Faster Turnaround in the Works
30th May, 2008 by gmdibos in General
First off, my apologies for not having more frequent blog entries. It is difficult to justify writing articles when customers are waiting for their pipes, I’ve discovered.
This entry isn’t to describe a project or procedure, but simply an announcement regarding that backlog. I underestimated how quickly the Internet would allow word about the shop to spread, and the volume of incoming work soon outpaced my ability to turn it around immediately. As the backlog grew, I felt the fairest way handle the incoming boxes was in the order received, and only a few were kept open at a time to avoid confusion. Several months of doing work in that strict first in / first out manner revealed it wasn’t the most efficient. Not knowing until a box was opened that an unusual color of stem stock needed to be ordered—a wait that could have happened while the pipe was working its way to the head of the line—is a good example. It also became clear that in the course of a day short “windows” of time occasionally occurred where a quick-and-easy repair could have been performed without delaying the major projects.
So, a wall of shelving was installed and and filled with removable, numbered, mailroom-style sorting trays, and all incoming boxes will now be opened and unloaded into them immediately. This should permit a “triage” sort of assessment, and (hopefully) more efficient net throughput for the shop.
What I really need, of course, is a full time office manager / packer / un-packer / scheduler / bill payer / errand runner / e-mail answerer that would let me stay in the shop all day, but no luck so far. 
Until then, I’ll just have to keep tuning the overall system for optimum efficiency.
As of this writing, turnaround is about four weeks, and I’m determined not to let it get any longer. Things like Greg Pease’s appraisal, the recent Chicago show, and (the latest) a mention in P&T magazine, are conspiring to make that goal as difficult as possible, however. 
My profoundest thanks to all who have waited for their pipes so far, both finished and returned over the past months, and those still awaiting work. Your patience and understanding is greatly appreciated.