The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Micro Labs Inc. prepares for growth
A passion for metrology and a gap in the industry needing to be filled led Keith Kokal to the beginnings of Micro Laboratories, Inc., a local business that calibrates gauges for manufacturers.
In 1987, Kokal founded Micro Laboratories in Eastlake and has since been headquartered in Mentor for decades at 7158 Industrial Park Blvd. There, precise manufacturing equipment is calibrated and certified to the highest accredited standards, serving the automotive, medical, aerospace, nuclear and commercial industries.
“We exist because many years ago, there were a lot of larger companies in this region and their quality departments would maintain the gauges oftentimes for their suppliers,” Kokal said. “As those larger companies moved out, there was still a need for that service here. I started micro labs to fill that gap.”
Instead of customers having duplicate equipment in more than one place, they are able to have one place available that has the equipment, which saves them a lot of money and time, Kokal said. Additionally, Micro Laboratories is accredited by the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation, A2LA.
In order to be accredited, A2LA sends in an expert in metrology to the lab, which will be done virtually this year, Kokal said. The expert then determines that the company has the proper equipment, environment and training, as well as being competent to do the task, he said.
“We are expanding our scope and increasing our capabilities this year by a pretty fair amount, so much that we’re going to have two accessors for the first time ever,” Kokal said.
Ten are currently employed at Micro Laboratories. Among those 10 are Amber, Garett and Tyler, Kokal’s children. The business was off last year and is off this
“I tried other things, but this turned out to be my passion. I love the science. It’s really cool stuff ...” —Keith Kokal, founder
year, Kokal said.
“It wasn’t terrible because it gave us time to take a few steps back and determine our future growth plans,” Kokal said. “We purchased new equipment, we did employee training, improved our expertise, so we’re preparing for the next growth phase.”
One of the things customers gain by having their equipment calibrated is that oftentimes, a car engine for example, parts are made in surrounding states, Kokal said. When they all come together at the assembly plant, the parts fit and they function because companies are using properly calibrated equipment, he said.
“A lot of companies around here are ISO 9000 and some of them even have flags in front of their building because it’s a big achievement to reach that level of certification,” Kokal said. “In order
to to be certified to that, their equipment is required to be traceable to the National Institute of Standards and Technology — our government.
“We provide that traceability, so we help them achieve their goal, which then helps them sell their products and grow their business.”
When Kokal’s daughter, Amber, joined the company, it was a whole new world to her, she said.
“I still do some work in schools and we are seeing a big push in the local area,” Amber said. “It’s very exciting for our counties and our region to be playing such an active role in kind of a resurgence of enthusiasm for the trades, for manufacturing.”
With manufacturing and the trades having important roles, she is proud to be a part of some organizations that are local that are making a huge difference.
“Now is a good time to be in the manufacturing field,” she said. “If you think about car manufacturers, airplane parts, military components, medical pieces — we want those to be the size they’re supposed to be.
“We want that landing gear on that airplane to work,” she continued. “Manufacturers send their equipment or their measuring equipment to us because we are able to hold it to the highest standard, and make sure it is measured as tight as possible to make sure these companies are actually making what they’re making and that it works and increases safety and overall quality.”
Amber said one area of growth the company has recently seen is other calibration labs and similar companies coming to them
“We have a lot of customers now that are other calibration labs sending their stuff to us, which is really exciting,” Amber said. “It’s neat to see that growth in that area and that we can service a calibration lab, and that they trust us to hold their equipment to the higher standard.”
With the company’s new equipment that was recently purchased, everything is more streamlined, Amber said.
“We’re increasing the accuracy of what we’re able to do because of laser technology,” she said. “It’s going to improve not just the quality, but remove some of the human error. It’s an exciting time to be investing.”
As a “serial entrepreneur,” Keith Kokal said he knew he was going to have his own business someday, but he didn’t know it was going to be metrology.
“I tried other things, but this turned out to be my passion. I love the science,” he said. “It’s really cool stuff and then, just to make it better, is working with my daughter, Amber, both of my sons, Garett and Tyler and in today’s case, Blue (Kokal’s golden retriever).”