Inside the shop at W Machine Works, data doesn’t hide behind firewalls or dashboards—it’s front and center for everyone to see. On one of the large wall-mounted monitors, President Marzel Neckien and Vice President Randy Neckien demonstrate how easy it is to view the FactoryWiz data being displayed on one of the many TVs spread throughout the shop area, The screen glows green—a signal the spindle is live and cutting. Anyone walking by can see what’s happening and ask the right question. Not to assign blame, but to offer support. That’s the difference data makes when it’s shared, not siloed.
In the foothills of San Fernando Valley, nestled among Southern California’s legacy of aerospace innovation, W Machine Works is doing more than keeping up with change—they’re engineering it from within.
Founded in 1978 in a modest garage by Wolfgang Neckien, a German immigrant with little more than grit and a machinist’s know-how, W Machine Works has grown into a 30,000-square-foot high-tech machine shop with 62 employees and a deep-rooted commitment to excellence. But today’s story isn’t just about growth in square footage or headcount—it’s about mindset. A shift from surviving the volatility of aerospace to leading it, one decision at a time.
Being technology driven hasn’t always been a top priority in the history of the W Machine Works. For decades, the ethos at W Machine Works could be summed up in one of Wolfgang’s favorite lines: “The best machine is the one I can pay cash for.” That frugality, born from necessity, created a stable foundation. But stability, while noble, isn’t strategy. “Our parents started W Machine Works in 1978 in the garage of our home.” tells W Machine Works President Marzel Neckien. “Dad worked hard for others as a machinist, and it was time for him to try it on his own.” “My dad made great parts and within 2 years he moved the company into an industrial unit.” “We continued to grow and never stopped. Currently we have 62 employees, 30,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing and a mixture of about two dozen advanced CNC machine tools.”
There are always challenging dynamics in running a family business. Enter brothers Marzel and Randy Neckien, second-generation owners who took the helm with a vision beyond balance sheets. Their big bet? Technology as a multiplier—not just of output, but of opportunity. Randy and Marzel’s opinions really differed from their dad’s when it came to finding the right resources to be successful in aerospace. “Our dad is a brilliant guy, an amazing manual machinist” tells Vice President Randy Neckien. “In the early 80s his largest customer came to him and said he needed CNC machines to keep being part of their supply chain. He reluctantly bought a CNC mill and lathe and shifted his focus to sales, service, running the business, and hired machinists who knew how to operate CNC machines.” “We’ve taken that similar approach,” adds Marzel. “We employ talented people who are passionate about metal cutting, allowing us to focus on our own strengths.”
W Machine Works 30,000sq.ft. facility houses advanced CNC milling and turning centers each integrated with FactorWiz spindle monitors.
As W Machine Works grew Marzel and Randy saw the need for new technology. “We went round after round with him on how we choose to serve the aerospace industry, and to compete and be successful in aerospace we needed to step up the technology.” “The progression in technology is something that Marzel and I brought to the company,” details Randy. “In the beginning the focus on technology centered around a cash is king philosophy. It took a long time for the W in W Machine Works to hand over the reins, but once he did Marzel and Randy began aiming for the future instead of buying machines from the past. The real turning point came in 2003 with the purchase of their first brand-new machine: a DMG Mori NV5000. “It was the first time we said, ‘This one’s ours,’” Marzel says. “It wasn’t just a machine. It was a signal. That we were no longer looking backward. We were building forward.” “The thing about continuous improvement is that it moves the bottlenecks around,” continues Randy. From 3-axis to 5-axis machining, from used mills to advanced automation, each investment moved the company closer to its true potential. “But here’s the catch,” Randy notes. “As you improve, the bottlenecks move. You solve one problem, and a new challenge emerges. That’s the reality of progress—and the beauty of it too.” “Since 2003 we haven’t stopped,” adds Marzel. Today, the Neckien brothers are proud to call themselves early adopters. Their factory hums with FactoryWiz spindle monitoring and cutting-edge equipment like the DMG Mori CLX 450TC, equipped with Siemens’ intelligent control. These aren’t just machines. They’re part of a broader system—a culture of constant learning and improvement that touches every person on the shop floor.
