Back to Lean Management

Once again, we are back to practicing lean management!  We would guess that your business already has a program in line to use for lean management but perhaps it would be a good idea to try a different approach and incorporate something a little different. Lean manufacturing optimizes processes and eliminates waste.  This helps cut costs and taking a few hours to inspect a situation more closely can also enhance safety of an operation.

People are constantly trying to make sense of the world the live in.  They form opinions about every interaction and situation they experience.  It is only logical to find that when two people stand in different locations they see things differently and though each has a point of view no two are ever quite the same.
 
We at GHC use the Takt Time formula: available production time / customer demand per day.  The variables can easily be modified and we admit that we quickly learned that activities that do not contribute need to be eliminated as these non-value added steps are a waste.  

Large facilities will prefer to use something that is more sophisticated such as the Six Sigma program.  Six Sigma is a set of techniques developed by Motorola in 1985.  Motorola determined that processes vary over time but the company had years of data that they had collected.  The formula for Six Sigma is:
     Defects Per Million Opportunities (DPMO) = ((Total Defects) / (Total Opportunities)) per million
     Defects (%) = ((Total Defect) / (Total Opportunities)) per 100
     Yield (%) = 100 - (Defect Percentage)
     process Sigma = NORMSINV (1-((Total Defects) / (Total Opportunities))) +1.5

Six Sigma works great when long term information is available to work with but GHC is small and doesn't mass produce anything.

The whole idea of Lean Management is simple and can be applied to any situation.  First, identify the waste. Second, analyze the waste and find the cause of the problem.  Third, correct the cause problem.  Repeat each month or every ten working days.

Both techniques mentioned above are proven solutions for fixing waste within an organization.  Benefits of a company's effort include increase in productivity, reduced space requirements, and improvements in quality.
Visit our This Matters page and find more ideas.   

Using Your Voice

How many of you use your voice in our government? Currently there are 122 open petitions directed to the White House that require signatures to advance to the next level of review. Some seem to be personal but some need our attention.  

One of the petitions that we should be paying attention to asks the president to End His Assault on our Nation's Coal Mining Families.  I can't imagine a world without coal and can't understand why it would be considered a mistake.

What I do see as a mistake is 18 day vacations that are scheduled by elected officials who haven't done their jobs properly while there are two new food assistance recipients for every one job created.  I just don't see this as a job well done that is deserving of reward.

If elected officials want to create a legacy for themselves they should not be doing to at the expense of the hard working, tax paying citizens of their country. 

Please help our coal mining industry by signing the petition so we can keep those 700,000 plus people working.

Gold Rush - an American Dream

We've been waiting to read the article about Dave Turin of Gold Rush in Aggregates Manager's July issue. Today the issue arrived and we were thrilled to see Gold Rush right on the cover!

It was refreshing to read that Dave Turin questioned Todd Hoffman and his vision from the very beginning. I know that as my family and I watched Gold Rush through the seasons I wondered aloud how these guys could simply up and leave the lives they had established to follow a dream. The television series never really showed us how much consideration any one of these men had put in to their decision, but they did think long and hard about their choices.

We were all happy to read that Dave Turin contacted KPI-JCI/Astec Companies not only based on his past experience with the company but because of it being an American company with local ties.  

As a 'Friday evening miner' I will say that I saw many mistakes but these Gold Rush guys were not unaware of their mistakes. They're still willing to take a chance and willing to make mistakes while they are following their dreams.

Don't miss Michelle Cwach's inspiring article, Golden Boy, in Aggregates Manager and be ready to tune in to Discovery Channel on August 2 when the new season starts.

http://www.kpijci.com/

Georgianna Hardware Corporation

Picking Your Dream Design

I read a lot. I jump from subject to subject all day long and even leave the television muted so I can read the ticker at the bottom of the screen. While I was using my computer today I quickly typed in a search and a document entitled, “Picking Your Dream Design” appeared in my search results. I read through the document and decided I would share the key comments with you. The question? What was the article about? (answer below)

     Even though it's popular, many people will end up regretting it.

     Instead of trying to save some money, you should never make

     a choice based on how cheap it is.

     Cheaper companies normally lack in work quality, 

     which is why they are able to charge cheaper prices.

     Instead, you should look for the best company that you can find

     close to your area.  Even though it may be expensive – the quality

     and design will be well worth it.

     Sometimes, it can be hard picking out your dream design. If you have

     an idea in mind but are still not sure what you want, you can always

     do research.

     Use books, magazines, or just research online. By looking at designs you 

     may find something similar to what you would like.

     If you start with a fraction of your dream design,

     you can always finish it up later on.

     You should decide carefully. If you put the necessary time 

     and thought into it now, you won’t regret it later.

We all have dreams and visions of things that we desire. What was the article about? Remodeling a kitchen or a tattoo? The answer: a tattoo. There are times that we should take the time to think about our designs.

Georgianna Hardware Corporation

Do You Need Advertising Ideas?

It's that time of year when we take time to review and see if we've veered from the path that we set out on.   With all of the changes that we've been making it may be that you missed our Advertising Ideas page and perhaps we have an idea that will work for you.  All of the information is available free of charge.

