Our newest YouTube video showing the cutting process of our custom cold air boots. Our new CNC plasma machine has sliced our cut times in half helping to quicken the assembly process here in the fabrication shop.
Finding a Balance With Time Management
One of the hardest things we deal with as a two man small business is time management. Especially since the recent purchase of our new CNC plasma table, with the goal of growing the business, our time is split between many things. Learning a new system, a new way of doing what you've done for over twenty years can be daunting and many things will sadly be neglected in that ongoing process. For my father and I, especially me, it has been keeping up with many responsibilities in regards to the website and social media.
We have recently hired someone to take-on the marketing aspects of the business, but that also requires attention on a daily basis. With more traffic to the website and orders coming through the door, there is more that must be done to be available for our customers. We want to make sure that our customers are finding us online and that we accommodate them, no matter how small the order. Therefore dialing in our search results to make sure keywords etc. are up to date is on my mind constantly, creating more work and time to make sure things are running smooth.
Keeping up with Twitter and Google+ have become a challenge because of the extra work established by our new machinery. I have neglected much of these responsibilities for over a month, which does not help people engage you looking for your services. It's called social media for a specific reason....social reasons. Organizing myself down the road will help me to make sure I am on top of everything. At this point we can't afford to pay for more help, so it falls on my father and I to get things done.
No one said building a business was easy and I am learning quickly that time management will become one of the best things I can learn going forward. No matter how small your company is, look into time management and how it can help you balance your time and goals.
Bending Custom Trunk Duct With 8' Sheet Metal Break
Even though we have stepped up our game in regards to cutting sheet metal, we still kick it old school when it comes to bending all of our custom trunk duct and fittings.
Introducing Our New MultiCam 1000 Plasma Table
Introducing our new MultiCam 1000 Series CNC plasma table!! The last few months of hard work have paid off with the full installation of our new plasma table, finishing up late last week with today being the end of our first full week of production. The table is fantastic and has already saved us time with the multiple jobs that we have already completed. With the installation of our new equipment we can provide customers with faster production times and reduced prices.
Scroll down to see some more photos of the new CNC plasma table and a video of our new toy in action.
If you have any questions about your sheet metal fabrication needs or items you may need cut, please visit our contact page to send us your requests.
Getting Back to Business
After spending the last month and a half getting our new CNC plasma table online, we can finally reap the benefits of our new mechanical employee. The process has been long, but educational with my excitement through the roof with what the future holds for the company. I never realized how much confusion comes with an investment like this one. I figured to be keeping up with most of the jobs I currently have, including the blog, twitter page, marketing, billing etc. with none of these things actually happening. My focus was always somewhere else with most days ending seemingly like nothing had been accomplished. However, things were happening all over the place and work was getting done even in the shadow of the minor problems that came with our new installation.
Now, with the dust settling, my father and I can focus on building the business around our new investment, making strides toward the next big purchase. Not to mention getting my act together in regards to keeping up with the financials, shipping, the blog, marketing and everything else related to running a successful business.
The last few months have been exciting and the next few years will be amazing. Time to get back to business!
Thank You to 'The Fabricator' For Featuring K & E Sheet Metal
I would like to thank Dan Davis and The Fabricator Magazine for asking us to contribute to one of their feature article's in this months issue titled "Developing Shop Employees For The Field". I was more than happy to give an interview to a publication that I have enjoyed and will continue to enjoy. My father and I were thrilled with how the article came out, with much appreciation given to Dan Davis and his team. When I first started in the business, working for my father, I was an installer for our residential and light commercial jobs. I learned a lot about how and what was needed to be fabricated for many different kinds of jobs. That was the simplest part of my job installing and working in peoples homes each day. The hardest part was dealing with customers from a business and personal point of view.
Every customer is different, especially when you are working in their home. Their first inclination is to be skeptical about the stranger in their house. Their second is to wonder if this person will ultimately rip them off. Most of these issues are expected to be taken care of during the quoting process, but this doesn't always put the customer at ease.
These kinds of problems are something I explained during my interview with Dan Davis, The Editor-in-Chief and writer of the article. There is definite psychology to working in a persons home; the hardest part for me as an installer.
My father and I work alone now due to economic conditions, but if we bring on new installers, these are the types of things I would pass along to help and develop new employees for our company.
You can read the article below and be sure to subscribe to The Fabricator Magazine. It's FREE:
Click the link to read the full article
Developing Shop Employees For The Field - The Fabricator
Beginning The Exhaust Fan Installation
Congratulations to the Baltimore Ravens for their well deserved Super Bowl Championship. I cannot say the same for the team building our new transformer however, because their 15-day delivery has hit 21 days and counting. I am beginning to think the item does not exist at all. Nevertheless we push forward with what seems to be the never ending project ( can you sense the sarcasm dripping from my tongue? ). Over the weekend my father and I got started on the exhaust fan vent for the CNC plasma table. The exhaust fan showed up last week, giving us plenty of time to get things started before the possibly fictitious transformer is delivered ;)
I am currently fabricating the square trunk duct for the outlet of the fan, which will 90 degree upwards toward our vent hood to the outdoors. This will be the easiest part to date for this entire project.
The journey continues...