Set up by Chic Wellington in 1982, Wellington Engineering is led by Chic’s son, Daimon Wellington. He explains: “When I first joined, most of my time was spent on expanding the sectors we operated in. We now have a customer list covering a wide-range of industries, still including oil and gas and medical but also cryogenic, vacuum and clean energy. Our diversification has grown the business and improved the stability of our operations considerably."

The company’s first Mazak was the Quick Turn Nexus 250-II MSY turning centre, purchased in 2010, an investment which enabled Wellington to add multi-tasking capability for the first time specifically for use in machining medical and vacuum components. Wellington explains that this was a big investment at the time and a major selling point was Mazak’s Mazatrol conversational programming – for its ease of use and because the company was finding that more of the applicants it interviewed were Mazatrol trained. 

“Once the Quick Turn Nexus was up and running, we started to see things coming off complete, which meant we could deliver quicker to our customers, invoice quicker and ultimately get paid quicker. It also opened up the prospect of running night shifts. This was a turning point for us and we came to the conclusion that to remain competitive and make money, you’ve got to invest.

“We were doing batches of smaller volumes, circa 30 to 50 offs, and with these quantities set-up time is crucial. With the Quick Turn Nexus, we found a saving of 50% in set-up time using Mazatrol. These results alone were a good enough reason to continue investing.”

From 2008 to 2013 the company experienced huge growth and factory space became an issue, prompting the move to its current 20,000ft² facility. Eight additional machines have been installed; most are Mazaks, including a gantry loader.

The addition of an Integrex i-300S changed the way Wellington Engineering operated, allowing the company to step-up into multi-axis machining, which helped expand the client-base and improve overall shopfloor efficiency. Wellington says: “These days it’s all about one-stop machining. When we doubled capacity our overheads increased significantly. To continue to attract new customers we had to be able to do things quicker and more efficiently, and we knew that investing in quality machines would help us achieve this.”

The business then added an Integrex i-100 in 2015. “The i-100 is the smallest Integrex but has a 100mm bar feed capacity which enables us to attract bar feed work to 100mm diameter. I was pitching to a major manufacturer of vacuum equipment for a job that ideally suited the 100mm bar feeder and we were awarded this work as we were able to run the component unmanned during the night and make significant cost savings for our customer," explains Wellington. "The i-100 has a Rota Rack Parts ejector system for larger components, allowing us to undertake work on a 24h shift pattern, which ultimately reduces the cost per component. It was our automation offering which actually won the job.

“Our two current Integrex’s are very versatile and attract a nice mix of business. The i-300 model is manufacturing larger diameter billet work, in the 12 to 16in diameter region, whereas the i-100 can machine anything from 2 to 4in diameter using the bar feed or up to 10in diameter chucking. Both machines were major investments, but so far it has paid off.”

Currently, Wellington Engineering has eight Mazak’s, with another Integrex i-200 on order. Wellington adds: “It’s certainly not the major factor when choosing a machine tool, but one thing I love about Mazak’s is the look of the machines. Having a machine shop that looks professional, tidy and full of the latest machining technology makes a significant difference and the Mazak machines help to create that environment enabling us to attract the right customers.”