Machine Shop

The Earth & Mineral Sciences Machine Shop is a professionally-staffed facility. We are deeply involved in producing and developing hardware for research and development projects for students, faculty and staff. Although we may be called upon to build a shelf, a shipping crate or a display, the bulk of our output is that of machining, assembling and modifying specialized scientific equipment.

Both conventional (manual) machining and CNC (computer numerical control) machining are used to perform the necessary operation. Our capabilities include precision milling, turning and grinding; brazing, welding and soldering; finishing of materials through buffing, bead-blasting and sandblasting; production of CAD drawings and CAM programs; contour and cutoff sawing, diamond core drilling, cutting and grinding, heat treatment of metals, and precision measurement. Our in-house capabilities are augmented with specialized processes provided by vendors with whom we have developed working relationships.

The quality of our work and the innovative approach we take to problem-solving has been recognized campus-wide. We build and modify furnaces, application-specific cooling systems, vacuum and pressure systems; we machine and modify engine components, and every imaginable support system for testing equipment; we prepare specimens of all kinds for testing and analysis. We have made parts that have been launched into space, and built systems or components for seabed, land-based, geological, seismological and atmospheric testing that are in use in many locations around the world.

While we understand that the real excitement and discovery belong to the people who carry out the research, we are pleased and proud to be a part of the process that makes it possible. Often our customers enter our workspace with just an idea. Other times the idea has already taken shape, and we are approached with one or more problems to solve. Sometimes we get a good drawing with specifics of what is needed. We can usually help, in all three situations, and are able to advise in areas of machining practicality, choices and properties of materials, and with what commercially-available components or accessories may be available to accomplish the required purpose.

To place an order with the EMS Machine Shop, it is best to stop by with a good sketch or drawing of what you need. Scale drawings, if available, will minimize the need for revision after the work has been started. However if your project has not advanced to that stage, please feel free to come to us and to talk about it. Our open-door hours are from 9:30 to noon and from 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays; other times can be arranged if you can’t come in during those hours by calling ahead, 865-4132.