Ask yourself, what is the most profitable tool in your shop? The answers vary! A lot of machine shop owners will quickly say their flywheel grinder or their guide and seat machine. But the most profitable tool isn’t a machine you plug into…
Steve Rich Sterling Bearing, Inc. Kansas City, MO
Thinking Outside the Book Is your business up to date on your Yellow Pages listing? I hope not! In the good ol’ days if someone in your area needed machine work they would turn to the yellow pages. How do DIYers find your shop today? - According to Yelp, 85…
Steve Rich Sterling Bearing, Inc. Kansas City, MO
As I visit machine shops around the state, I notice some common trends. Shops have downsized to some extent over the years. Many of the shops no longer want to assemble engines. They claim that they don’t want the liability of assembling engines with customer supplied parts, so…
Mark D. Sarine Sterling Bearing Dania Beach, FL
In a resent issue of Engine Builder magazine (Feb. 2015), they discussed how the internet is your friend with all the available info on manufacture’s web pages, forums and articles. In searching for that information you may be overwhelmed by the number of pages that come in response…
Brad Luck Weaver Auto Parts Sauk City, WI
What is your business’ #1 asset? Hand tools? Head equipment? Inventory? Every day owners protect their company assets by setting alarms and securing doors. But how often do you think about protecting your most valuable asset? ...Your Workers. Sure, it’s a PITA to replace a stolen…
Steve Rich Sterling Bearing Inc Kansas City, MO
Tired of getting the wrong parts? Give the wrong info to a parts person and chances are you’ll get the wrong parts. It is imperative when ordering parts for a late model application that you know the year, make, model, engine size and the eighth digit of…
Marion Morrison Duke Machine Winterset , IA
Cash flow is a vital part of every business.....let’s get better at it. -Cover yourself along with your business. Fill out a work order (if you don’t have one... create one). You want it to show: Customer information and the work the customer wants done, parts…
Vonda Floyd Sterling Bearing Kansas City, MO
The Secret To Effective Sales Sales is nothing more than a communication between your shop, which sells parts and labor, and a customer who wants to buy parts and labor. This communication can take place over the phone, at your counter or on the web. There are lots of specific…
Steve Rich Sterling Bearing, Inc. Kansas City, MO
Cleaning Precision Measuring Tools We have experienced the same problems for years: how to clean honing oil from dial bore gauges and snap gauges before it can gum up and slow the dial readings. We used to immerse the measuring head up to near the dial in acetone, and gently…
Timm Jurincie Tuf-Enuf Auto & Marine Performance Avondale, AZ.
Don’t Underestimate Advertising And Attitude Every shop needs to advertise because your current customers will someday go away. Getting new customers should be the goal and advertising is one good way to get it. We have our logo and lettering on our delivery vehicles and from time to time send…
Jeffrey Myers MAR Automotive, INC Philadelphia, PA