S&S current ownership team are all under 40. Pictured are partner Shawn Duffy, founder Dennis Strong, partner Claudia Gaudreault, and partner Emille Proteau Mastro
S&S Carbide Tool started in 1979 as a tool and die shop by Dennis Strong and Gary Stewart with a third partner joining a within a year. Over the years, S&S established itself a reputation for some of the best quality within the carbide tooling industry. Tungsten carbide is one of the hardest materials known to man and can only be cut efficiently with diamonds or electricity. Well-equipped for carbide, S&S has an extensive collection of OD/ID grinders as well as Sinker EDM/Wire EDM machines. Working directly with companies like United Grinding has helped them establish the type of trust you need in machines when working with some of the tightest tolerances in the world. Carbide is something that is extremely niche but widely relied on in manufacturing. This means that a lot of shops use carbide tooling but don’t have the means to produce or grind their own. S&S primarily supplies punches, dies and other custom tooling for the ammunition industry but also has customers in the cutting tool, medical, automotive and aerospace industries.
Carbide is such a slow process that it isn’t something you can just grab at your local Grainger. It starts as a powder and requires preparatory phases like forming and baking before it can even become machinable. After sintering, the only thing harder than tungsten carbide is diamond or CBN. “Our process, experience and tribal knowledge allow us to avoid as much wasted time as possible when dealing with this tough material.” states production manager Shawn Duffy. “Most of the parts we specialize in, typically fit in the palm of your hand.” The product they are most known for forms bullets. One of their largest customers is the plant that supplies all the ammunition for the US Military. They manufacture the dies for 5.56, 7.62, and 50 calibers. When you see the words Military Surplus ammo, know it is made to the highest standards available thanks in part to S&S. “We’ve been working closely with them since 1980” continues Shawn. “As you can imagine their machines can’t be down, so supplying them with quality parts is imperative. A tiny scratch in a die is enough to scrap an expensive carbide part, so we must deliver perfection.”
Tungsten carbide is one of the hardest materials known to man and can only be cut with diamond or electricity. Well-equipped for carbide, S&S has an extensive collection of OD/ID grinders as well as EDM/Wire EDM machines.
S&S Carbide Tool has gone through a few different changes of ownership in their 47 years in business. Always known as an industry leader, they hold valuable knowledge locked within their walls. “My family had a company in Canada that were rivals of S&S,” tells President Emilie Proteau Mastro. “When the opportunity to buy S&S came up in 2011, they jumped at the chance. It was well known that the tribal knowledge to be gained was imperative. For years we worked in tandem with Canada to produce everything. Some parts were better suited for their processes and others down here, but eventually APN was purchased by a corporation in Europe. The new ownership was only focused on the operations up in Canada, so my Dad (Yves Proteau), my uncle (Jean Proteau), and myself bought S&S back. I grew up in the business working for them in Quebec since I was 12 years old, so this was something I’ve known my whole life. My uncle retired and our Production Manager Shawn, along with our Director of Admin Claudia Gaudreault procured his ownership shares. Now dad is a silent partner and mainly comes to see his grandkids while we handle all the ins and out of the company. We are all under 40 and share the same goal of taking a great company and making it even better.”
S&S has always focused on reliable machinery, but over the past 15 years has really zeroed in on adding only top of the line CNC machines. S&S takes pride in the fact they have such long-term and well-established relationships with companies like Agie, GF, and United Grinding. Their relationship has only grown stronger considering the recent merger / acquisition of Agie/GF+ into the Untied Machining Solutions umbrella. “Our usual tolerances are very small, 4 and 5 places past the decimal,” touts Shawn. “Not every machine can hold that day in and day out, so we rely on the best machine manufacturers in the world. Our state-of-the-art facility is well rounded and well supported by companies like Agie Charmilles / GF+, United Grinding, HAAS Multigrind and Rollomatic.
