Mastercam Joining the Sandvik Group – What does it mean?

You may have heard the news that CNC Software (Mastercam) has been acquired by Sandvik. Having been tightly coupled with Mastercam for over 34 years – 31 years with Cimquest and for almost 3 years prior with another reseller – you can imagine my concern with the news. I purposely held off on sending out my own personal message around this news so that I could adequately absorb and understand the impact of this change to both Cimquest and our customer base.

As challenging as it can be I always attempt to be as honest and transparent as possible and feel that has served me very well over the course of my lifetime. Those who do not really know me well may think that because Cimquest is highly vested with CNC Software that I will be tempted to spin this news so that it does not reflect the true reality of the situation. So if you are skeptical of my honesty and transparency, you can stop reading now….

Great! You are still with me! CNC Software has been owned and operated by the Summers family for almost 40 years. They have created a unique formula for success that is the envy of the CAD/CAM world. I have had the challenge of partnering with dozens of companies as their Value Added Reseller and unfortunately, there has not been one partner who has lived up to the gold standard that CNC Software has defined. That gold standard includes such basic principles such as mutual trust, mutual respect, a clear division of labor and responsibilities, stability in the business model as well as a willingness to not only to listen to their channel partners and customers but also to drive necessary change based on that feedback.

Now you would think that these principles should be commonplace, but sadly I have yet to have another relationship where all of those principles were in place. These very simple but rare ingredients take many years to bake the perfect relationship but, once established, form the bedrock of a partnership that creates legacies such as Mastercam.

One of the most important ingredients is trust. Throughout my 34 year relationship with Mark Summers and more recently Meghan, I have not only learned to trust them but also their decision-making process. While other companies constantly make very short-term decisions that may be a short-term positive but a long-term disaster, the ownership of CNC Software has time and time again looked way into the future, sometimes making uncomfortable decisions that have proven to be the right choice for the long term.

I can imagine that CNC Software has been approached a multitude of times over the past few decades by many different companies with an interest in acquiring the world’s leading developer of CAM technology. Why did they do this now? Were they in financial trouble and needed the money? I doubt it. Did they lose their passion for the business and the manufacturing industry? Having been in many meetings with them over the past year or two I sincerely doubt that as well.

So why did they do this? Personally, I feel that this was eventually going to happen at some point as nothing is forever and, with Sandvik, they found the perfect partner who recognizes and understands the culture, long-term vision, and recipe for success.

I was in a meeting this morning with the President of Sandvik Design & Planning Automation – Mathias Johansson. It was refreshing to hear directly from Sandvik management how they recognize how truly important it is to keep the rare set of components in place to ensure the continued growth and success of Mastercam. I will also point to Sandvik’s official announcement which stated “Mastercam will be the cornerstone in Sandvik’s CAM portfolio.” This is a very powerful statement and should provide you confidence that Mastercam will still be the major force in the CAM space for the foreseeable future.

So what is not changing:

  • Meghan West will continue in her role as CEO/President
  • Senior management will stay in place
  • Their focus on producing the best technology for CNC Programmers
  • Creative and operational control will still be in the hands of the CNC Software executive team
  • The headquarters of CNC Software in Tolland, CT
  • The business entity of CNC Software
  • The name and branding of Mastercam
  • Their desire to create the best customer experience
  • Cimquest’s dedication and commitment to Mastercam and our valued customer base

What will change:

  • Access to additional R&D funds for driving Mastercam into the future
  • Access to additional resources, talent, and IP beyond what would have been previously possible.

Sandvik has made many other acquisitions in the past and a very common thread is that they do not mess with success.

So what does this mean to you? You are in good hands and your investment in Mastercam and Cimquest will continue uninterrupted and this change should better ensure a rapid pace of technological improvements that will benefit your company’s manufacturing initiatives.

As always, I am here for you if you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to contact me at rhassold@cimquest-inc.com or 732-699-0400 x220.

Thank you for your partnership and for allowing us to provide you with our service and support.

Rob Hassold
Cimquest Founder/CEO