01
Operational turnaround
A 20-year paper-and-pencil operation, rebuilt into a real-time, data-driven one. Underneath the systems work was a business-model change: a commodity maquila renting machine time at $4.55 a piece became an OEM design partner pricing at $24.22. Same factory, fundamentally different business.
5.3×
ASP expansion
$4.55 → $24.22 per piece
$4.55 → $24.22 per piece
2x
Revenue per employee, monthly
$6,157 → $12,687
$6,157 → $12,687
80%
Effective tax rate reduction
24% → 4.6%
24% → 4.6%
0
Absentee days per employee
every month since 2021
every month since 2021
| Metric | Starting point | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue per unit | $4.55 | $24.22 |
| Revenue per employee, monthly | $6,157 | $12,687 |
| On-time delivery | 12-week lead times | 90%+ in under 30 days |
| Inventory turns | 3–6 month holds | 4x, JIT |
| Effective tax rate | 24% | 4.6% · cut 80% |
| Absentee days per employee, monthly | 25 at peak, 2014 | Zero from 2021 |
| Headcount | 30 | 7 |
Financial profile · at exit
26.1%
Adjusted EBITDA margin
owner-operator adjusted, PE underwriting basis
owner-operator adjusted, PE underwriting basis
65.5%
Gross margin
COGS 34.5% of net revenue
COGS 34.5% of net revenue
29.6%
Seller's discretionary earnings
search-fund convention
search-fund convention
0
Debt
machinery fully depreciated
machinery fully depreciated
Non-GAAP, owner-operator-adjusted basis; recast from Mexican NIF to a U.S. GAAP-equivalent format for comparability. Reported EBITDA runs lean by design in a closely-held company. The adjusted figure re-isolates economic profit. Full bridge and methodology available on request.
Value-creation playbook
The levers, in the order they mattered. This is the same playbook a sponsor runs post-close. I ran it as the owner-operator.
| Lever | Operator move | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Mix-shift repositioning | Maquila and private label to OEM design partner. Inverted the mix from 80:20 remanufactured-to-specials into specials-led; moved end-markets from auto-only into aerospace, EV, and power generation. | Customer mix de-risked; pricing power earned |
| Portfolio rationalization | Pruned low-margin SKUs and refocused capacity on high-complexity specialty tooling. | ASP 5.3× |
| Capability investment | Built an in-house engineering team, a Design Center, and high-end CAD; relaunched the brand and rebuilt go-to-market. | $713K → $1.57M sales in 24 months |
| Labor efficiency | Pay-for-performance bands tied to skill and quality rather than tenure; mentor pairings; attendance bonuses; managed out those who couldn't meet the standard. | Revenue per FTE 2.06×; absenteeism to 0–1 days |
| Working-capital discipline | Min/max and serialized inventory, supplier long-term agreements, customer stocking agreements, expedite SLA premium. | 12-week lead times → 90%+ OTD under 30 days |
| Pricing & commercial ops | Sales playbooks, emergency-order premium, killed uncommitted "cowboy" quoting, trade-show GTM build. | Pricing power institutionalized |
| Tax & cash optimization | Multi-year tax planning, FX exposure controls, debt-free balance sheet preserved. | Effective tax 24% → 4.6% |
| Systems modernization | Odoo ERP, the fourth implementation and the one that stuck. CRM with shop-floor tablets, Notion playbooks, KPI dashboards. | Real visibility into cash, inventory, quality |
What came off the floor
Precision cutting tools in carbide, ceramic, cermet, PCD, and CBN, plus copper electrodes, for Tier 1 automotive, aerospace, power generation, and rail.
