For Want of a Nail

For want of a nail the shoe was lost, for want of the shoe the horse was lost ...

It can be the little things that lead to disaster, the smallest of issues can lead to the largest problems. Ignore something critical, or give it less attention that it merits and you flirt with the possibility of problems. We all know that, yet to a degree in many areas of our lives we all take chances don’t we?

Maybe we eat right but we drive at something over the posted speeds. We get the proper amount of rest at nights, but we don’t see the harm in crossing the street against the light. We purchase the best equipment for our business, but we leave the maintenance our employee “Dave” out back. He has the time, and he seems handy with a wrench.

It’s the little things, if you’re going to roll the dice on equipment maintenance taking the [and let’s be kind here and call it] “more economic” route be certain to be banking those savings you creating in the event the decision comes back to visit you.

Time and again we stand staring down at a piece of equipment in the shop that has fallen victim to the trap or allure of low cost self-maintenance. This past week it was an engine that was lost due to contaminants drawn through a slip in a hose between the air filter and the engine. The split was on the bottom of the hose so no cursory inspection would have found it, without a thorough inspection it would never be found. As a result with something less than half its economic life behind it, the engine needs to be replaced.

I’m not certain our customer was banking his saved self-maintenance dollars; I hope he was because this isn’t going to be cheap. Are you doing self-maintenance, if so are you certain you are giving your equipment the time they need to prevent big problems?

If not, are you banking those savings?

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Technicians: Separating Wheat From Chaff

At the surface they probably look about the same, arriving at your location clipboard in hand, clad smartly in boots and their work uniform.

The path that got him to your door is where you can find the differences that are critical to the job he will perform for you. The work behind the man is what creates the service you’re about to pay for. How much of that work preparing him for the task ahead do you know about? Did you subscribe to his service based on that knowledge, or perhaps it was solely on price and a promise?

Does he have the support of an original equipment manufacturers [OEM] training program, or is training left to you paying for his “on the job” training while he tries to understand just what is wrong with your equipment?

Can he diagnose you machine’s ills with diagnostic equipment paid for by his employer, or are you left helping pay for that while he “pokes around” or while he replaces parts till things start working again?

Does he feel responsible for meeting or exceeding the service expectations of his OEM’s guidelines, or are there no such guidelines setting the bar for service?

If he encounters a repair that is beyond his personal resources, does he have a support network or are you going to be left with a machine down until he figures it out? Worse will your bill reflect that time? See our point about “on the job” training.

Is he carrying in with him quality OEM parts, or will he pass off the far less durable “replacement” parts he was able to find at the local automotive store or some online parts wholesaler?

We understand there are literally dozens of choices for forklift service. While some of them are excellent service agencies the vast majority are best at supplying you with only a guy in a uniform. Be certain you’re getting the best bang for your dollar by investing in service at the same level of quality your purchased your equipment at.

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The Forklift Shop: A Black Hole?

It wouldn't be the first time it was said, a trip to the shop for a forklift is like it has gotten sucked into a black hole from which return is difficult.When the suggestion is made thoughts run to the expense, the time, and many times in the mind of the customer, the need.

Why does a repair get elevated from a field repair, to one requiring a visit to the shop? There are several tenets:

• When safety is a concern - From lack of a good workplace at the customer site to the type of work involved in the repair [e.g. requires binding or block of raised components].
• Time - Field technicians are truly emergency repair personnel, meant to get in and out quickly resolving equipment issues in time frames generally equal to four hours or less
• Complexity - There are some repairs that require diagnostics that are too extreme, requiring equipment not feasibly kept on mobile service units.
• Efficiencies - Shop conditions are ideal for service repair work. They are not in aisle ways, under poor lighting or ventilation, and support is always nearby and available.
• When a rental unit is needed - If a repair is going to take longer than customer production can tolerate and a rental unit is needed, it makes sense to pick the down unit up and return it to shop after delivering the rental.

Safety is a primary concern, after that our focus falls to efficiencies and soundness of the repair. None of it is going to be inexpensive, you’ll want to work with us or your service provider to make certain the best approach is used.

What aversions do you have to letting your unit go into the shop?

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On-Line Catalog: What Would You Trust

When can you use cheap non-OEM parts and not risk costing yourself time and money in the end? Well the easy answer is never, the more accurate answer would be sometimes.