S&S also has a duo of Rollomatic grinding machines as well as an a.HAAS Multigrind CU. Having these machines in addition to the small fleet of United Grinding creates a highly versatile and resilient manufacturing core.
“Reinventing the wheel was a painful but rewarding process,” describes Emilie. “When the massive reinvestment began the manufacturing team were literally taking parts that were run on WW2 era grinders and putting them on current evolution 5 axis Studer – S131R grinders. Our process over the past 35 years was tried and true, but it also always took multiple operations (6+ in many cases). With our new machines we now had the ability to complete those same parts in a single setup.” “We would have to rough the taper, finish the taper, rough the front angle, finish the front angle, do the mouth radius, and polish the part,” adds Shawn. “The Studer – S131R machines do it all in a single cycle. Hold the part once and it comes off the machine polished, respecting tighter tolerances than we held manually, and less actual grinding time.” Improving cycle times and quality simultaneously is not only a dream of most shop owners, but it also allows S&S to better support their customers by reducing scrap and lead times in an already lengthy process. In the world of high precision carbide tooling, most parts are still loaded one at a time and are 100% inspected in process. Depending on the complexity of the part, a machine can run anywhere from a couple minutes up to a couple hours. Time is money for everyone in manufacturing so doing it right the first time is critical.
The transition from manual to CNC wasn’t just a press of the button. As good as the new machines are they still required quite a bit of tribal knowledge to get everything in sync. There is no high precision grinding well deeper than that of S&S co-founder Dennis Strong. After being bought out and retired, Emilie, Shawn, and Claudia brought Dennis back to consult. “We jokingly call him the quality police,” laughs Emilie. “He knows so much about grinding carbide and the parts we produce that it was a no brainer to ask him to come back. He works twice a week as a second set of eyes. No one knows these parts better.” “The industry and how we manufacture the parts has changed like day and night since 1979,” explains Dennis. “It is all the stuff I used to dream about but could never afford. I’m really enjoying myself working with all the technology. The accuracy, concentricity, and surface finish these new machines achieve is absolutely astounding. We were doing all this manually and doing a fabulous job at it, but it was challenging. Putting them on the CNCs was difficult to start as well. We worked with Studer, United Grinding, and a custom grinding wheel provider and the parts are even better now. We are talking about the ability to hold microns and produce mirror finishes all in one setup. Shawn, Emilie, and Claudia have a vision that will take them into other industries, and I’ll be right here with them as long as they want me.”
Left S&S Carbide’s three STUDER S131R are particularly well suited for producing carbide tooling, and wear components requiring complex geometries and micron-level accuracy. Middle – Shawn touts the speed and computing power of the control as a selling feature. The machines are configured with on board wheel dressing and measuring capabilities along with multiple high precision grinding spindles (with rpms up to 60,000rpm), enabling efficient roughing and finishing operations without manual intervention.
Designed for high-precision internal and radius grinding, S&S’s Studer S131R is particularly well suited for producing carbide tooling, and wear components requiring complex geometries and micron-level accuracy. Built on a vibration-damping Granitan® mineral-cast base, the machine combines the company’s StuderGuide® guideway system, linear motor axis drives, and a fully automatic direct-drive B-axis to deliver exceptional contour accuracy and surface finishes in hard materials. “Working closely with Studer allowed us to come up with the most ideal machine configuration for the demands of our type of work,” tells Shawn. “The machines are configured with on board wheel dressing and measuring capabilities along with multiple high precision grinding spindles (with rpms up to 60,000), enabling efficient roughing and finishing operations using multiple wheel specifications without manual intervention.” The Studer S131R accommodates workpieces up to 300 mm (11.8 in.) in diameter and 300 mm long, while high-resolution direct measuring systems, a programmable C-axis for form, thread grinding, and integrated StuderWIN/StuderSIM software simplify the production of intricate profiles, radii, and precision bores. With published roundness accuracy of 0.0004 mm (0.000016 in.), the S131R is engineered for shops producing high-value carbide components where dimensional consistency, repeatability, and surface integrity directly impact tool life and part performance.
