Lights Out: Technology and Automation Podcast by MakingChips

Every shop owner has stared at a floor full of expensive machines and thought the same thing: I need more capacity. More people. A second shift. Maybe another spindle. But the honest answer, most of the time, is that you already own the capacity you need. You just can't see how it's being used. This week we sat down with Brian Anderson, Solutions Architect at ProShop ERP, for a conversation that h...

Every shop wants the shiny new machine. Walk a showroom floor like the one at ZOLLER's Technology Days in Ann Arbor and it's hard not to feel like a kid in a candy store. But the most useful question on this episode isn't which spindle to buy next. It's whether you're actually using the ones you already own . We sat down at the ZOLLER Smart Manufacturing Summit with Walt Swenton, Senior Manager of...

Recorded live from the DN Solutions open house near Chicago, this special crossover episode between  Lights Out  and  Buy the Numbers  dives deep into what modern automation actually looks like inside growing machine shops. This isn't theory from a conference stage. It's a real-time conversation about throughput, utilization, machine strategy, and how shops can scale smarter without simply throwin...

Part 2 of Lights Out Lenses  moves deeper into the automation journey at Advanced Machine & Fabricating—this time through the eyes of engineering, programming, quality, and ownership. If Part 1 was about feeding the beast, Part 2 is about building the systems, standards, and culture that keep it alive. Director of Engineering & Programming Forrest Vaught shares how automation forced his team to re...

What does automation actually look like when you're in the middle of it—not from a vendor demo or a conference stage, but inside a real shop, with real constraints, real people, and real stakes? This episode of  Lights Out  kicks off a new series format— Lights Out Lenses —where the story of automation is told through multiple perspectives inside the same company. And not just any company, but ADV...

Automation has a reputation problem. It's often painted as something reserved for massive factories, predictable part runs, and deep pockets. But what happens when a small, high-mix shop decides to challenge every one of those assumptions—and wins? In this episode of  Lights Out , we sit down with Katie Murphy from Arcamed, an 80-person medical manufacturing company that did what most shops think...

What happens when a shop that's already running lights-out decides to push even further? The Lights Out team returns to Imago Manufacturing nearly a year after their first visit to see how Ryan's lights-out vision has evolved. What they find is a shop that looks similar on the surface, same team, same footprint, but dramatically more capable thanks to thoughtful automation, improved workflows, and...

Additive manufacturing has been "the future" of manufacturing for decades. And yet, for many shops, it still feels just out of reach—either too expensive, too complex, or too uncertain to justify. So where does it actually stand today? In this episode of  Lights Out , we sit down with Mark Barfoot, VP of Global Sales at Xact Metal, to cut through the noise. With more than two decades of experience...

What happens when you take months of serious conversations about automation ROI, additive manufacturing, machine monitoring, adaptive controls, and digital factory strategy… and turn them into Jeopardy? Chaos. Competitive chaos. In this special episode of  Lights Out , Eric Nekich steps into full game-show-host mode and challenges Dave Vuyk, Nick Goellner, and special guest Mike Payne to prove the...

There's been a murder on the shop floor. Or at least… that's how this episode begins. In this creative, detective-themed installment of  Lights Out , Dave Vuyk, Eric Nekich, and Nick Goellner investigate what happened to the once red-hot promise of collaborative robots. A decade ago, cobots were projected to revolutionize machine shops. They were marketed as affordable, easy-to-deploy, cage-free a...

Is hybrid manufacturing just a buzzword, or is it the next logical evolution of modern machining? In this episode of  Lights Out , David Vuyk, Nick Goellner, and Eric Nekich sit down with  Dr. Jason Jones , CEO and founder of  Hybrid Manufacturing Technologies , to unpack what hybrid manufacturing actually means and why it's gaining real traction inside production environments. Rather than framing...

What does the future of manufacturing look like when it's built by someone who has never known a world without digital tools, automation, or on-demand learning? In this episode of Lights Out, the hosts sit down with Michael King, founder of Munkworks, whose story feels almost implausible until you hear it unfold. Michael bought his first CNC machine as a teenager, owns a five-axis machining center...

Automation doesn't end when the system is powered on. In fact, that's often where the real work begins. In the third and final episode of this Lights Out series, the conversation shifts from planning and justification to execution, measurement, and long-term performance. After covering market forces driving automation adoption and breaking down ROI math in the first two episodes, this installment...

