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Precision is the mark of a perfectionist

Kevin Schlipalius has a fastidious knowledge of precision engineering and it is this skill that has been the back-bone of his family business which, this year, is celebrating 55 years of continuous trade.

By Latrobe City Council - 2nd July 2003 - Back to News

Throughout these years, Traralgon-based Deakin Engineering has been synonymous with precision engineering, with customers ranging from large industry to individual enthusiasts who seek customised components skillfully turned out by Mr Schlipalius.

Mr Schlipalius said that he was taught that close enough is not good enough.

"My work takes a great deal of concentration but there is also immense satisfaction in achieving an outcome that meets the exacting requirements of my customers," Mr Schlipalius said.

During his younger days, Mr Schlipalius, who had always maintained a keen interest in the craft of precision machining, completed a five year fitting and turning apprenticeship with his father.

"My father started this business in 1948 and his original shed still remains at the rear of our current workshop. That shed is testimony to his faith in conducting a business that catered for a select range of clients who required high value, top quality engineering work," Mr Schlipalius explained.

"My father’s clients included the paper manufacturing and power generation industries, as well as many of the sub-contractors to those two key areas. In recent years, I have completed work for Toshiba, Hitachi, Brown Boveri, Yallourn Energy and Fishers Timber," Mr Schlipalius said.

Along the way, Deakin Engineering has earned an Australia-wide reputation for making and supplying competition fire brigade equipment.

According to Latrobe City’s Invest Latrobe Investment Manager, Leo Billington, Deakin Engineering has now been designing, making and supplying competition equipment for over 32 years.

"This equipment is used by fire brigade crews in annual competitions held regularly throughout Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia. Deakin Engineering now has the contract to supply the Fire and Emergency Services Authority of Western Australia all their competition fire fighting equipment. This is in addition to servicing a large proportion of all Country Fire Authority fire fighting equipment for Eastern and Western Victoria," Mr Billington said.

"Mr Schlipalius has an innate ability to quickly assess what does and does not work, and why," Mr Billington added. "With this talent, he has perfected the art of machining, from a raw piece of material, specific purpose all steel Y-pieces, back caps, brassware, nozzles, brass coupling tails and the like; in fact everything a competitive fire brigade crew would want," Mr Billington said.

However, Mr Schlipalius still welcomed all types of machining work into his factory.

"I enjoy the challenge which means I take on many and varied tasks. These may include parts for sewing machines, vintage cars and various types of machinery, drill and saw sharpening, servicing rotor broach cutters, maintenance on chipper knives for Latrobe City’s tree mulchers, servicing punches and dies for steel fabricators and sharpening cropper blades for steel guillotines," Mr Schlipalius explained.

Mr Schlipalius also recently participated in one of the Latrobe City Small Business Network’s programs to devise a business action plan. Together with 29 other Latrobe City based businesses, Deakin Engineering’s action plan will assist in determining how future business goals are achieved.

Mr Schlipalius recommended the program for its value in preparing the business for the future.

Source: www.gippsland.com

Published by: news@gippsland.com

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