just grateful for the people on both sides who made this happen by simply being decent humans over a long period of time. Turns out that still works.

Back to the regularly scheduled emails next week,

Ryan