Idaho Steel’s potato processing machines are largely manufactured with stainless steel, and they are built to last. In fact, many Idaho Steel food processing machines built 50 years ago are still in service today. Today, the company manufactures four different process lines: Flake, form, fry and mash. Each line requires several different machines.
More than 2 decades ago, Idaho Steel formed a partnership with Kiremko, a Dutch company that also manufactures equipment for the potato processing industry. Davis says that the partnership with Kiremko enabled Idaho Steel’s further growth in the worldwide market.
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Under the current ownership, Idaho Steel continues to purchase many of their machine tools through Smith Machinery. Brad Birkinbine, Machine Shop Manager with more than 20 years of tenure at the company, says, “I tend to restrict the number of machine tool dealers who we work with and I can say that when I need a superior, solid machine, I go to Smith Machinery. The Smith Machinery team is outstanding — our Sales Engineer Klaus Lassig and owner Clark Smith are just so knowledgeable. They also pay attention to our business, and they understand it so that they can make machine tool recommendations that are based upon our business and requirements.” He continued, “With some other machine tool dealers, you feel they are just proposing a machine to close a sale.”
Service is a critical component in Idaho Steel’s machine tool purchases. Brad says, “Smith Machinery’s training and service is exceptional, and I would grade them a 99%.” He added that the training provided by AJ and the service provided by Larry and Paul is also best in class. “We call Larry and Paul our ‘go-to’ guys, and when we have any questions or issues they are here in a heartbeat”, Brad elaborated. Davis adds, “Smith Machinery takes great care of us.”
Smith Machinery purchased machines are seen throughout the company, and they include 6 Mazak VCNs (Ver tical Center Nexus), a Mazak VTC (Vertical Traveling Column) vertical machining center, and 11 Romi CNC machining centers. Recently they purchased the Mazak VTC-800/30-SR, a 5-axis, Vertical Traveling Column,vertical machining center. Brad says, “The swivel head delivers improved accuracy and repeatability due to the backlash free design, which allows the machining of complex features and contours.” He continued, “We’ve seen a significant reduction of machining processes and increased productivity, thanks to the additional axis.”
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Klaus sees a special work ethic in the team at Idaho Steel. As a former machine shop owner, Klaus recognizes the importance of a dedicated team. “There are so many people at Idaho Steel who genuinely care about the quality of work and the end product. The level of detail is so impressive; in fact when I saw the legs for one of their dryer drums, they were so perfect that I was sure they were robotically welded – in fact, the welder who had just finished welding on the legs, was standing nearby, and you could just see the pride he showed in his work. What you see at Idaho Steel is more like art, its not just functional.”
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