Solving the "Black Box" of Motion Control Technical Support

CLN manufactures heavy-duty fabrication equipment, including CNC router tables and automated channel letter bending machines for the signage industry. When McKenzie acquired the business in 2023, he found the company reliant on an overseas servo vendor that had become a problem. The vendor had discontinued the legacy servo motors used across CLN’s machines, forcing a transition to a new platform. The transition was made more difficult by long lead times and technical support that McKenzie felt was more theoretical than hands-on, making implementation even more difficult than expected.

To stabilize production, CLN began retrofitting their 3-axis CNC router tables with Teknic ClearPath servo systems. ClearPath is an all-in-one brushless servo system that integrates the motor, high-resolution encoder, drive electronics, and motion controller into a single compact package. By eliminating the need for a separate drive in the control cabinet, ClearPath drastically reduces component count and failure points.

“We had to do a full platform change, switching over to you guys with the routers. You made that extremely easy,” McKenzie says.

The transition allowed CLN to remove bulky drives and simplify the cabinet wiring, a shift McKenzie sees as a move toward “Industry 4.0.” He adds, “Steps like this of integrating control and motion and technology into the motor itself is steps towards that direction.”

Success with the routers gave CLN the confidence to address their most complex engineering hurdle: the Fusion Channel Letter machine. Unlike the standard routers, the Fusion is a more complex system relying on custom interface boards to bend and form metal signage. McKenzie had "dreaded" converting this machine because the previous vendor’s integration support had been less than stellar, and led to field failures.

“We’re in the thick of reverse engineering several things with that machine,” McKenzie admits.

CLN replaced the imported servos with ClearPath. Despite the proprietary nature of the machine’s control boards, the integration process was rapid. Teknic’s engineering team worked directly with CLN’s lead technician to map the signals and tune the motion.

“As of yesterday, we had motion and control after about a week of working back and forth, which is good in my opinion,” McKenzie says.

For McKenzie, the decisive factor was not just the hardware, but the quality of the engineering partnership. Rather than vaguely pointing to "gain values," Teknic support engineers utilize tools like the ClearPath MSP software scope—which visualizes diagnostics like actual torque, velocity, and tracking error in real-time—to provide concrete, actionable answers.

“My team speaks with Teknic application engineers all the time,” McKenzie says.

This direct line to knowledgeable engineers allows CLN to bypass the "theory" and focus on production. It has become the primary reason CLN continues to expand the relationship.

“The product is great, the pricing is good, the lead times are great, but for us, the support has been why we continue to invest,” McKenzie says.

Standardizing on Teknic also strengthens CLN’s brand identity. As a manufacturer that markets itself as "the most vertically integrated and American-made" in its sector, sourcing domestic components is a strategic advantage. While competitors struggle with 90-to-120-day lead times for imported parts, Teknic’s US-based manufacturing enables just-in-time delivery for CLN.

With the upcoming launch of a third product line, CLN has fully committed to the partnership.

“Across the board we’re using you guys for servo motor control,” McKenzie confirms.