Graco Inc.

Graco machines the internal fluid pathways inside its pumps — the bore profiles, surface finishes, and seal-seat angles — to tolerances tight enough that the spray pattern a gun produces is fixed by the shape of the metal rather than by any adjustable setting. Because changing how a coating atomizes means re-engineering the machined geometry rather than reprogramming a controller, the same engineers who model pump hydraulics also have to understand atomization physics and machining constraints, and that three-way expertise is what competitors cannot buy by assembling pumps and spray guns from separate suppliers. Once a pump is installed in an automotive paint booth or an adhesive dispensing line, replacing it requires requalification testing against the facility's coating standards and physical rework of the pneumatic connections, so customers rarely switch even when a cheaper alternative exists. The whole business depends on keeping the engineers who close the geometry-to-atomization design loop — machining centers can be purchased, but if those engineers leave faster than replacements can be trained into all three domains, the capability that makes the tolerances meaningful disappears with them.