In 1961, Jens-Martin Nielsen began his career at Thrige, a manufacturer of motors incorporated with winding capabilities. Almost two decades later, he decided to retire from the company and began developing a wet stone grinder, the Scanslib 200. This product soon turned out to be hugely successful and laid the foundations to a machinery manufacturing organisation—Scantool. Continuing his father’s great legacy, Scantool is now led by Claus Nielsen, who has diversified the company’s product range by acquiring manufacturing companies such as Arboga, KEF, and HM Machinery. While on its path of transitioning into the Scantool Group, the consortium evolved into one that cultivates a strong sense of teamwork among its employees who have symbolised loyalty over 35 years, establishing Scantool as the metalworking giant it is today.

While the Scantool Group manufactures products of the highest quality, their biggest competition comes from the Far East, and China in particular. Although the company provides competitive prices on its products, it stands undisputed for quality, finish, and stellar customer support. While competitors generally import machinery from China and coat it with colours, Scantool has indigenous manufacturing units in Denmark, Taiwan, and the largest one in Poland.

This allows our company to always be one step ahead of their imported copies by quickly redesigning products to cater to their customers’ needs more adaptively

“Our manufacturing facilities empower us to always be one step ahead of imported copies, exemplifying our capabilities to quickly redesigning products and cater to customers’ needs more adaptively,” says the CEO, Claus Nielsen.

The company’s belt grinder, for example, brings to clients the functionalities that are traditionally found in three separate machines. It can work as a belt grinder, a dry/wet centerless grinding tool, and as a pipe notcher. Another example is the company’s guillotine shears, designed with a patented Return To Operator (RTO) mechanism. It is a system, in which, all cut metal pieces under 400mm of length are redirected back to the operator at the front of the shear.

As one can imagine, this is infinitely more ergonomic than picking up flat metal pieces from the work floor. The rugged double-ended grinding and polishing machines from KEF and Arboga--manufactured at the plant in Denmark--are designed to operate ceaselessly. In stark contrast with other machines in the market that need to be shut down every 30 minutes to avoid overheating, Scantool’s devices house motors that can run on-end and are backed up with a guarantee of 5 years.

As an end-to-end supplier (from manufacture to post-sales operational support) of metalworking machines, Scantool clearly demarcates itself in a market flooded with imitations and copies of these machinery. The Scantool Group’s reliability and its ability to handle customised orders is evident in its work with a Saudi Arabian client who needed 12 complete workshops with machines all custom made to their requirements in design, colours and labelling. The order was delivered in 12, forty-foot containers, and Scantool also sent some of its experts to Saudi Arabia for installation and to train the client in operating the machinery. Such interactions only further cement the Scantool Group’s ideology of building a sturdy customer relationship.

“Our flexibility is one of the main factors for us to win against our competitors. We have the production unit next to the office, which helps us immediately reply to our customers when enquired about their customised machine, time of delivery, or any other technical questions which need to be answered,” adds Nielsen. The diverse solution portfolio of the organisation allows it to help clients meet almost any challenge in their arena head-on. On the one hand, Arboga and KEF are prominent manufacturers of grinding and polishing machines, pipe notchers, and hydraulic pipe bending machines. HM Machinery, on the other, specialises in sheet deburring, folding, and shearing machines. With all these companies under its wing, and Scantool itself providing a multitude of solutions, it is clear to see how Scantool Group is in a league of its own, providing a solution to almost any manufacturing quandary a customer may find themselves in.