To keep up with their ability to produce some of the most complex dies in the industry, S&S also has a duo of Rollomatic grinding machines as well as an a.HAAS Multigrind CU. Having these machines in addition to the small fleet of United Grinding machines creates a highly versatile and resilient manufacturing core. The Multigrind CU is a universal grinding machine capable of grinding just about anything, covering everything from round tools, cutting inserts, and intricate profiles. The Rollomatics specialize in precision Cylindrical Pinch/Peel grinding complemented with a 3-axis robot loader. The CU’s strength lies in flexible, all-around grinding capability while the NP50 adds a dedicated capability to confidently produce both simple and complex punches with minimal setup time. The versatile fleet of machines at S&S gives them a broad, resilient capability—from the simplest straight shaft to the most intricate non-round profile—while maintaining throughput, part quality, and responsiveness to customer demand.
Shawn Duffy claims he likes all the machines the same, but he has a true love for their latest acquisition the AgieCharmilles CUT F 350. The AgieCharmilles CUT F 350 serves as the centerpiece of the wire EDM department, delivering the precision, reliability,
S&S Carbide’s EDM department primarily consists of AgieCharmilles / GF wire and sinker EDMs. The AgieCharmilles CUT F 350 serves as the centerpiece of the wire EDM department, delivering the precision, reliability, and automation required for manufacturing high-value carbide tooling. Equipped with United Machining Solutions’ Intelligent Power Generator (IPG) technology, the machine continuously optimizes cutting parameters to produce exceptional dimensional accuracy, superior surface finishes, and efficient wire consumption across a wide range of conductive carbide grades. High-resolution linear scales, thermally stable construction, automatic wire threading, and adaptive machining controls enable extended unattended operation while consistently producing intricate punch profiles, precision dies, and complex tooling components with micron-level repeatability. Accompanying the CUT F 350 is a AgieCharmilles Progress VP2, a proven production wire EDM known for its speed, dependability, and ability to efficiently process recurring jobs.
Faster machines with better accuracy meant QC also needed a few upgrades. That meant a new next-gen CMM, a Keyence IM-X with optical and touch probes, plus additional Keyence TM-X5065 systems at work stations.
Complementing the wire EDM capabilities is another United Machining EDM the AgieCharmilles FORM E 350 sinker EDM, which expands the shop’s ability to produce features that cannot be achieved with wire alone. While the Progress VP2 excels at cutting through profiles and complex contours, the FORM E 350 uses precision graphite or copper electrodes to create blind cavities, intricate three-dimensional forms, and sharp internal details in conductive carbide components. Its advanced generator technology, precise servo control, and stable machining platform produce exceptional cavity accuracy and fine surface finishes while minimizing electrode wear. S&S Carbide also utilize two of the slightly smaller and less powerful AgieCharmilles / GF – Form 20. Together, these EDM systems provide a complete manufacturing solution capable of meeting the demanding tolerances, repeatability, and production volumes required to manufacture the high-performance carbide tooling used by today’s bullet manufacturers.
“United Machining Solutions hosted an aerospace summit recently and I am really glad that we went,” concludes Shawn. “We currently do a few smaller parts for the aerospace industry but am now much more encouraged to continue growing this part of the business. “We already have United Grinding’s top tier machines,” continues Emilie. “We are ISO 9001 certified, close to finishing our JCP (Joint certification program) Cyber security cert, and perform at, or better than the prints require. Once we lock in AS9100 certification we will be pursuing jobs in that sector. There is a huge potential for growth, and our ownership team is young and hungry for expansion. We have the machines, the skills, the drive, so now is the perfect time for us to show other industries what we can do.”
Shawn Duffy claims he likes all the machines the same, but he has a true love for their latest acquisition the AgieCharmilles CUT F 350. The AgieCharmilles CUT F 350 serves as the centerpiece of the wire EDM department, delivering the precision, reliability,