4 Strategies for Cost-Effective Machining & Plating

Supply chain disruptions, inflation, economic policy changes and geopolitical uncertainty have all contributed to elevated manufacturing costs in recent years. Raw materials, energy and labor costs continue to rise, quarter after quarter.

Manufacturers aren’t optimistic that prices will fall anytime soon. On average, respondents to the National Association of Manufacturers’ (NAM) Q2 survey predicted the price for raw materials and other input costs will rise an additional 2.8% over the next year.

While little can be done to suppress the cost of raw goods and energy, there are strategies manufacturers can implement to lower the price of production, especially when it comes to machining and plating. Streamlining the supply chain, leveraging best-in-class technology, generating minimal waste, and accelerating development times can all help reduce costs.

Here are four strategies Greystone, a world-class machining and plating provider, utilizes to produce components for the automotive, aerospace, defense and industrial markets cost-effectively and quickly – without compromising on quality.

1. Vertically Integrated Machining & Plating

It isn’t uncommon for those who machine parts and those who plate them to find themselves at loggerheads. Both parties safeguard proprietary processes and information, which means they are often unwilling to collaboratively solve problems that may arise. As a result, suspect parts sometimes sit in limbo while lead times lengthen and costs accumulate.

When machining and plating are executed by one provider, however, the supply chain between the two processes tightens. Engineers from both teams work together to devise and execute strategic plans and work through challenges synergistically. As a vertically integrated provider, Greystone routinely reduces costs for combined machining and plating clients by:

• Leveraging our extensive knowledge of both processes to recommend cost-saving efficiencies
• Accelerating turn times, so products get to market more quickly
• Relieving clients of supply chain management burdens, so they can focus on other revenue-generating pursuits
• Eliminating the second plating price mark-ups that occur when plating is outsourced to a third party

These benefits also extend to clients who only use Greystone to machine or plate their parts. Because our engineers have deep insight into the relationship between machining and plating, they are able to devise intelligent solutions, troubleshoot issues quickly, and leverage our other in-house capabilities (outlined below) to deliver cost savings.

2. Minimal Waste

As the price of raw materials has surged, reducing waste has become an urgent goal for cost-sensitive manufacturers. To safeguard precious materials and reduce overall production costs, scrap generated during machining and metal wasted during plating must be aggressively minimized.

Unfortunately, waste abounds in manufacturing – especially when it comes to plating. Many inexperienced or “one-size-fits-all” platers indiscriminately plate entire parts, when only selective plating is needed. If the provider has limited capacities or doesn’t have experienced chemists or engineers on staff, parts could end up with inconsistent coating, voided plating, adhesion loss and pitting. Both outcomes are costly: the former uses more material than is necessary, and the latter can ruin parts and lead to pricey rework.

Greystone’s processes are designed around clients’ unique specifications – and our experienced team of chemists and engineers has developed ways to reduce waste, overall. Our team designs processes to minimize scrap for both fully turned parts and for some applications using cold-headed parts, which produces parts in a near-finished state.

Greystone’s in-house engineers know how to design selective plating fixtures, using “hard masking,” and other processes that allow us to plate only the necessary areas to a specified thickness.

3. Cutting-Edge Technology & In-House Automation

According to Deloitte’s 2024 Manufacturing Industry Outlook, smart technology and automation are relatively failsafe strategic investments manufacturers (and their vendors) can make to trim long-term production costs. While many machinists and platers today use some form of automation, the overwhelming majority purchase ready-made, out-of-the-box equipment from third-party vendors. This equipment may help contain costs – but not to the extent that custom-made technology can.

Greystone’s engineering team builds tools and automation equipment in-house to optimize the handling and inspection of customer parts. The team offers cross-functional support to machinists and platers and, together, they devise ways to sequentially automate processes. Inspection of both machined and plating characteristics can be combined in our machines. Our custom-built approach and the cutting-edge nature of our technology results in continual process improvements.

4. Rapid Development Times

Most machinists and platers only run one or two shifts per day. When multiple vendors are involved in machining and plating parts, these limited shifts – combined with transit time – can prolong the time it takes to get products to market.

Greystone runs three daily shifts, five days a week. This allows us to consistently meet delivery times for machining clients and reduce turn times for our plating clients.

When Greystone is used to both machine and plate parts, the time it takes to develop parts shrinks significantly: it isn’t unusual for a month to be eliminated from the end-to-end process. By compressing the timeline, products go to market faster, and production can be ramped up quickly, if necessary. As a result, clients who both machine and plate their parts with Greystone can expend fewer resources to get more parts produced, more quickly.

Curb the Cost of Machining & Plating with Greystone

Greystone’s vertically integrated, logistically simple machining and plating services consistently reduce costs for our clients. Our engineering teams work cross-functionally to optimize machining and plating and collaborate with our in-house automation team to drive further efficiencies. The result? Greystone delivers the most cost-effective and highest-quality parts to customers in record time.

For more information or to get a quote, speak with one of our precision, high-volume machining and plating experts.

Contact us to learn more about our vertically integrated machining and plating services