E-Archive

Interview

in Vol. 16 - March Issue - Year 2015
Developing Top Quality Equipment One Machine At A Time!
Michael Langtry, Founder and President of Langtry Blast Technologies Inc.

Michael Langtry, Founder and President of Langtry Blast Technologies Inc.

Rotary ID lance needed to blast an ID with your existing set-up

Rotary ID lance needed to blast an ID with your existing set-up

The equipment is fitted with dust collectors for a cleaner, healthier work area

The equipment is fitted with dust collectors for a cleaner, healthier work area

Automated inline grit blast machine

Automated inline grit blast machine

Shot peen swing table machine

Shot peen swing table machine

MFN was able to get an interview with Michael Langtry, Founder and President of Langtry Blast Technologies Inc..

(?) MFN: Tell us a bit about how Langtry Blast Technologies Inc. was developed.

(!) M.L.: When I immigrated to Canada from Ireland, I accepted a position with a company in the blasting/peening business. It was an innovative company and over the years I worked in many of the different departments and gained a lot of knowledge about the blasting/peening process. I became Production Manager and was responsible for overseeing everything from Design to Shipping, which included engineering drawings, parts, quotes, programming and design. While working within this company, I became intrigued in the business of manufacturing and the peening process and the possibilities they presented. I was amazed to learn about the large number of unique items that go through this process; everything from airplane parts to shopping carts. It made me think about the different equipment designs and technologies that might be used to introduce automated blasting/peening equipment into more businesses. It was at this time that I decided to utilize my visions, ideas and concepts and develop a company of my own. Having the knowledge that I developed over the years of working in the industry, I began building Langtry Blast Technologies Incorporated. I have now been in the industry for 25+ years, and Langtry Blast Technologies Inc. has been building high quality equipment ranging in a vast number of proven designs for the past twelve successful years.

(?) MFN: What do you feel makes Langtry Blast Technologies Inc. stand out in this industry?

(!) M.L.: Well, I believe that any business is only as strong as the people within it. Langtry is a smaller more personal company made up of a quality team of knowledgeable, highly skilled and dedicated people that work in conjunction with our customers to build long-lasting and dependable relationships.
From the first design to post startup, our team of trained licensed professionals ensures a positive experience for all of our customers. Our manufacturing is performed by professional staff members that are dedicated to ensuring the highest quality products. They are highly committed to do what it takes to make certain the customer's needs are met.
The team at Langtry makes detailed assessments to ensure they know the customer and their products to provide innovative, customized, cost-effective solutions that will be sustainable in the future. For example, we have developed a stand-alone rotary ID Lance mechanism that can adapt to any existing Airblast OD manipulator set-up. The rotary lance is self-contained and powered by its own independent power supply, and can be tied into existing machine controls. Our team will suggest retrofits like these to ensure the customer saves money rather than selling them a complete new machine. We are committed to quality processes that meet our customer's needs while being environmentally conscious of not creating waste.
Langtry has a great team of skilled technicians available to help install and set up the equipment after delivery. They are committed to ensuring schedules and deadlines are met; including abiding to the customer's production demands and working within the customer's production schedule. Even after installation, our team is always available to provide assistance, parts, service and support. It is our goal to be there to provide support to our customers as needed.
Our service department travels worldwide to perform service. This includes North America, China, South Africa and Europe, to name a few. They perform service not only on our own equipment but also on pre-existing equipment. The service team has many years of experience and maintains all pertinent training, documents and certificates that are required to perform these services. They can suggest and provide preventative maintenance for the equipment to help ensure the production schedules within the company are not interrupted due to unnecessary downtime. When not servicing equipment in the field, they are part of the production team and have an extensive knowledge base of the equipment, including its design, function and operation. They act as an experience-based resource to our production team members. By remaining a succinct team, we can provide the expertise for cross-training within the team. This opens up the 24/7 availability of knowledgeable technicians to our customers.
In conclusion, each customer's equipment requirements are taken as an individual challenge, to design and manufacture equipment that exceeds the customer's expectations. Langtry Blast Technologies Inc. offers a personalized and customized solution executed by our top-quality team to provide the best value for our customer's dollar. High-quality equipment and the devotion to guarantee future performance and maintenance of this equipment are what have forged our success and credibility in the industry. We strive to maintain quality equipment and service in the most cost-effective manner, and the design of environmentally sustainable equipment.

