​Mike Kresser crossed off 2 items on his bucket list this past year.

The first was to get married, which he did to Betty after a 10-year courtship, and with his new wife came grandchildren, Gavin (10 years old), Tevin (9 years) , Aspen (5 years old) and Hyde, who is just 1 now.

​The second was to open his own business, which he also accomplished. The machine shop is called JH Precision Custom Machine Work. It is so named in the memory of Mike’s grandfather, Jess Harmon Parry. Though Jess passed away years ago, he was such an inspiration and mentor to Mike.

Jess was a true entrepreneur, and one of his first and very successful businesses was called Airline Foods. It supplied airlines in Salt Lake City with hot meals. Years after growing the company, Marriott Corporation purchased the business. Mike says, “Not only did my grandfather provide some financial assistance to my business endeavors, but he taught me the value in saving and achieving financial stability. Jess was so much of a role model to me that it just seemed right to name the business after him.” 

​Mike is a journeyman machinist, trained at Utah Technical College, and with more than 30 years of experience working for machine shops throughout the Salt Lake City area.

​One of the more exciting companies Mike worked for was Daleboot USA, and Mike says it is the last US manufacturer of ski boots still in business. At Daleboot, Mike learned how to make plastic injection molds, and was instrumental in upgrading the design of the products Daleboot sold.

At Daleboot, Mike first experienced his first taste of entrepreneurship. Owner Mel rented machine time when he needed machining done. Mike calculated that a machine purchase would have a pay back of less than a year, and he purchased his first machine, a Sharp vertical milling machine. He brought the machine into Daleboot’s facility, and was paid both wages and machine time rental. “The machine paid for itself in 6 months”, Mike said. ​

Mike purchased the Sharp milling machine from a high school colleague, Clark Smith. Aside from his relationship with Clark that dated back to their teen years, Mike says that everyone engaged in machining in Utah knows of the excellent reputation of Smith Machinery. ​

​Mike says, “Smith Machinery has been selling machines for more than 50 years now, and they have years of knowledge in manufacturing technologies and applications. Their products include such a range of the world’s leading machine tool builders.”

​He continued, “Their service is outstanding, and it includes installing, integrating, servicing and training on advanced manufacturing technologies. Their sales engineers are Certified Machine Tool Sales Engineers (and journeymen machinists), and Smith Machinery is probably one of very few machine tool dealers in the whole United States who went through the process of certifying to ISO 9001:2008.”

Mike likens his machine tool preferences to his car buying preferences. “I like higher end cars - they perform better than entry level, and the same applies to machine tools. The Mazak machines that I purchased recently from Smith Machinery are the best value out there. They aren’t the cheapest and they aren’t the most expensive, but they are, over the machine’s lifetime, the winner amongst other machines, with lower total cost of ownership.” ​

He continued, “I have run several top of the line machines over the course of my employment at several machine shops. The Mazak is robust, and it fits what I wanted to do in my shop as well as how much money I wanted to spend. My Mazaks should last 20 years.” ​

​JH Precision opened less than a year ago, with Mike’s intention to focus the business on his family’s hobby and passion, that of go cart racing. “ I just knew I could make accessories for go cart racers that would make their racing experience more positive. I knew it from my experience, as I am racing now, as well as from the market research I conduct with grandsons Gavin and Tevin, who are also racers.”

​JH Precision didn’t open with a single entry level machine, as many start-ups have. Instead, Mike purchased 2 Mazaks, a Nexus 510C II vertical machine center with a 48 tool magazine, and a QTN 100M CNC lathe with live tooling. The NEXUS Vertical Machining Centers are built with more productivity-enhancing features than any other verticals in their class. This makes them an incredible value for shops large and small. Packed with 48 tools, a variety of workpieces can be machined without changing the tool setup. The Mazatrol Matrix CNC control features the simplest, smartest conversational programming complete with monitoring and diagnostics.

​Mike also purchased a Marvel automatic saw with 10” capacity that can cut within .010 of an inch over 100 parts.

​He bought all three new machines from Smith Machinery. “I don’t buy used cars or used machines”, Mike elaborated.

So how has business ownership gone for Mike at JHP? Mike says, “It took so much more time and effort to open the shop than I ever imagined. I have a new respect for entrepreneurs who started their own companies. Now that we’re open for business, I am enjoying it more and more.” ​

​Mike’s first customer came from a referral from Clark Smith, Mike said. Since then, the customer base is rapidly growing. “People knew of my machining skills from my previous employment”, Mike said, “so this gave us an in. Since then, they have seen that we offer quick turnaround, high quality, and a good value to our customers. We make the parts as if we were making the part for my grandsons’ race go-karts!” Today, the Kart racing industry comprises just a small part of JHP’s business.

​What’s next? Continue to serve customers -- not to grow too large – so that JH Precision always offers its customers the boutique quality, service and support. To cross some more items off his bucket list! And to continue to enjoy go cart racing – himself, and as a spectator for his grand kids. I can’t wait to see his granddaughter Aspen on her debut!

For more information on JH Precision,
​a small machine shop dedicated to customer service,
call Mike Kresser at (801) 280-6063.

​
Article courtesy of A2Z Metalworker

41 West Guest Avenue
Salt Lake City, UT  84115
Phone: 801-263-6403
Fax: 801-263-6404
Email: smc@smithmachinetools.com

---