One of our ideas is to have your press releases and ads published in local newspapers.  This idea is simple and low cost, much like the others we have.  Maybe complicated, high dollar advertising packages aren't for everybody.

Shop Local for Equipment

I was listening to talk radio the other night and heard someone say that we have to consciously do things to change the world. The theory is that when people join together in small groups and have like-minded spirits, the group can make changes.

We started Georgianna Hardware Corporation a few years ago because we didn't believe that everything was hopeless.  Since we started the business, we have met many incredible people and organizations and #FBLT came to mind.  The folks involved in #FBLT believe that social media is beneficial to their business. I'm still on the fence about that because I crunch numbers down to the crumbs, but I still believe that we can make a difference!

I am consciously making it a point to remind you to shop local.  In this case, if you are seeking a forklift please contact Toyota Lift of Minnesota, Toyota Forklifts of Atlanta, or Decker Forklifts  of Bedford Heights, OH.  Depending on your situation, you might want to visit Bid on Equipment of Algonquin, IL. BoE has nation wide listings for industrial, process, and packaging equipment.

The businesses we've mentioned here all know their equipment and they will work with you to get you what you need.  

http://www.georgiannahardwarecorporation.com/    

Fourth of July

Today was Thursday, July 4^th.  All week the weather was predicted to be miserable and my husband is expected to be at work on Friday.  Knowing this, I planned meals that did not require us to be outside with the grill and didn't place a lot of expectations on myself to have the best July 4th of my life but I did want to see the fireworks.

From the time I got up I tried to make the best of my day. No need to rush through my morning coffee, my focus was on the planned meals.  I took a few extra minutes to play with the cat.  I kept thinking of the fireworks and started to lay my plans out to the family so that I would have company for the 10pm display. Not going to miss out, I started recruiting about 6pm.  I issued reminders at 7:30pm.  We need to leave at 9pm to arrive in time to get a decent parking space for the 10pm display.  We'll need snacks, drinks, music for the ride, blankets for the grass.

9pm arrives and I am in the car backing out of the garage.  Gosh, a few shimmering drops of rain.  I had checked the weather and it looked like something was headed our way, but we're off to the fireworks!

We got three miles down the road and the sky opened up.  There was no need for music because the violent pounding of raindrops on the vehicle made it so we couldn't hear one another speak.  Somebody yelled something about, “couldn't see”.  The car struggled to maintain its speed as the winds forced it to slow. Amazingly enough the rain turned to a deluge and I could hardly see the lines on the highway.  There was a muffled yell about the reflective markers placed in the highway but we had headed out to see the fireworks and nothing was going to stop us now.

We arrived safely at the church and I pulled into a parking space. The rain had quieted down some and incredibly it appeared as though the display would occur as scheduled.  More cars pulled into the lot. People arrived on foot and more cars loaded with families arrived.  We heard the explosion of a test firework used to announce the anticipated display.  People around us started to get out of their vehicles.  Behind me, a family with young children came and sat on the back porch stairs of the church.  More people exited their cars, some with umbrellas and some braving the drizzle with a light jacket.

We were fourteen minutes into the display when the rainfall increased and the winds picked up. Umbrellas were quickly inverted by the wind. I watched in wonder as small children righted them before their parent arrived to help. The display continued and umbrellas continue to be righted. I saw a few fathers get in their vehicle and noticed that the young children behind me had been safely removed from the porch stairs.

Sixteen minutes later and the Grand Finale occurred as the rain continued to fall. The sky was filled with vibrant colors, and the red white and blue seemed to be given special elevation. The wind calmed enough so that the umbrellas worked properly but it was too late, their users were soaked. The Grand Finale ended and people began to meander back to their vehicles.

Every time I think about the wind, rain, and the inverted umbrellas I laugh so hard that I cry. Today's meals were great, being with the family was great but being in a crowd of independent people on July 4 celebrating our country's independence is awesome!

Independence: a condition of a nation, country, or state in which its residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over the territory.

I'm Taking Over For The Day!

My name is Maria Calderara. I have worked behind the scenes at GHC since 2011. I generally handle accounting but today I decided to take over the blog. My rant follows, please share if you agree!

This past weekend I went shopping for a pair of shorts. After choosing a few pairs that I thought would fit I ended up trying them all on and putting them all back because not a single pair fit. Mind you, I tried all sizes ten to sixteen. The size nor the brand mattered.

I couldn't help but to notice a woman that was wearing a men's handkerchief that had been sewn into shorts. No man's handkerchief is going to go around my hips! I'm Italian and we Italian girls have hips. There's no reason to wait to see what happens after I have a baby because everyone can see how I'm built and everything will probably just be more pronounced than it is now.

I appeal to designers. We're in America and ethnic diversity is here to stay. Though “Vanity Sizing” has been around for many years, it seems that designers have expectations that are not real. I guess they think that the size zero female population has enough money to buy all of those clearance items. It's obvious that many American women have hips and thighs that are strong. When I started looking for help to find a brand that may fit me but I only found suggestions to have my clothes tailor made. If I use Heidi Klum as my representative, even she won't be able to find clothes that fit properly.

Designers, what percentage of the female population do you consider your demographic? We average size women need you to tell us where we can buy our clothes off the rack.