And perhaps most tellingly, that culture wasn’t inherited. It was built—intentionally, strategically, and from the ground up.
Mario running one of the many DMG Mori machining centers at W Machine Works. Every machine in the shop is utilizing FactoryWiz monitoring.
Factory Wiz: Seeing the hidden factory
Spindle time, and how it is being accounted for came up in conversation between Marzel one and of his peer group friends. “We were talking about what is the next big thing for W Machine Works,” explains Marzel. “The question came up if we were really using all the machines to their maximum potential. A good question, but one I couldn’t definitively answer. Every month I look at the books, I see profit and loss, I see balance sheets, cash flow, I get a snapshot on how the business is doing. Why can’t I have a similar report for our machines? We were tracking run time, but we were tracking it off what the operator told us. Not saying that they were being untruthful, but it wasn’t an exact science. They might say I ran the machine for 8 hours, but the cutting time was only 3 hours.” That question led to FactoryWiz, a spindle monitoring platform now integrated across W Machine Works’ entire floor. It’s not just tech—it’s transparency. Daily reports surface bottlenecks. And, perhaps most importantly, the data invites conversation, not confrontation. “Marzel is data driven, and having something like FactoryWiz opened up a whole new world of options,” explains Randy. We wanted to know is the spindle running, or is it off, and why.” “I looked at a few options and I liked that FactoryWiz wasn’t a monthly subscription like their competitors,” continues Marzel. “Dominic Lanzillotta at FactoryWiz came in and explained how their business model is different. You buy the FactoryWiz monitor, a one-time license, and then if you want, they offer a very small, and optional, annual maintenance fee. For Marzel, it was a no-brainer. “Now, every time we invest in a new machine, we bake FactoryWiz right into the cost and finance it along with the equipment,” he says. The first test run? Two of their busiest high-production mills—a proving ground for what would become a factory-wide transformation. It was enlightening to see data directly from the machine and without any interpretation from the operator.” “It turned a couple heads right away,” laughs Randy. Their first thought is we don’t think they are doing their job, and this is big brother watching over them. That isn’t the case, and once we educated them that this is a productivity tool and not a disciplinary tool, things went much smoother. After we implemented FactoryWiz companywide it became a bit of a competition between operators and shifts. They began to understand that just because the machine wasn’t running it wasn’t necessarily their fault. There are a lot of factors that go into keeping a spindle cutting, they could be waiting on QC, or maintenance, whatever. Now we look at the monitors throughout the shop, on our phones, and we see if a machine is down waiting on first article. If this is a reoccurring problem, we know we need to find a solution to minimize the wait. It is a simple concept: machine cutting, machine not cutting, and it gives you so much more insight to how the shop operates. We also use Factory Wiz as part of our preventative maintenance program. We look at the hours and plan maintenance around it. It makes timing way easier, and we are not surprised and stuck with two of the same machines down at the same time. Way easier to keep track for everyone involved.”
Equipped with FactoryWiz spindle monitoring the SMEC SL 4500LM is a high-rigidity lathe built for heavy-duty turning, milling, and precision machining of large aerospace components. It has a 550mm turning diameter and 2,000mm turning length.
Shop wide W Machine Works have multiple TVs displaying real time data from FactoryWiz. There are no secrets, everyone can see what is running, what is idle, and why. Each operator has a tablet to log details about why the spindle isn’t running, and many of their machines also have a dedicated display showing exactly what is going on with that specific user. “Our management team of a dozen people receives daily reports on 22 machines,” describes Marzel. “Everyone from purchasing to programming is involved because keeping machines running is a team sport. Everyone gets the information, and everyone is part of the solution. The report comes out every morning and everyone reviews it to look for any issues they can help resolve. Take one recent example on the CLX 450TC, one of the crown jewels of W Machine Works’ shop floor. The team was running a familiar program—a job they had executed many times before. They had the data, the setup, and the experience. But something didn’t add up. According to the daily FactoryWiz spindle report, the machine had only logged three hours of cutting time on first shift. For this project that was well below target.
Rather than assume or assign blame, Marzel got curious. “I walked over to the operator and simply asked, ‘What’s going on, and how can I help?’” The answer was revealing: a chip-clearing issue was forcing unplanned pauses during a key transition. Within minutes, Peter, the programming lead, was on the scene, analyzing the code and work instructions and offering a quick improvement.
