Ed Mason, the owner of Dward Design, is another satisfied owner of our small VMC, the SYIL V5. His machine has the LNC 5800 controller and a 10-tool automatic tool changer.

After getting his degree and working for a couple of big engineering firms, Ed realised that he knew how to design parts but not make them, so he asked his employer to be trained in manual machining. He loved it so much that he became an R&D prototype machinist and ran the R&D shop there. The CNC machine was then an easy step up.

A new house with space for a workshop allowed Dward Design to become a reality. Alongside building custom steel bicycle frames, Ed slowly started to progress by buying manual and basic CNC mills. Sadly, the machines in the startup budget left too much to be desired. Unreliable electronics and control software were limiting.

After many hours of research looking at many different mini-mills to fit the limited workshop space, Ed saw that no other small CNC machining centre was as capable as the SYIL V5 for the size or money. So in the Summer of 2019, Ed contacted SYIL UK and specced out his machine. By Christmas, Ed had his machine installed and ready to start producing.

As Bath is only a few miles from our UK base in Bristol, we paid Ed a quick visit to show him some tips and tricks on the LNC, and since then, he has been a pleased customer.

That was about a year ago (and only a couple of months before lockdown!), and since then, the V5 has run most evenings and weekends with very little stress. Given the need for efficient use of his time and the small travels of the machine, fairly early on, Ed made a bespoke zero-point pallet system, which has hugely increased productivity throughout.

Most of the products produced by Dward Design are in 6-4 titanium, both printed and bar stock, and the occasional stainless and aluminium for fixturing.

“The V5 has been solid and dependable in all three materials.”

Ed trusts his machine to be able to accurately and repeatably put the final touches on components whose cost would make any machinist sweat.

We thank Ed and Dward Design for their trust and wish them continued success.

For more information on the products and services supplied by Ed Mason, visit his Dward Design website.