The slow down that hit the manufacturing sector of the economy last year hasn’t been too hard on La Machine Shop Inc. While other machine shops were closing or cutting back to 32 hours a week, La Machine’s 23 employees only had to give up overtime for a while.

The credit can’t go the company’s outside sales force- it doesn’t have one. Nearly all their work comes from customer referrals and repeat business. This is possible because La Machine’s customer service approval consistently runs at nearly 100%.

Tom LaBonne founded the company back in 1976. In 1982, it became the first to move into the Ham Lake Industrial Park. Ten years later, La Machine doubled the size of its building.

Today, Tom is still the owner and CEO, although he spends his winters in Florida. When he’s gone, however the LaBonne family is still very much in charge. Joe LaBonne is President, Jeff handles customer service and arranges subcontracting, Mark takes of quality control inspection, and Lynn is in charge of the administrative end of the business.

La Machine uses CNC (computerized numerical control) machines to produce parts for other manufacturers. Many of the parts they produce go into products in the food service, medical equipment, and aerospace industries.

As a job shop, La Machine must constantly produce entirely new products from its customers’ drawings. Tolerance can be in the ten-thousandths of an inch range. This can be a challenge for the machinist.

“Machining is not an easy trade,” says Joe. “It’s a never-ending learning experience. Our machinists are not just machine operators – they do their own programming of the computer controls and their own tool setups. So they’re always learning, always facing new challenges.”

It’s just not the machinists who have to keep learning. The company had to keep updating its high-tech equipment each year to compete.

Administrative procedures have had to change too. Many customers now depend on La Machine to manage their inventory. “They want us to keep track of their levels,” says Joe, “and then ship more parts when their inventory runs low.” One customer, for example, keeps just a five-day supply of parts on their floor. If La Machine didn’t resupply them in five days, their assembly line would shut down.

What’s the key to being able to adapt so successfully to changing business conditions? “It’s the people,” says Joe. “Many of our employees have been with us for more than ten years. They’re our biggest asset.”