In 1956, Milon Viel and his father-in-law Ross Clarke, founded Metal Cutting Service as aluminum window frame manufacturers. Formerly in the Air Force, Viel  had worked for Douglas Aircraft and Clarke had retired as a co-pilot and mechanic for Hearst Airlines in San Simeon. In the beginning the two men designed and built window frames at night in a modest building in South El Monte, California.

With the aerospace industry in Southern California rapidly growing, Viel and Clarke sought out opportunities to put their experience and skill sets to better support the area's saw cutting needs.

Local businesses learned of their machine's metal cutting capabilities and began asking the men to cut parts. Light bulbs went off as Viel and Clarke recognized an opportunity to provide a distinct saw cutting service to local machine shops and other businesses that had no means to cut their own material. With the aerospace industry in Southern California rapidly growing, the men sought opportunities to put their skills and experience to use by purchasing more and diverse saws and incorporating their business under the name Metal Cutting Service.