Buying high-tech equipment for your shop is often a no-brainer. The ROI pencils out in terms of production and efficiency increases and reduced waste, but only if the equipment is used consistently day in and day out. Widespread employee adoption is key. If operators aren’t willing to use the equipment, either due to its complexity or unreliability, that large capital purchase just went down the drain. Erector Sets Inc., manufacturers and purveyors of production and news sets, knows how important it is to utilize equipment that can be easily operated by each and every employee, shift after shift. Erector Sets employs an automated cross cut saw fence that’s as efficient as it is easy-to-use. This type of equipment keeps its operators fully engaged in the manufacturing process.
Designed & Engineered to Your Needs
Brendan Kilroy founded Erector Sets Inc. in 2003 as a custom fabrication and millwork shop in a tiny shared space along the Delaware Expressway in Philadelphia, PA. The company started out humbly. The first-ever project completed was a simple raised platform for a television commercial. But with a “no job is too small or large to handle” attitude and a focus on quality craftsmanship, Erector Sets grew to its current state, an 18,000-square-foot shop bustling with larger than life jobs.
Take for example the virtual set created for the New York Jets. The Erector Sets team designed and fabricated the broadcast desk that operates as a physical anchor for the virtual set. The augmented reality set background utilizes a green screen and state-of-the-art technology.
Or take consider the set for the hysterical Bear Grylls x Kyocera Car Wash Challenge commercial in which the adventurer and TV host Bear Grylls puts the Kyocera Hydro EDGE waterproof smartphone to the test by sending it through, you name it, a car wash. You have likely seen Erector Sets’ designs without even knowing.
In addition to larger-profile broadcast set and studio jobs, Erector Sets is proficient in custom millwork, molding, casework, displays, exhibits, as well as furniture and residential kitchen jobs.
Cross Cut Saw Easily Trims the Fat
Thanks to an incredible team of dedicated tradesmen and a founder who has kept a close eye on the bottom line, business is booming for this manufacturing company. To keep up with high demand while offering a custom product, Erector Sets Inc. employs a handful of TigerStop automated saw systems on chop saws and sliding table saws in its arsenal.
To ensure it’s not wasting any precious material or time, Erector Sets Inc. uses TigerStop automation at nearly every single cutting station. “TigerStop systems have trimmed the fat to many aspects of our production without any loss of quality or control,” explains Shane Jezowski, engineer and CNC programmer.
When you’re making hundreds of cuts a day, you can’t afford to waste time measuring and marking material. And you definitely can’t waste time walking back and forth around a sliding table saw to adjust each and every dimension on a manual fence. Implementing equipment that can be used universally, by every operator new and old, is the key.
Shane explains, “Our workers are running the TigerFence and TigerCrossCut on our sliding table saw, as well as a TigerStop on our chop saw, from open to close.”
TigerStop’s automated positioners are the perfect example of time-tested technology that can be used by every member of a shop, regardless of skill level.
For Jeremiah Chang, Erector Sets’ master builder, the first word that comes to his mind when he thinks of TigerStop is “accuracy.” Consistent part accuracy is the key to maintaining the shop’s quality control and preventing bottlenecks in production flow.
Dom Lucca, foreman of Erector Sets Inc., can attest to the precision and repeatability achieved when using TigerStop equipment to quickly and accurately process material. Dom is an early adopter of TigerStop technology and has been using TigerStop equipment for over 20 years, spanning multiple shops.
Efficiency Leads to Expansion
Erector Sets Inc. has benefited from the widespread employee utilization of TigerStop equipment. “We haven’t seen these levels of efficiency before … it’s hard to keep up with one of our workers on any of our TigerStop machines,” says Shane.
The company’s efficiency in production has allowed it to expand not only in size, but in scope as well. “Our projects have expanded from a simple raised platform for a television commercial, our very first project, to building full of sets for broadcast studios. We also design and fabricate museum exhibits, trade show booths, as well as commercial and residential architectural millwork, in addition to our work in the television and film industry,” says Shane.
Today Erector Sets Inc. occupies over 18,000 square feet of fabrication and design space. They continue to offer full-service scenery manufacturing, from design to installation.
Learn more about Erector Sets’ easy-to-use cross cut fence.