The next day, the machine ran a full eight hours without interruption. Encouraged by the spike in efficiency, they rolled the job into second shift. What normally took 45 days was finished in just 14—a staggering improvement made possible not just by monitoring tools, but by a culture that asks the right questions and acts quickly on the answers.
Left – Marzel holds up a machined part—flawless, complex, and completed in a single pass on the shop’s newest star performer: the DMG Mori CLX 450TC. The advanced mill-turn platform, powered by an intelligent Siemens control system, handles intricate, low-to-mid volume parts with speed and precision that would have been unthinkable a decade ago. “This is what integration looks like,” Marzel says with a quiet pride. “One setup, one cycle, and the part is complete. It’s not just efficient—it’s empowering.” Right – One of W Machine Works master machinist at the controls of the CLX 450TC
DMG Mori CLX 450TC
with Siemens Control
The CLX 450TC is a compact Mill-turn beast, and the first of its kind to hit the floor at W Machine Works. With high rigidity, excellent surface finish, and the intelligent Siemens control to back it all up, the CLX 450TC is a flexible, future-ready platform able to tackle low-to-mid volume complex parts for shops embracing automation. Main spindle B-axis milling spindle can perform full 4 axis machining on both the front and back side of the parts. With the counter spindle, it transfers the part from main spindle to sub-spindle for complete part processing. “Essentially it’s a vertical mill, a horizontal mill, and a lathe all in one machine,” explains Marzel. “It finishes completed parts in one operation, but I was initially a concerned on getting it because of the Siemens control. I didn’t want the control because it was so different than what we are used to. Our Okuma’s control is more advanced than our Mitsubishi and Fanucs, but it is a smaller jump between the platforms. The CLX with the Siemens was a leap, and we had our concerns.”
Pete Adams is a lead programmer pushing the envelope on the latest technology at W Machine Works.
After extensive research and talking with their team, it was a challenge everyone looked forward to, especially for Kevin and Pete, W Machine Works programmers. Both were essential to embracing the new technology. Kevin had previous Siemens knowledge and is an experienced lathe programmer. Pete eats this stuff up and couldn’t wait to get his hands on the new machine. “I am not bias to any one control,” explains lead programmer Pete Adams. “If it gets the job done then I’m fine with what you give me. That being said, there are differences. Fanuc has been the industry standard for a long time, but as technology is accelerating and developing, we’re seeing more and more companies like Okuma break away from standard controls and develop their own more powerful version. When you get to a machine tool like the Mori CLX the controls need to be even more powerful to manage all that is going on inside the machine at the same time. The Siemens controls have been around for a while, but you don’t have as many people familiar with it as you do other systems. It isn’t until you get into really advanced machining centers that you must have a control that is up to the processing task. It’s a buy once, cry once type of deal where it comes fully decked out and ready to work. We needed training, and it was three intense nonstop days to get us rolling. We then included our most seasoned operators. The foundation was set, and we were good for a few months before our abilities hit a wall and we needed more training. It is a big jump in technology, but a manageable one when you have a talented team like we have. Like everything shiny and new people are drawn to it. Everyone is lining up to run the new machine. Our operators look at this different control and they see opportunity to expand their skills and knowledge. Randy and Marzel foster this culture from the top down. They get excited that we are excited. The Siemens for me is very user intuitive, and on the back end just more capable. We were all a little scared at first, but now it’s just what we do.”
Over the years customers have changed, the philosophy has changed, but at the core W Machine Works is still the same family run aerospace supplier making quality parts for a demanding industry. “One of our biggest goals is how to make life easier for every team member here at W Machine Works,” concludes Marzel. “I think there’s nothing more frustrating than someone working hard to do their job and they don’t have the right tools. How can we set them up to be successful, and in turn make us successful?” “The thing about all kinds of new technology is that it engages the employees,” continues Randy. “Our people are some of the very best in the business, and they want to come to work every day knowing we support their growth and learning. By investing in the company, we are investing in their careers, and that’s a win for us, them, and our customers.”
Wolfgang Neckien in the 1970s before starting W Machine Works.