Croatia Industries Has Built a Strong Foundation

The Saskatoon machine shop focuses on its equipment and workforce

Ken Cenaiko is marking his 30th anniversary at Croatia Industries. However, it wasn’t until 2005 that he became the sole owner of the Saskatoon-based machine shop. The original owner, a Croatian immigrant, launched the company in homage to his homeland.

“Our history is pretty typical of machine shops in the area,” said Cenaiko. “We started as a job shop taking on local repair work, but from there we evolved into a contract manufacturer. Now, 60 per cent of our work is in contract manufacturing. That’s our forte.”

Manufacturing work in Saskatchewan is focused on very large machining, something that may not be common knowledge outside the province. There is a lot of work in mining and forestry. The company’s deep understanding of local needs has helped shape it into what it is today.

The shop can swing a 5-ft.-dia., 30-ft.-long shaft with its Gurutzpe horizontal CNC lathe featuring live milling functionality.

“This lathe opens a lot of doors for us,” said Cenaiko. “Whether we are working on mining projects in potash, uranium, coal, gold, zinc, or lumber and pulp products, it’s all large components.”

Currently the company employs 42 staff members and has 43,000 sq. ft. of operational space on 3.6 acres of land.

Turning Large Parts

The mining industry brings in a lot of interesting and unique projects for the company. For instance, Croatia Industries took on a high-pressure grinding roll project last year that required the manufacture of 64 10-ton rolls that the company then shipped to Europe.

The shop typically takes on large rolls, pulleys, and conveyors, but the high-pressure grinding roll project was something unique, especially in scale.

“These rolls were 1.6 m in dia. and 1.5 m in length,” he said. “Machining 64 of them in one contract, which equated to one every four days, is pretty significant.”

When working in the heavy part space, usually comprising components that are upwards of 15 tons, it’s important to take into account part deflection and the forces within the machine. Machining process fundamentals are exaggerated on these large parts.

“When taking a cut, are you imparting residual stresses into the shaft? Or are you removing residual stresses from the shaft? How does it bend? What can you do to straighten it? As we get into larger workpieces, we tend to get into a lot more exotic materials as well, and that adds another variable to the equation,” said Cenaiko.

The Croatia team has to be mindful about gravity and sag when it produces 20-ton shafts. Of course, they need to be cognizant of machining fundamentals but also other issues such as material handling, which is why the shop expanded its building to include 40-ton crane capacity with sufficient height to lift and rotate these large components.

Cenaiko noted that one of the most impressive aspects of this project was that the shop didn’t need to add any new equipment. Instead, it utilized all latent capacity within the organization involving equipment, staff, and systems.

Cenaiko noted that as a contract manufacturer within the maintenance and repair sphere, the company must adopt versatile technology and source diverse equipment to be prepared for anything that comes in the door.

Supply Chain Reliability

Cenaiko believes that suppliers play a crucial role in the success and stability of a business and serve as the foundation for a company's operational capabilities. They provide the essential raw materials, components, and services that businesses need. Reliable suppliers ensure that these inputs are available in the right quantities and at the right times, which is vital for maintaining production schedules, meeting customer demands, and managing costs effectively.

Without a steady and dependable supply chain, even the most well-planned projects can incur delays and increased costs, which can potentially damage a company's reputation.

“The three pillars for our business are people, equipment, and systems,” said Cenaiko. “We rely on our supply chain for equipment and to a large extent systems. Our suppliers are as important to our business as our customers. Establishing strong, dependable relationships is essential for ensuring equipment, materials, and supports are available when needed.”

To take on large projects, Cenaiko looks for robustly designed machines and vendors that offer the support he needs. He recently added several Gurutzpe and Shibaura machines to the shop floor.

“Some of our key suppliers include Shibaura (formerly Toshiba), Gurutzpe, DiPaolo Machine Tools, and Thomas Skinner, which have consistently delivered during the growth of the company,” he said. “Their responsiveness has allowed us to execute our expansion initiatives within our planned time frames.”

And while cost does enter the conversation, it is balanced with service and support. Any machine that comes into Croatia Industries is backed by high service standards.

 

The shop has invested in state-of-the-art equipment, and Cenaiko credits its many Gurutzpe lathes for opening a lot of doors for the shop. Whether it’s work on mining projects in potash, uranium, coal, gold, zinc, or lumber and pulp products, all components are large.

 

“We are fortunate to get the factory support from Gurutzpe and Shibaura,” said Cenaiko. “However, we wanted local support, and DiPaolo offers that. It’s not just about the sale, we want calibration, repair options, and technical support. If it’s not in Canada, how is that going to help me? It’s nice to have DiPaolo sales and support available to us.”

Employee Retention

To meet customer delivery requirements, Croatia Industries operates 10 hours per day, seven days per week. To accomplish this, the office and shop staff adopted a four-days-on, four-days-off shift schedule.

“Weekends don’t exist in our world,” said Cenaiko. “Essentially, my employees are working 40 hours every eight days, so on average, they are working less hours per day for the same wage. On weekends, my customers love it because they don’t have to feel embarrassed about calling late on a Friday afternoon.

“We may not be able to complete the project, but we can put significant effort towards doing so without incurring unscheduled overtime.”

The four-on, four-off shift also cuts down on communication errors with the cross shift. As the shift change only happens once every four days, communications with the cross shift are relayed easily and efficiently.

Croatia Industries has operated this way for over 15 years. To further enhance employee retention, the company hired a cook to prepare meals for staff each day.

For Cenaiko, it was all about cutting down on stressors that make work challenging. This way, workers don’t need to worry about their lunches or unscheduled overtime.

“We are focused on staff retention,” he said. “Taking away little irritants has helped us keep our long-term, highly trained staff. We invest in training and new equipment to take full advantage of state-of-the-art technologies. Our staff is the key to our success, and we try to ensure that they have the road paved for them.”

A Look to the Future

During the pandemic, the shop installed three new machines and has plans to add several new machines in the near future.

The high-pressure grinding roll project reinforced to Cenaiko that the shop can take on new and unique projects and execute them well. Currently, the company is focused on expanding and diversifying its customer base for agglomeration or compaction equipment in potash, iron ore, salt, and other minerals.

 

The shop’s key suppliers include Shibaura (formerly Toshiba), Gurutzpe, DiPaolo Machine Tools, and Thomas Skinner. Cenaiko explained that strong relationships with suppliers, which have consistently delivered during the growth of the company, are essential to its success.

 

The mining industry is facing challenges to decrease its carbon footprint, and high-pressure grinding rolls are one way to do that. While these rolls were new business to Croatia Industries, historical experience in the potash industry has allowed it to further diversify its customer base outside of Saskatchewan and Canada.

“When we buy new machines, we want flexibility,” he said. “We want equipment and technologies that’s going to provide us greater capacity than we currently require. We aren’t buying to meet today’s needs. We are always looking forward. Right now, those tenets appear to be working and our future looks very promising.”

Croatia Industries, www.croatiaindustries.com