Spotlight on Excellence: Meet the Master Machinists of Cresswood Shredding Machinery

Our people are some of the most impressive and dedicated employees around. That’s why we’re spotlighting our exceptional team, starting with the Machine Shop department, renowned for crafting world-class industrial grinders and shredders. Each quarter, we’ll showcase another department’s expertise and commitment, highlighting the critical role they play in maintaining our reputation for precision and reliability.

The three men in the Machine Shop bring a wealth of experience, totaling an impressive 74 years of dedicated service at Cresswood Shredding Machinery. Their deep knowledge and expertise form the backbone of our commitment to excellence in manufacturing American made industrial shredders and grinders.

Most of Cresswood’s primary machining processes pass across the table of our two G&L horizontal machine centers. From die supports to bedplates, cutterheads to side frames, these work centers are mission-critical to delivering the value and dependability our customers have come to expect.

In 2022, we added the second horizontal mill, creating extra capacity and redundancy in our main machining process, this was a key improvement project for the business. Having a second horizontal machining center allows us to shorten our lead times while at the same time enhancing labor efficiency and reducing our setup times.

The newer G&L Horizontal mill has greater X-axis travel than the existing machining center had, it is fully servo-motor driven, and is equipped with a modern Fanuc control.

In 2023, a new Haas VF-4 Machining Center was added to the Machine Shop, enhancing the quality, efficiency, and delivery for manufacturing our tooling and parts that support new machines, as well as the over 1,000 existing machines currently operating in the field.

The gentleman who are in charge of running these machines have some of the best equipment knowledge and we are honored that they work for us every single day.

Dave Marshall – 33 years – Machinist

There are simply not many true master machinists like Dave Marshall still working anymore. Dave represents over 30 years of experience in tool & die and machining, and Cresswood is truly blessed to have an employee of his caliber leading the machine shop.  Dave led the project for installing the newer G&L boring bar mill from concept to completion, an impressive legacy that will live on long after he retires.  Not only does Dave direct the flow of production to meet our delivery deadlines, but he is instrumental in problem-solving and working with our engineering team on new designs and solutions.

Dal Zeman – 24 years – Machinist

Dal primarily focuses on machining anvils.  Most of these are needed to service machines in the field, so quality and quick delivery are super important.  Dal does an excellent job making sure we take care of the tooling needs of our existing customers.  When Cresswood first started making industrial shredders over thirty years ago this wasn’t a big part of the business.  Now, with over 1,000 active grinders currently in service, tooling and parts sales represents a large part of the business and overall revenue.  Our reputation for quality tooling and excellent service is the main reason for our solid book of repeat business and Dal plays a big role in accomplishing that critical mission. 

 

Alex Marin – 17 years – Machinist

Alex’s sharp mind and great suggestions have helped us to be more efficient in the Machine Shop by implementing many of his innovative ideas. He has established most of our labor standards for the main machining processes – for bedplates, frames, die supports, and rams.  He is an excellent trainer and very good at explaining the processes to new employees to help them understand safety and best practices.  Alex has written most of the programs we use on the horizontal boring bar mills. He always thinks about what would benefit another operator who would be working on that machine and using that program.  So not only is Alex an extraordinary individual contributor, but he has many strong leadership qualities that will benefit the department as we continue to grow and eventually hire more operators.