I really enjoy local county fairs and local attractions, because they give us an opportunity to see cool things from the past or something related to the area (and our fair has fresh roasted corn!). Recently at our local fair, the Stanwood Fair, I walked into a building showcasing tools used by...

The BCMC trade show is fast approaching. This trade show, which is held each year, is a great opportunity for you and your team to step outside of your comfort zone to challenge and expand your current beliefs of both equipment investments and vendor services. Just be mindful that sometimes it...

Congratulations! You’ve just purchased a new, state of the art machine to add technology and automation to your factory processes. Concerns about safety, inefficiency, and your bottom line are now in the past. Your staff will be happier, work will be easier, and your customers will be...

Sitting in my Home Office, after 27 years of working from home, I get it. The perks that come with working from home are great and the freedoms that come with it are priceless. There are downsides too. If you haven’t worked from home long term, I will just say that I hope your positives...

To say I was surprised that almost 80% of all small independent home builders, both site and offsite/modular, build less than 4 homes a year is an understatement. That means that only 20% of all small builders in the US build more than 4. Who knew! If your business falls into the 80%,...

Most, if not all, are now caught up in the summer building season to make serious money for their component divisions. However, far too many companies are allowing tens of thousands of dollars to be lost because of commonly accepted bad practices. Practices such as using non-precise labor...

The goal is the same for both a bonus plan and a performance plan—reward an employee for performance. The higher the position, the more defined are the goals. Not many bonuses that are consistently over $10k are subjective. It can’t be about how well departments out of your control...

How did this Australian component manufacturer become involved in offshoring? It started with a trip to Vietnam in 2004, and it ended much differently than I would have expected! I had been operating my company in Australia, Truss-Rite, for 16 years, selling prefabricated wall framing and...

Being only as strong as your weakest link is not only true in sports but also on the production line, whether we are talking about people or equipment. Diagnosing the slowest and least efficient point in any production line is key to having a successful and profitable manufacturing...

My wife Dianne and I were recently going through some of our old family photos and I came across this photo of Dianne’s Dad, Jack Hendershot, as a teenager on his bike delivering ice in the early ’50s. For those who may not know, before the advent of refrigeration and freezing...