To make a short story longer this is exactly the conversation we were having here at TLM this past week, a conversation that was prompted by our upcoming redesigned website launch.

One of the features that may be included in our new website is a parts catalog area, it was that point that sparked our conversation. What parts would you have listed in that catalog? Parts for any of our OE manufacturers? Unlikely, there are just too many ins and outs in selecting the right part, you couldn’t easily transfer the actions of a skilled counter parts person to a few radio button. If not those parts which parts then? The conversation covered several groups of parts, at some point we got a bit heated but ended with some ideas.

What non-OEM parts would you like seen in an online catalog? What parts like that would you entrust your productivity and up-time to?

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Let's Meet On Safety

Peering through the door

This past Thursday Toyota-Lift of Minnesota held its second quarterly safety meeting. We were a little behind schedule due to the President’s Award Banquet last month, as well as an insurance carrier change.

This quarter’s meeting was held on these three topics:

• TLM’s AWAIR Program: What is it? And what is it comprised of
• Blood borne pathogens
• Safety action plan

Gary Menke our risk consultant from Federated Insurance was back as our speaker and did a very nice job captivating and controlling the crowd of technicians, warehouseman, and equipment delivery personnel.
Each of the three topics are discussed annually per OSHA instructions. It might seem repetitive but truth be known it seems like there is no shortage of staff somewhat challenged to define these programs when queried.

Yes, safety training is a mandated responsibility, but it certainly doesn’t take a lot of effort to see the benefit in keeping people aware and informed.

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Owning Up To A Mistake

It’s hard to admit you’re wrong, but sometimes it is even more difficult to deny the existence of the elephant in the room. This past month the end of our Dodge Sprinter era came to an end, with the third unit being taken out of active service and replaced by the venerable Ford E350.

In the beginning the Sprinters looked like a viable option, a diesel engine promising less maintenance and great mileage. The cab and interior of the van was roomy and had great ergonomics throughout, with great headroom in the back allowing most individuals to stand upright while working there. But in the end, plagued with multiple drive train repairs, mileage that was less than anticipated, higher diesel fuel prices, and a penchant for not starting in cold weather we had to simply call it quits.

Recently in a conference call with other service managers we gained additional moral support for the abandonment, in that everyone in the room had similar stories of disappointment with the vehicles. We didn’t need the confirmation at that time but misery does love company.

Maybe it’s not hard to acknowledge a mistake that was this obvious, but I’ll take a little comfort in being able to own up and move on avoiding the sunk cost mentality. We wanted what the Sprinters promised being especially keen on the ergonomics. In the end to protect our ability to service the customer and our bottom line we pulled the pin.

As a side note we’ve been able to see some fair pricing at auction, with units varying in mileage from 160 thousand to about 80 thousand and age from three to four years, we’ve sold them for eighteen to just about twenty three thousand. It takes a bit of the sting out of the purchase of those new Fords.

The decision wasn't arrived at overnight, you can see a previous post where we were looking into alternative vehicles here, and most consternation was done here.

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A Customer Site Visit

Everyone once in a great while I get the chance to get out of the office to visit customers. Recently I’ve visited two, with the most recent being just last week.

Customer visits come in all varieties, but the visit I had Thursday was perhaps one of my favorites. It was a casual visit; ostensibly I was there only to update some parts software on their maintenance shop computer. But while I was there I had the opportunity to visit with the customer on several points conversationally, another chance to see just how a responsible company applies safety practices, and a chance to have my face seen by our personnel working there.

Visits by non-technical staff from Toyota-Lift of Minnesota does not have to be sales related, myself and members of our team are available to talk to you directly about the material handling, warehousing and safety issues surrounding your core business. This is free to you and makes us an extension of your support staff, one with a depth of experience in those areas difficult to find anywhere, probably impossible to find at the price.

Call us today with your questions or concerns, we’ll be out there to do what we can to help you sort through them.

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Fourth Of July: Video And Thanks

This history of America is filled with triumphs and tragedies, heroes and villains, crises and times of prosperity and peace. Through it all we continue to march forward through time as a great example to the rest of the world of how democracy can work.

Taking the good with the bad America is still a country rich in patriotism, good will, charity. Toyota-Lift of Minnesota would like to take this time to say thank-you to our Veterans and countless others who have made this great nation possible, and wish you all a joyous 4th.

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