Toyoda Helps Rifle Supplier Increase Capacity

Henry Wisconsin, LLC manufactures and supplies rifle receivers and components to the NJ-based Henry Repeating Arms Company. The Henry Rifle, patented in 1860 was the first lever-action repeating rifle. Today, the popular line is recognized for its accuracy and craftsmanship and boasts all rifles are American-made, the company said.

The Transition
Henry Wisconsin was formed in 2006 after Henry Rifle President Anthony Imperato purchased the 150,000 square-foot Rice Lake, WI, facility that had been a supplier since 1998. The former company primarily manufactured storm door hardware for national big box retailers. Due to the industry's seasonality, production gaps in the fall and winter were satiated with the manufacturing of rifle components for Henry Rifle.

"The company was more of a transition than a start-up since we acquired the building and all of its assets," said Andy Wickstrom, GM of Henry Wisconsin. The company's capabilities included zinc die-casting, stamping, machining, automated wet and powder painting, e-coating and in-house prototyping and custom tooling capabilities.

Wickstrom is one of several employees that transitioned with the company. Henry Wisconsin started with a total of 17 employees and began production on January 2, 2007. Henry Wisconsin initially took over production of the basic Henry Rifle components that had been supplied by the former company.

The Growth
"We got through the first year with minimal growing pains," said Wickstrom. "And when Henry introduced a new model, we were ready to expand production to support it. All of the components we supply are machined, polished and finished here; they're sent out ready for assembly."

Since its inception, Henry Wisconsin has experienced steady growth with the addition of new Henry rifle models and component work, plus expansion into custom die casting, painting and machining for other industries. Today, about 80

percent of the company's production is focused on supplying work to Henry Rifle, while custom manufacturing makes up about 20 percent of its business.

"We bought our first horizontal machine from Toyoda at IMTS in 1998," said Wickstrom. The FA400 was purchased specifically to run dedicated production on Henry Rifle componentry. "It has been a workhorse for us and more than ten years later, it's still working great."

The Expansion
In early 2009, the Henry Wisconsin team began exploring ways to increase capacity to satisfy heightened production numbers. The company's FA400 was already running around the clock, six days a week to fulfill orders for Henry's core products, the Golden Boy and the Henry Lever Action. These .22 calibers are the most popular of Henry's 19 different models. In fact, the Golden Boy won Guns and Ammo magazine's prestigious 'Rifle of the Year' award in 2001.

To meet the demand in production, the company purchased a second Toyoda HMC. Toyoda's new FH400J's speed and low price point are what appealed most to the team. The machine went into production in mid-April 2009.

The FH400J is Toyoda's smallest and most economical horizontal machine. Its small footprint and 15,000 RPM spindle made it ideal for Henry Wisconsin's high-speed machining needs.

"The new machine is 19 percent faster than our old one in terms of cycle time," said Wickstrom. "This means we can fulfill higher production volumes as needed." The significant increase in performance can be attributed to the FH400J's rapid traverse speed and 2.4 second chip-to-chip tool change time.

"Toyoda eliminated all of the unnecessary options from the FH400J so it was affordable," said Wickstrom. "If it hadn't been made available at that price point, we wouldn't have considered it. But it turned out to be the perfect solution for us."

The Future
With the addition of its second machine, Henry Wisconsin has been able to comfortably meet the market's demand, replenish its inventory and prepare for continued growth and industry demand. New products, combined with the ongoing expansion of custom die-casting, painting and machining business has Henry Wisconsin well positioned. The company has found a recipe for steady growth that works and has the space, equipment and staff to do so successfully.

For more information contact:

Toyoda Machinery USA

316 W. University Dr.

Arlington Heights, IL 60004

847-253-0340

Fax: 847-253-0540

info@toyoda.com