Automation is exploding across the manufacturing world, but the real differentiator isn't the robot, pallet pool, or software you buy—it's whether you know how to calculate ROI the  right  way. In this episode of  Lights Out , we break down the financial side of automation in plain language so every shop owner, operator, and leader can make smarter investment decisions with confidence. This is the...

Before a shop can automate confidently, it has to understand one thing clearly: ROI drives every great automation decision. In this episode of  Lights Out , David Vuyk and Eric Nekich kick off a multi-part series on Automation ROI—focusing not on hype or shiny tech, but on the real metrics and methods that determine whether automation will pay off or become an expensive paperweight. With "Jolly St...

As we dive into this episode of Lights Out, we sit down with someone who's seen automation evolve from pencil drawings and flame-cut templates to fully integrated robotic systems: our friend and longtime industry leader, Mike Gamache. For decades, Mike has lived at the intersection of machining, fabrication, automation, and continuous improvement, and we couldn't be more excited to bring his exper...

What do law enforcement, SWAT operations, and CNC machining have in common? More than you'd think. In this episode of Lights Out , hosts Nick Goellner, Eric Nekich, and Dave Vuyk welcome  Johnny Goode , President and Co-owner of  MSP Manufacturing  in Bloomington, Indiana—a precision aerospace manufacturer that's rapidly transforming its operations with automation and digital processes. Johnny's j...

In this episode of Lights Out , we debrief from one of the largest manufacturing technology shows in the world—EMO Hannover. From automation and adaptive controls to AI-driven machining and the evolving economics of shop ownership, the team unpacks what's  really  changing in manufacturing and what's just noise. As the hosts reflect on trends like the shift from horizontal to 5-axis machining cent...

You can collect data all day—but if you're not using it to coach your team, you're missing the point. In this episode of  Lights Out , hosts  Nick Goellner  and  Dave Vuyk  wrap up their "Mindset Shifts for Lights Out Legends" series with one final transformation: moving from a  monitored  shop to a  coached  one. Drawing on lessons from Nick's recent talk at the Automated Shop Conference, the hos...

Lights-out manufacturing isn't just about adding robots or running machines overnight — it's about creating a culture and a system where your shop can perform at its peak without constant human intervention. In this episode of Lights Out , hosts Nick Goellner, Eric Nekich, and David Vuyk sit down with innovator and entrepreneur  Camoren Schley  of Slytek to explore the technologies and mindsets ma...

In this episode of  Lights Out , Nick Goellner, Eric Nekich, and Dave Vuyk take listeners inside the mindset shifts powering the next wave of lights-out manufacturing. Forget just "working harder" — this conversation is about working smarter, breaking out of fixed thinking, and unlocking massive gains without adding headcount or square footage. The trio opens by sharing the personal routines and d...

In this episode of  Lights Out , we sit down with a special guest who embodies both tradition and innovation: Yuto Matsuura, fourth-generation leader of Matsuura Machinery. His story is one of legacy, expectation, and transformation—from the weight of inheriting a century-old family business to finding his own passion for manufacturing and automation. We talk openly about the realities of stepping...

After three episodes of grit, missteps, and breakthroughs, the story of Iron Clunk Machining comes to its conclusion—and its rebirth as Iron Wheel Manufacturing. This isn't just the end of a narrative—it's proof that the right combination of lean principles, selective automation, and engaged leadership can completely transform a struggling shop into a thriving, joyful workplace. Twelve months afte...

Welcome back to  Lights Out , where we're continuing our deep dive into Iron Clunk's lean transformation—and this one is a turning point. After hitting rock bottom, Gary's found a lifeline in Klaus and the Lean Stream team. But this isn't a charity case—it's an investment. With tools like value stream mapping, theory of constraints, and 5S, Gary and his crew begin diagnosing their real problems: l...

In this special episode of  Lights Out , we step away from the Automation Trap series for a special episode recorded at Hexagon Live, where the buzz wasn't just about race car simulators—but about revolutionizing shop floor productivity. We sit down with Darren Metherell, Head of Sales for Hexagon's Connected Worker team, to explore how modern manufacturing operations can digitize smarter, faster,...