Westin Engineering has achieved the British Standards ISO 9001: 2015 accreditation.

We are delighted with the news, as this is an internationally recognised benchmark for quality within an organisation. 

It comes as we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Huddersfield-based Westin company of which we are a part.

The ISO accreditation ensures suppliers and customers can have confidence in knowing that our company consistently meets the high standards set out by the International Organisation for Standardisation.

In brief, it means that:

• We put our customers first, making sure we consistently meet their needs. 
• We work in a more efficient way, as processes are aligned and understood by everyone.
• We meet the necessary statutory and regulatory requirements.

A key element of ISO 9001 certification is an emphasis on continual improvement. 

​Regular internal reviews, combined with independent audits, ensure any new gaps or inefficiencies are identified and rectified. This means our business is always operating at peak efficiency and can maintain its competitive edge.

Operations director Fraser Lynch says: "This certification is good news for everyone because it will help us to continually improve our operations and enhance customer satisfaction.”

A large sealent and adhesive manufacturer invited us to specify a solution to a linear screw that was losing drive. 

The bronze nut was found to be worn beyond repair and needed to be replaced. As it was a bespoke component, it needed to be manufactured to suit the existing screw. 

Our engineers had a new nut made, welded, milled and tested. As the screw was worn in several places, various attempts to keep the nut to the tight tolerances were required.

As well as manufacturing bespoke components to sample, we can produce batch components to drawings. 

Our sister company Westin Drives was asked to repair a pump used for cooling water in the marine industry.

As various worn parts needed machining, the pump was passed to our CNC engineers. Acetal wear rings, bronze bushes and general steel machining were required to bring it back to factory specification.
 
Holding the component in place was the trickiest part of the repair. The volute pump casing had to be supported in nine places to achieve the tolerance and surface finish required.

That was done on our XYZ 1020 VMC 3-axis miller, with its 1020mm long bed, which is ideal for awkward shaped parts.
 
Finally, the inside of the pump casing and the impeller were coated to prevent corrosion.

Our machinists were tasked with manufacturing the valve body, above, from Monel 400. This high-strength nickel-copper alloy – about 67% Ni – 23% Cu – is resistant to sea water and steam at high temperatures and to salt and caustic solutions.

Monel 400 is difficult to machine as it hardens during the process. With one free issue raw billet from the customer worth £450 alone, there was no room for error. 

The part was manufactured across two machines. In the first operation it was turned and partially milled on our live tooling lathe. It was then finished on our 5-axis miller, including engraving. 

An ambition to bring measurement systems at Westin Engineering to the highest levels of precision has led us to invest in the latest CMM software.

The Axiom Too, from British company Aberlink, calculates the geometry of objects by sensing discrete points on the surface with a probe.

Our engineers can now to measure to within five microns – five millionths of a metre, a refinement of particular value in the inspection of complex components.

​Once programmed, the machine can maintain tolerances throughout a production cycle.

The coordinate measuring machine is also proving invaluable in our reverse engineering projects. Previously, a gauge would be used to take measurements from samples which customers wish us to replicate.

Using the Axiom, our levels of accuracy, repeatability and reporting in the subcontract CNC machining of components are significantly raised, to the benefit of customers.

Westin Engineering began five years ago with one man and a lathe. Today, as subcontract CNC machining specialists, our team of 13 has access to five CNC centres and variety of other specialist machines.

In planning our expansion, we turned to machine tool supplier XYZ, which carries a feature about the development of our business on its website.

Westin Engineering Director Fraser Lynch says in the article: 'Our investment is enabling us to cut lead times on work ... and working with XYZ Machine Tools has additional benefits through their close working relationships with other suppliers such as Open Mind and Ceratizit. 

​"Add to that the cost-benefit of the XYZ machines it all makes perfect sense.'

Our gear-cutting specialists were commissioned to manufacture a set of gears for the restoration of this 1912 Hispano Suiza Alfonso car.
 
They were reverse engineered from the originals, but the new ones were finely ground to ensure that they operated as quietly as possible.
 
The work involved turning and slotting the blanks – with spark erosion where necessary – cutting the gears, case hardening and final grinding.

And the car's owner was delighted with the quality of the job. He wrote: ‘Gears running beautifully. Thanks for all your efforts.'
 
This car was named after King Alfonso XIII of Spain who was so keen on it that at one point he had 30.

Westin Engineering continues to be first-choice supplier to an international subsea exploration product and service company.

Stems manufactured from Inconel and other exotic alloys are sent to us for the final manufacturing process: thread grinding the screw on the stem and machining nuts and collars to match.

Quick turnaround is usually required for what is extremely high-end precision engineering and we pride ourselves on being up to the challenge. Stem lengths range from 300mm to 1250mm.

Meanwhile, we are regularly asked by local manufacturing and processing businesses to repair or reverse engineer components from faulty or broken machines.

Because many companies no longer carry equipment spares, rapid response is almost always required. We usually oblige and are rewarded by regular repeat business.

Recent examples of our work include:

• Grinding a large damaged tapered shaft and machining a large bush to fit at the end
• Manufacturing new gears for a wood cutting machine
• Repairing and machining a small splined shaft and mating part

We are delighted that an established machine manufacturing business with a large export order book and time critical deadlines has started using us as their main component supplier.

Our new lathes with live tooling have enabled us to offer customers competitive pricing, outstanding quality and on-time delivery.

This output shaft from an old Radicon gearbox represents the biggest metal spraying repair our team has undertaken.

Weighing nearly quarter of a tonne, the seal position had become worn over the years. But the rest of it was in good order. 

It would have cost thousands of pounds to replace the shaft, so the customer opted for metal spraying.
​
This technique, regularly used in our workshops, can be a cost effective and rapid solution when the pressure is on.