Machine Tool Evaluation for CNC Shops
Objective assessment of your CNC equipment — capability, utilization, and alignment with your current and future part mix.
Know Exactly What Your Machines Can Do
Machine tool evaluation is a systematic assessment of your CNC equipment's capability, condition, and utilization relative to the parts you need to produce. The goal is to determine whether your machines are the right tools for the job — and whether you're getting full value from the investment you've already made.
Many shops buy machines based on what the sales rep recommends rather than what their part mix actually demands. A horizontal machining center with a 15,000-RPM spindle is excellent for aluminum aerospace parts, but it's an expensive mismatch if 80% of your work is low-speed heavy cutting in steel and Inconel. The right machine for the right work is a foundational principle that too many shops overlook.
According to the Association for Manufacturing Technology (AMT), the average CNC machine in a job shop runs at only 40-60% effective utilization. That gap between available capacity and actual output represents a significant unrealized return on capital. Before committing $250,000 to $1.5 million on new equipment, it's worth understanding whether your existing machines are being fully leveraged.
The Streamline Group provides independent, brand-agnostic machine evaluations that give you clear data to make capital equipment decisions with confidence — whether that means buying, upgrading, reallocating, or simply running your current machines differently.
Manufacturing consultant inspecting a CNC machining center spindle and control panel
What Our Machine Evaluation Covers
Every evaluation follows a structured methodology that examines your equipment from both a technical and operational perspective.
Spindle Capability Analysis
We map each machine's spindle speed range, horsepower, and torque curves against your actual cutting requirements. This reveals whether your spindle's power band matches the materials and operations you run most frequently, or whether you're consistently operating outside the optimal zone.
Axis Travel & Positioning Accuracy
We verify axis travel envelopes, positioning accuracy, and repeatability to determine if your machines can hold the tolerances your parts demand. Machines drift over time — what was accurate at installation may no longer be within spec after years of production.
Utilization Rate Measurement
We measure current utilization rates against effective capacity, accounting for planned downtime, setup time, and non-cutting idle time. Most shops overestimate their utilization by 15-25% because they measure machine-on time rather than actual chip-cutting time.
Part Family Fit Analysis
Are the right parts running on the right machines? We analyze your part families — grouping by material, tolerance, feature type, and cycle time — and map them to machine capabilities. Mismatches here are one of the most common sources of lost throughput.
Maintenance Condition Assessment
We evaluate mechanical condition and remaining useful life — including ballscrew backlash, spindle bearing condition, way wear, and hydraulic system health. This determines whether a machine needs repair, rebuild, or replacement and helps you prioritize capital spending.
Gap Analysis & Recommendations
We compare current machine capabilities against both your existing production requirements and planned future work. The result is a prioritized action plan: which machines to keep, which to reallocate, which to replace, and what specifications any new equipment should meet.
Close-up of CNC machine tool spindle during evaluation and measurement
When You Need a Machine Evaluation
A machine tool evaluation delivers the most value at specific decision points in your operation. If you recognize any of these situations, an independent assessment can save significant capital and prevent costly missteps.
- Considering a major capital equipment purchase. Before committing $500K+ to a new machine, confirm that existing equipment can't be better utilized first. Our data frequently shows 20-30% untapped capacity hiding in plain sight.
- Throughput is plateauing despite process improvements. When lean initiatives and setup reduction have been implemented but output still isn't growing, the constraint may be machine capability rather than process efficiency.
- Adding new product lines or materials. Switching from aluminum to titanium, or from prismatic parts to complex 5-axis work, changes the demands on your machines. What worked for your old part mix may not work for the new one.
- Machines are aging and you need a replacement priority plan. With limited capital budget, you need to know which machine to replace first for maximum impact on throughput and quality.
- Unsure if problems are machine-related or process-related. When scrap rates climb or tolerances drift, the root cause could be machine condition, programming, tooling, or fixturing. An evaluation isolates the variable.
- Merging operations or consolidating facilities. When combining two shops into one, you need objective data on which machines to keep, sell, or reallocate to avoid duplicating capability you don't need.
Machine Evaluation vs. Machine Capability Study
These terms are often used interchangeably, but they represent different levels of analysis with different purposes.
Machine Capability Study
A capability study is a statistical analysis focused on dimensional output. It measures whether a machine can hold a specific tolerance on a specific feature by running a sample of parts and calculating process capability indices (Cp, Cpk). The result tells you: "This machine can hold +/-0.0005 on this bore diameter with a Cpk of 1.67."
Capability studies are narrow and tactical — they answer one question about one feature on one machine. They're valuable for qualifying a machine for a specific part number, especially in aerospace and automotive programs that require documented Cpk values.
Machine Tool Evaluation
A machine tool evaluation is a strategic assessment that looks at the entire picture: capability, condition, utilization, part-mix fit, and remaining useful life. It answers broader questions: "Is this the right machine for this work? Are we using it effectively? Should we repair, replace, or reallocate it?"
Evaluations are broad and strategic — they inform capital decisions, capacity planning, and operational priorities. This is what The Streamline Group provides. We give you the data to make confident decisions about your equipment investment.
Need both? If a capability study is required for a specific program qualification, we can incorporate that into the broader evaluation. But for most shops, the strategic evaluation is what drives real improvements in OEE and return on equipment investment.
What the Data Typically Reveals
Industry benchmarks and our field experience show consistent patterns across CNC job shops.
How the Evaluation Works
A structured process that minimizes disruption to your production while delivering thorough, actionable results.
Pre-Visit Data Collection
Before arriving on-site, we review your machine list, part mix data, current production schedules, and any existing OEE or utilization data. This lets us hit the ground running and maximize the value of on-site time. We also identify specific questions or concerns your team wants addressed.
On-Site Assessment (3–5 Days)
We evaluate each machine in your facility — measuring spindle performance, checking axis accuracy, documenting rapid traverse rates and chip-to-chip times, and observing actual production. We talk to your operators because they know things that don't show up in maintenance logs.
Report & Recommendations
Within one week, you receive a detailed evaluation report: machine-by-machine findings, utilization analysis, part-family mapping, and a prioritized action plan. We present findings to your leadership team and answer questions so you can move forward with clarity.
Machine Evaluation FAQ
We are completely brand-agnostic. Our recommendations are based on your specific production requirements — part tolerances, materials, volumes, and budget — not on dealer relationships or manufacturer incentives. If a Haas fits your needs better than a DMG Mori, or vice versa, we'll tell you exactly why. You get an objective recommendation grounded in what your parts actually demand.
Yes. Our evaluation report includes ROI projections, capacity impact analysis, and total cost of ownership comparisons that give your leadership team the financial data they need to approve (or intelligently defer) a capital purchase. We've found that objective third-party data carries significantly more weight in capital approval meetings than internal requests alone.
The on-site assessment typically takes 3 to 5 days, depending on the number of machines and the complexity of your operation. A shop with 8-10 machines usually takes 3 days; larger facilities with 20+ machines may need the full 5 days. The written evaluation report with full recommendations is delivered within one week of the on-site visit. We schedule around your production to minimize disruption.