Sheet Metal Stamping Simulation

Kathleen Matthews, tooling manager with Pano Cap Canada Ltd., Kitchener, ON, attended her first Joint Open House earlier this year May 5 and 6, and she’s glad she did.

Not only did she find the machines she was looking for, she was the winner of a draw for a 42 in. Samsung flat screen tv. Matthews qualified for the draw because she attended all five open house locations—DMG Canada, Mississauga; Elliott Matsuura Canada, Oakville, ON; EMEC Machine Tools, Ferro Technique and SST-Canada, all based in Mississauga, ON. 

Matthews says she prefers the Joint Open House approach versus attending a trade show.

“It was a good way to talk to different people and learn about the different technologies from several builders. Not only is this more cost effective than attending a trade show, it’s more convenient and it’s better. I can see the facility, meet the technical people and get a good sense of the technical support a supplier can offer if we choose to purchase a machine. You can’t get that from a trade show.”

A licensed mould and die maker from St. Clair College who apprenticed at tool and mould shops in Windsor, ON, Matthews is responsible for the mould shop and the tool and die shop at the Kitchener operation. She says she was impressed that competitors chose to get together to showcase their machinery.

“It’s nice to see that these suppliers are confident enough in their machine tools to stand side by side with competitors and have people like me see what everyone has to offer before we make a decision to purchase a machine.”

Pano Cap is a German-owned manufacturer of injection moulded plastic caps and closures with operations in Canada, South America and Europe.

“We’re outsourcing some work right now and we want to bring it all in-house and add more machinery, more tools and more manpower,” says Matthews.