Making Sparks

Most fab shops dream of growth. Few are ready when it comes.

Jesse Kleiman didn’t just grow JR Metal Works — he scaled it from a garage startup to a 70-person team taking on enterprise-level contract…

Most golf brands take the shortcut: outsource, import, slap on a logo.

Jared decided to do it the hard way. ⠀ In this episode, we dig into the Hanna Golf story — how a sales guy became a maker, bough…

In this MakingSparks episode, Casey and Matthew talk with Keith — a leader whose career has been shaped by both running a fabrication shop and now serving as General Manager at Fabrication Solutions …

What happens when a self-proclaimed “mechanically deficient” leader takes the reins of a 170-person fabrication business? For Brandon Stanchock, it meant leaning into curiosity, asking “dumb” questio…

What do you do when your fab shop isn’t broken—but you know it could be better?

In this episode, Alfonso Aramburo joins us from Southern California to talk about the work he does turning around under…

What does it take to run a fab shop, scale a personal brand, and merge two business models—without losing your mind?

In this episode, the Ross Brothers, Rodney Ross & Austin Ross joined us from South…

What does it really look like to step in as 2nd Generation & a lead a fabrication shop when the 1st Generation is still helping run it? 

In this episode, Jason Hayes, President of Top Coat Fabricatio…

In this episode, we sit down with Meaghan Ziemba, founder of Mavens of Manufacturing, for a conversation that goes way beyond marketing tactics. We’re talking about what really builds trust in this i…

In Part 2 of our chat with Parker Huncilman, we get into what happened after the deal was done. From day-one chaos to tough conversations with employees, Parker walks us through what it really looked…

In this episode of MakingSparks, we dive what went into a first-of-its-kind merger between two 5th generation Metal Fabrication shops: NIX® Industrial and Huncilman Sheet Metal. Hosts Casey and Matth…

Jake LeGrand joins us to talk about the grind, the grit, and the growth — both in the shop and online.

By day, he’s an architectural engineer. By night, he’s building a brand with a welding torch and…

Most small manufacturers don’t realize they’re being quietly supported by one of the most impactful public-private partnerships in the country. The Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) has long …

Nush Ahmed, better known as 'Miss Swiss' joins us to discuss her journey in the machining world, her massive growth through social media, and how she is encouraging the next generation to give the Ma…

In this episode of MakingSparks, we sit down with John King, owner of JK Welding, whose story of grit, perseverance, and passion for the trade embodies the spirit of metal fabrication. From starting …

Most fabrication shops struggle with quoting—whether it’s using outdated spreadsheets, clunky ERP systems, or just not having the time to do it right. In this episode, we sit down with Jason Ray, CEO…

In this episode, Casey and Matthew sit down with Beau Wigington from Weld.com to explore how digital content is reshaping welding education and career growth. Beau shares his journey from being a mus…

In this episode, Matthew and Casey sit down with Lee from Bryzos to dive into how the company is reshaping the steel pricing landscape and offering innovative solutions to fabricators. They dive into…

In this special FABTECH edition of Making Sparks, Casey Voelker and Matthew Nix sit down with Nick Goellner and Mike Payne to explore the value of conferences like FABTECH for driving business growth…

In this special FABTECH edition of Making Sparks, Casey Voelker and Matthew Nix sit down with two incredible guests, Barbie the Welder and Sarah Stotk, to dive into the artistry, resilience, and tran…

In this special FabTech edition episode, we sat down with Jim Mayer, Founder of the Manufacturing Connector, and Mike Payne, Owner at Hill Manufacturing and the host of Buy the Numbers, to discuss th…