This post is part of an ongoing series of manufacturer profiles. The blogs will cover some of the many manufacturers in the state of Nebraska. Check back later for more posts in the series. To see previous posts in the series, click here.

Last month, we featured Cortland, NE manufacturer Industrial Maid (click here to read the post) in our roundup of Nebraska manufacturers. It’s always difficult to select which manufacturer to feature, because we’re always overwhelmed by the number of hard-working, high-quality companies making product throughout the state.

The manufacturer we’re looking at today is Inter-Motion, a manufacturer that actually works with manufacturers to fix their machines. In other words, they’re partly responsible for keeping many Nebraska businesses in business… so to speak.

Established in 1984, the company has rebuilt more than 1,000 machines in the last 25 years; their passion is taking old machines to new levels. They’re a full service, professional machinery rebuilder and retrofitter, although they also offer services in robotics, automation, custom machine design, and custom manufacturing. The company is still owned by its founders, Jim Zecha and Ronny Roberts, and centrally located in Kearney.

From electric to pneumatic, hydraulic, and lubrication systems, the team can rebuild and retrofit any manufacturing machine in your inventory, despite its age. “Not only can we rebuild it to like-new condition, but we will bring it up to OEM standards of performance, as well as current OSHA standards for safety. At the same time, we can retrofit your old manually or hydraulically operated machine with electric controls and automated processes that lower costs and boost productivity,” the company explains.

In the process of rebuilding a machine, they’ll also evaluate the spindle condition, replace all bearings, inspect and grind bearing journals as required, and grind, scrape, and fit all parts to the point that they’re as good as new. Especially for expensive machines, rebuilding and retrofitting is often much less expensive than purchasing a brand-new version.

The rebuilding and retrofitting process is part of a manufacturing strategy that Michael Holloway calls “ending red time” in a useful article for In other words, companies like Inter-Motion are vital for manufacturers who partake in preventative maintenance, the practice of scheduling the rebuild or replacement of parts or machines prior to failure: “Through recordkeeping, it is possible to determine that certain parts will fail after many hours of operation. Scheduled downtime to administer preventative maintenance became routine, with various parts being rebuilt or replaced prior to failure. It became quickly understood that unscheduled downtime could be reduced dramatically.”

Especially for administrations like the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, for whom equipment failure is simply not an option, corrective actions and potential design changes to machines were of the utmost importance. Preventative maintenance can mean the difference between life and death, in those cases, but is equally as important for tooling or machine manufacturers. For both safety and efficiency reasons, it’s useful to work closely with a company like Inter-Motion, skilled in rebuilding for placement and performance.

To learn more about how Inter-Motion can work for you, check out their website or leave a comment in the section below anytime!

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