(?) MFN: What kind of equipment do you manufacture?

(!) M.L.: Langtry Blast Technologies Inc. is a leading manufacturer of blast equipment in North America, supplying all industries. We have built equipment for parts of all shapes and sizes and for a host of different applications including shot peening, blast cleaning, double peening, deburring, surface preparation, etching, descaling, roughness and peen forming. These parts have been used in applications such as landing gear, jet turbine blades, medical joints, rotary engine gears and more. Several styles of blast equipment have been designed including blast booths, swing table, carousel style, hand blast, indexer, clam shell, along with many other custom styles developed for a range of applications and parts.
Using a wealth of knowledge and experience, Langtry Blast Technologies Inc. creates advanced bespoke-made solutions to the customer's blasting needs. From problem to solution, Langtry has a proven track record in quality design and manufacturing standards. These standards include ISO 9001:2008, CWB Certification, and Controlled Goods of Canada.
Over the years, Langtry Blast Technologies Inc. has used a variety of reclaim systems ranging from mechanical and vacuum systems; depending on the media used and the amount of media to be reclaimed. Langtry specializes in three main delivery systems, Pressure-Blast, Suction-Blast and Wheel-Blast.
We always design with easy maintenance and long life in mind. We pride ourselves in not only designing a piece of equipment that fulfills our customers' needs and expectations, but also ensuring that it is easy and economical to maintain the equipment in the future. Making custom-designed work for our customers is our number one goal.

(?) MFN: What do you see for the future of Langtry Blast Technologies Inc.?

(!) M.L.: Blasting and peening follow the development and movement of the industries that need it. Our customers include many medical, aerospace and automotive manufacturing companies. As the technology of these fields and many others become more sophisticated and precise, it produces a need for more efficient and cost-effective processes. I see a large increase coming in the automated peening industry with a greater focus on cost-effective solutions to help offset or eliminate the increasing costs of manual labour. We are also seeing an increase in the desire for lower cycle costs on equipment, and we are integrating more of our Multi-Axis Smart Work Cars into production lines, which enables the manipulation of the parts to accommodate a standard peening set-up. This, in conjunction with robotics and programmable controllers, helps to decrease operator fatigue, repetition and safety. Langtry has and continues to implement the use of automated nozzle manipulators with multiple axes where robotics are not an option or too costly. This ensures the same range of motion about the part as a robotically controlled system and often achieves faster, more efficient production rates. This also makes certain that all moving or volatile machine components are positioned outside of the blast zone to ensure long production life. Being able to offer decreased operating costs opens many doors to new applications for the peening process.

(?) MFN: You seem to have a positive outlook on the future of Langtry Blast Technologies and the blasting/peening industry!

(!) M.L.: Yes, the industry worldwide is changing and advancing all the time. We will continue to use developments in concert with our customers' needs to enhance our performance in control and user interface, part and nozzle manipulation, media usage and reclaim, as well as robotics and retrofits. I feel that Langtry Blast Technologies Inc. is made up of a strong group of individuals that will continue to grow, never losing sight of the importance of top-quality customer service. Through new initiatives and design, I believe there are many opportunities for growth within our existing market. We have established strong relationships with China and have worked extensively with companies in their automotive industry. This has been a very rewarding experience for us, as the Chinese attention to detail in engineering challenges our creative thinking.
Our team prides themselves on happy, satisfied customers! That, plus the technological advancements within the Industry help to keep our future bright here at Langtry Blast Technologies Inc.

MFN would like to thank Michael Langtry for the interview!

For Information:
Langtry Blast Technologies Inc
F-4390 Paletta Court
Burlington, Ontario, L7L5R2, Canada
Tel. +1.905.681 2030
Fax +1.905.681 2814
E-mail: info@blastech.org
www.blastech.org