It is becoming more and tougher to compete in the global marketplace that we all exist in. Whether you are making motorcycles or widgets, there is someone out there trying to make them cheaper and quicker than you. But the question is if they are producing a superior item? For some people, it doesn’t matter, cheaper is good enough even if the item doesn’t last as long. It is strange and unfortunate, but cheaper has become the catchphrase and the word of choice for many people and organizations. Yes, less expensive is better, but cheaper doesn’t always work out for the best. So the goal is to make a first-rate, high quality item and to make it of high value to your buyers. The builders of the product do not establish what they makes’ value; the buyer does. What is the consumer ready to pay for your service and how big of a demand for your product is there? There are different ways to increase your earnings for your product.
You can always raise the price and pass it off to the buyer. But there is a better way, a more long term way that can increase profits and keep your business operating lean and efficient. It all starts with eliminating unnecessary waste in all aspects of your business. Waste comes inlots of forms and it costs every company more money than they would care to confess. Waste is when workers are just standing around, but that does not mean that there aren’t orders to be made. It mightmerely mean that they are waiting for parts to be finished in the painting department or it could mean that they are waiting for product from a vendor. These are procedure concerns that can directly influence the end product and the speed at which you can produce. When workers are sitting around, inactive and waiting for the work to come to their work station, they are not productive. They are under used and are in effect just wasting money and time. It is the same when you have machines sitting quiet. What is the point of having a costly automated machine if it is not being used for hours a day? Would it be more cost effective to do the job by hand, sell the robot and buy a piece of equipment that will be more productive? What about the space that the machine is filling, could another work station be put there and more labor actually be completed without the equipment? You can’t say that you don’t want to do away with tools because you might need it. If you are not utilizing it or it is obsolete, then it is taking up room and not contributing to the development and profit of theorganization. It can be tricky to admit that buying that machine was a bad idea, but if it doesn’t work and doesn’t assit build the company, then it is time to move forward and find something that does. It is called adapting and going forward.