Tooling Manufacturer Thrives With Sophisticated Vending System

When Pentagon EMS originally started talking about purchasing a tool crib, several employees thought the end of the world had arrived, assuming they would spend all day trying to get tooling out of the machine. But they quickly discovered the CAP 1000T vending system from MSC Industrial Supply takes only 30 seconds to log in and get their tool.

Offering unmatched product and service excellence, Pentagon EMS (Beaverton, OR) is a global leader in the PC board assembly tooling market, with more than 50 employees; a satellite manufacturing facility in Mexico; advanced CNC machining technology; and more importantly, countless strong customer and supplier partnerships. Founded in 2002 with a humble vision, this electronics manufacturing solutions company grew ten-fold in its first three years of operation.

According to Hugh Young, production manager for Pentagon EMS, the company prides itself on designing and manufacturing tooling that makes PC board assembly operations fast, accurate and reliable. “Our line of work revolves around quick turnaround times. When a customer approves their tool design by noon, we make it, assemble it and ship it overnight, enabling them to use it the very next day.”

Because everything in his shop moves so rapidly, Young says he can’t afford to run out of the tools that keep the company thriving. “It’s never an option for me to tell a customer we can’t do their job today because we’re out of an end mill,” he noted. Young knew it was time to replace his inventory management processes when a regular cabinet with sliding drawers just wasn’t cutting it anymore. “I never knew if a machinist broke five end mills the night before, leaving us completely out of them.”

With inventory control being at the top of Young’s mind, he chose the CAP 1000T vending system from MSC Industrial Supply Co. (Melville, NY), with a CAP 1000T “add-on” frame to enhance his tooling stock process, bringing inventory management to the next level at the company. “When researching vending equipment, I found several companies wanted to sell me ‘candy type’ vending machines. However, I liked the sophistication of this particular solution and as a current customer of theirs, I knew the pricing was going to be right where it needed to be,” said Young.

The vending system electronically integrates with Pentagon EMS’s business network, a benefit that allows Young to enjoy worry-free inventory management because he has complete control over reordering, audit trails and reporting capabilities. “It’s great. I can look every morning to see how much of each tool I have. Plus, I have my minimum and maximum set to where I never run out of anything,” he smiles.

Breakthrough productivity improvements using the CAP 1000T vending system have lowered the company’s overall tooling spend and also provide 24/7 secure access, emergency override during power outages, cost-saving documentation and automated replenishment. Plus, as Pentagon’s needs change, MSC’s vending solutions have a modular design for easy reconfiguration.

According to Young, when he originally started talking about purchasing a tool crib for the company, several employees thought it would be the end of the world. Many assumed they would be spending all day trying to get the tooling out of the machine. However, they quickly discovered the easy-to-use touchscreen takes approximately 30 seconds to log in and get their tool. “Before the CAP 1000T, our employees wasted a lot of time looking for the tooling they needed for a project. So now they just love having this equipment around.”

As it turns out, Pentagon EMS is anticipating more growth in the near future, and MSC will play a strong role in helping the company continue to run this successful business more efficiently. Currently, the manufacturer is in the process of getting ISO-certified and increasingly taking on new job shop work, with several of its customers having more than just circuit board tooling needs, all of which are signs that show Pentagon EMS knows how to turn a humble vision into a thriving global business platform.

Pentagon EMS Corporation, 10950 SW 5th Street, Suite 275, Beaverton, OR 97005, 503-924-2747, Fax: 503-924-2744, www.pentagon-ems.com.

MSC Industrial Supply Co., Inc. 75 Maxess Road, Melville, NY 11747-3151, www1.mscdirect.com.