It is becoming much more difficult to compete in the global marketplace that we all live in. Whether you are building motorcycles or widgets, there is somebody out there trying to build them cheaper and faster than you. But the question is if they are producing a better product? For some buyers, it doesn’t matter, cheaper is good enough even if the product doesn’t last as long. It is weird and unfortunate, but cheaper has become the slogan and the word of choice for many buyers and companies. Yes, less expensive is better, but less expensive doesn’t necessarily work out for the best. So the object is to build a good, high quality part and to make it of high value to your potential customers. The builders of the product do not establish what they makes’ worth; the customer does. What is the buyer prepared to pay for your service and how much of a demand for your part is there? There are different ways to boost your revenue 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 approach that can increase revenue and keep your organization running lean and efficiently. It all begins with removing unnecessary waste in all aspects of your company. Waste comes innumerous forms and it costs every business more money than they would care to disclose. Waste is when workers are just standing around, but that does not mean that there aren’t orders to be filled. It mightsimply mean that they are waiting for parts to be finished in the painting department or it might mean that they are waiting for product from a supplier. These are method issues that can directly affect the end product and the quantity that you can make. When workers are loafing around, inactive and waiting for the job to come to their area, they are not useful. They are unused and are in effect simply wasting money and time. It is the same when you have machines standing unused. What is the point of having a expensive automated machine if it is not being used for hours a day? Would it be more cost effective to do the process by hand, sell the robot and purchase a piece of equipment that will be more fruitful? What about the area that the equipment is filling, could another work area be put there and more labor actually be finished without the equipment? You can’t say that you don’t want to get rid of something because you might want it. If you are not using it or it is outdated, then it is taking up room and not contributing to the development and profit of thebusiness. It can be hard to admit that purchasing that robot was a bad idea, but if it doesn’t work and doesn’t assit grow the company, then it is time to move on and realize something that does. It is called adapting and moving forward.