An automotive transmission pump manufacturer was experiencing frequent micro-downtime events with an unknown cause. The machine tool would would stop producing with no clear indication why. Operators required technicians to reset and restart the equipment and it's peripherals and after a few hours, experienced the same situation...reset, restart. This cost operators about 1 hour per shift. The plant runs 24 hours a day, 6 days per week.
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In 1990, my father, Gene Rahrig, left the corporate world to begin a new business providing professional services to the manufacturing sector, primarily focused on machine tool and automation equipment maintenance and troubleshooting. Dad already had quite a reputation in the field – his first customers were beating down the door before the ink dried on the papers that formally registered his company with the State of Ohio. And so, Gene’s Industrial equipment Service was born. The following summer, I worked part time (under his close scrutiny) cleaning hydraulic tanks and changing DC motor brushes. A few years later, I took advantage of a full time position as his apprentice. I carried his tools for six months before he let me touch one thing that belonged to his customers, but I spent the next 4 years developing my own expertise with PLCs, CNCs, hydraulic, pneumatic and mechanical systems with dad’s careful guidance. I also learned what it means to provide quality service to customers. The culture of Dad’s company was such that once we serviced a customer for the first time, we handled all their service needs going forward. Today, Gene’s Industrial serves many of the same customers that helped get the business started.