Dan Brown Joins Compass Operating Company in Westford, Massachusetts
WESTFORD, MA – December 23, 2025 – For a company such as Bergeron Machine, an Operations Manager is key to a smooth-running shop floor. It’s vital not only for machining purposes but from a leadership perspective.
Dan Brown has come to the Compass Precision operating company to provide both facets of the job. Bergeron Machine announced Tuesday it has hired Dan as its new Operations Manager.
He arrived at the machine shop in Westford with about a decade and a half of previous manufacturing experience. Dan worked two years at Saliga Machine prior to his first day at Bergeron, which was October 27.
“This was in my wheelhouse as far as the machining we’re doing,” Dan said. “Being able to fix issues on the floor for the guys and see them appreciate it and kind of get us more into a team mentality, it’s been rewarding. Everything goes better if you work together.”
Bergeron has typically had strong leadership since becoming a Compass operating company in April 2023. But after a couple departures on the management team, hiring someone such as Dan became an essential need for Bergeron.
“They were lacking direction. Just somebody being there even to tell them they are doing a good job. It goes a long way when you treat your employees as you want to be treated.”
”Finding someone with Dan’s experience, skill set, and initiative is challenging,” explained Dave Giampa, Bergeron’s President. “I knew almost immediately upon interviewing Dan that he would be a great fit with us.”
“We love people who are all in on CNC machining,” added Compass CEO Gary Holcomb. “Dan is one of those guys.”
At Saliga, Dan worked in the lathe department. The company focused on larger scale machining, which included making rings more than 20 inches in diameter.
Dan said he learned a lot at Saliga and enjoyed the work. But the opportunities to grow at the company were scarce.
He saw Bergeron as a golden chance to work at a smaller machine shop with strong financial support from a corporate backing.
“The biggest problem small machine shops have is being able to support their employees with the tools, the inserts, the maintenance on the machines, and the training,” Dan said. “But here, if we need it for a job, we order it or we already have it. There’s no question whether or not we need tooling or whether or not we should change an insert.
“The only way you can make money with these parts is by using the right tools. Bergeron, i.e. Compass allows us to do that.”
One of Dan’s first tasks at Bergeron was to get the company’s new Tornos Multi-Spindle Swiss Screw Machine fully operational. Dan stressed the training Compass arranged for him and his fellow Bergeron employees to receive on the machine greatly helped get the state-of-the-art Swiss screw-machine running.
The operating company was installing the Tornos machine during Dan’s interview process. The opportunity to work with the impressive piece of equipment was another draw to Bergeron for Dan.
During his first year at Bergeron, Dan aims to accomplish goals both on the shop floor and with the company’s working culture.
“I want to get us ahead. I want to be ready for the jobs that are coming in and get delivery dates out on time,” Dan said. “In the short term, to achieve that, we need to get every machine in the building up and running and every program as fast as we can.
“I want to foster a better community to work in. When people work together, and there’s positivity, everything goes better.”
Dan has been working in machine shops since college. Prior to that, he attended vocational high school, where he learned CNC machining.
His first full-time position was with D&R Products, where he worked for 12 years. Over his tenure, Dan rose to production manager.
Founded in 1948, Bergeron Machine is located in Westford, MA, which is about 30 miles northwest of Boston. The 14,700-square foot facility specializes in precision Swiss-styled CNC machining.
Bergeron manufactures extremely tight tolerances and works with a variety of difficult-to-work-with materials such as Inconel, Monel and titanium.
Compass purchased Bergeron Machine as its eighth operating company. It was the parent company’s first operating company in Massachusetts.
Compass acquired Pocasset Machine on Cape Cod in July 2025 as its ninth operating company. The parent company’s most recent acquisition was Truton Corporation in Troy, Michigan in November.
For more information about Bergeron and Compass, please contact Jim Miller, Compass VP of Sales at jim.miller@compassprecision.com.