In 1997, when MarZee, Inc. of Phoenix found that business was a little slow, they made a decision to shift their focus to waterjet machining. Business isn't slow any more-Marzee now employs ten people who run their four OMAX JetMachining® Centers over 600 hours per month.
"Work is showing up on my doorstep," says Ed Wenz, MarZee receives completely unsolicited jobs-sometimes boxes with sheet goods and CAD files just arrive at the shop.
Ed attributes MarZee's solid reputation and rapid success to the unique work they offer with their OMAX machines, and to the impeccable service MarZee provides. "I give people what they want, when they want it," Ed says. "I've always lived by quick turnaround. I try to get jobs done in three days, four days at max-I often get jobs back to customers on the same day." And MarZee remains a waterjet-only shop. "We do waterjet exclusively. We don't do other things. That way we never compete with our clients, who are mostly machine shops."
The shop cuts a lot of metal (stainless, regular steel, copper, brass, titanium, tungsten, to name a few) and materials such as ceramic tile, petrified wood, marble, sandstone, silicon, Kevlar, rubber and felt. As for the type of work they specialize in, Ed says, "You name it, we do it. Seriously-we do everything from aerospace work to sign companies to prototyping to cutting bathtubs in half. If I can get it in my tank, I can cut it."
They began with an OMAX 2652 JetMachining Center. With business booming, MarZee invested in a second OMAX (a model 55100,) soon followed by a model 80160, OMAX's largest footprint machine for large stock work and multiple part machining. It wasn't long before the 80160 had brought in so much work that they added a second one. "When my dad went off to look at the 80160s, he said, 'They look like aircraft carriers,'" says Ed. "So now we call the two of them the USS Mar and the USS Zee."
MarZee still runs the 2652, the original machine that launched their waterjet business. It's had three major upgrades: from the standard 40K pump to a 50K variable speed pump; a software conversion from DOS to Windows; and the addition of the Tilt-A-Jet nozzle.
MarZee believes that employing the innovations and improvements in OMAX technology is a sound way to increase their business. All four of their machines have OMAX's optional Motorized Z-axis and the MAXJET5 cutting nozzle. They run the Precision Optical Locator on three machines. And Ed was one of the first OMAX customers to install the Tilt-A-Jet. He boasts, "I own Tilt-A-Jet number three. It's two years old now."
Ed confesses that when he bought the Tilt-A-Jet, he was primarily looking for a capital investment. But owning the Tilt-A-Jet has allowed him to better serve his existing clientele. "I have clients, mostly from the machine shop industry, who prefer a taper-free part to eliminate any outside machining," he says. With the tight corners and ins and outs of many of the pieces MarZee machines, access to surfaces for secondary processing can be difficult.
Now, with the Tilt-A-Jet, MarZee can achieve tolerances to within ±0.001" from top to bottom. Ed says, "I can stack material up to 1/4", and get a clean, straight cut all the way down-no taper at all."
"Our clients are so interested that this can be done," Ed says. "I'm not out looking for that market, but with the people that we do cut for, I use it often. You have to educate them, show them what you can do."
MarZee is a family affair. Along with Ed and his father, MarZee President Neil Wenz, Ed's three sons spend time at the shop. "My 21-year-old, Christopher, works at MarZee, and he has since he was 14. Back then, he was drawing stuff on the OMAX using the old DOS system. Now he does the programming for our Z-axis work." Ed's 13-year-old son, Michael has been using the Layout software for the last two years to make drawings. "That's just how user-friendly the OMAX software is," says Ed. "Even an 11-year-old kid can figure it out." Domonic, Ed's 8-year-old, loves to hose off the finished parts. Domonic's favorite activity at MarZee is helping with tank clean-out. "Playing in the mud," his dad says.
Ed Wenz, MarZee, Inc,
Phoenix, AZ
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