Critical Summertime Repeated Problem Areas Hindering Sales Todd Drummond Year after year, too many companies suffer needlessly with the same common problems. Even after making new equipment investments and receiving assurances that things will be different, the old issues keep rearing their heads. ! Even with the additional equipment investment, production... Read More July 2020 Issue #12252 Page 44
Three Conditions for Smarter Margin Application to Make Healthier Profits Todd Drummond Establishing a proper margin to maximize profits for your roof truss component sales is not as easy as most people think. Most do not have a clear understanding of how small changes make a significant impact on the company’s profitability. Making the most profits possible, no matter what... Read More June 2020 Issue #12251 Page 24
Rethinking a Linear Saw Linked to Two Workstations Todd Drummond It seems some people are upset that I made such a public statement with my latest advertisement – “Pairing a Linear Saw with Two Workstations with Each Having Two Assemblers will Cost Your Company Millions in Lost Net Profits.” Specifically, I’m talking about linking... Read More May 2020 Issue #12250 Page 48
Oakland Athletics Baseball and Component Manufacturing? Todd Drummond Anyone who knows me to any degree will tell you I am not a sports fan. I do not follow any professional sports or know much about the players and culture. So it may surprise you to have me compare component manufacturing (CM) to baseball. To be honest, I mean to compare the management practices... Read More April 2020 Issue #12249 Page 53
Too Many LBM-Owned CMs are Operating at a Mediocre Rate Todd Drummond An anonymous former lumberyard CEO of 17 lumberyard locations (LBM) explained to me that his two component manufacturing (CM) plants made up only 10% of his sales yet contributed 30% of his net profits. He wished he had given the CM division far more focus and resources. As a guru for process... Read More March 2020 Issue #12248 Page 51
Possible 30 Days Savings for the Home Builder Using Wall Panels Todd Drummond Did you know that, even though setting wall panels saves an average of eleven days compared to traditional stick-framing of walls, the overall home completion can have an average savings of 30 days when wall panels have been used? For the home builders, every day a home is completed sooner can... Read More February 2020 Issue #12247 Page 29
Look Beyond Manufacturing Improvements to Deliver Better Net Profits for 2020 Todd Drummond Even though the new build season of 2020 is expected to be a good one for most, it likely will be more challenging to retain net profits than many anticipate. Most component manufacturers (CM) have been buying equipment and expanding their operations like crazy. Also, new money has flooded into... Read More January 2020 Issue #12246 Page 51
Small Investments Can Garner Huge Gains for Productivity for Your Sales Team Todd Drummond Last month’s article, “Investment in Employee Training, Not Just Equipment,” produced a lot of good responses from many readers. Now it is time to offer real solutions to help your company improve productivity and reduce costly errors for your sales team and also all of the... Read More December 2019 Issue #11245 Page 27
Investment in Employee Training, Not Just Equipment Todd Drummond Is your company’s budget only for new equipment, but no formal training for your employees? Any time you think about investing for productivity gains, often the first thing that comes to mind is investing in new equipment. All too often, we think we see the situation clearly and can make... Read More November 2019 Issue #11244 Page 47
The Vast Majority of Component Plants Have Too Much Lost Productivity Todd Drummond People make the common mistake of thinking that if they have been doing something for a long time, occasionally have made improvements over the years, and they are working hard and consistently, then they are doing it the best way possible. But the truth is, approximately 80% of truss and wall... Read More October 2019 Issue #11243 Page 28