Lean Built: Manufacturing Freedom

Jay begins by talking about taking multiple weeks off...as a highly recommended strategic way to help his business. Then Andrew and Jay talk about fusion file management, team meetings, onboarding remote workers, and why you can't "delegate your gut."Books mentioned:Poka-Yoke: Improving Product Quality by Preventing Defects.Poka-Yoke: Mistake-Proofing for Zero Defects by Hiroyuki Hirano.

Jay and Andrew talk building for growth, shop layout, removing unnecessary items, morning meetings, and more.

Jay and Andrew talk about the Remarkable tablet and effective idea dumping. Then they both describe their morning meetings and talk about how you inspire people with your company culture ... without reducing it to a bunch of corporate gobbledegook. Books discussed:Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin.The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman.

"When I lay in bed at night as a young, hungry, naive entrepreneur, I could barely contain my joy at the thought of filing sales tax forms with a dozen states every month."—Andrew on the joy of state taxes, one of a few subjects he and Jay cover in this week's episode. Mostly, they talk about design. Good, intuitive design that takes into account the way real people think and work. And bad, terrible design that sometimes literally leads to death.Book mentioned:The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman.

Andrew and Jay talk about whether they would ever purchase housing for out-of-town workers or clients, why most problems are math problems, how to inculcate company culture in remote workers, why you shouldn't hire too quickly, slips vs mistakes, design that you shouldn't notice, "Swiss cheese problems", and thoughtless outsourcing. In other words, there's plenty to chew on in this episode of Lean Built.Book mentioned:The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman.Article mentioned:"Boeing and the Dark Age of American Manufacturing" by Jerry Useem.

Andrew and Jay continue to explore the challenges they're facing, including website woes, and brainstorming solutions for keeping customers in the loop about new projects and product releases.

Jay and Andrew talk the eclipse, the joys of 3d printing, and the thought process behind what machines they own.

This episode starts on a somber note as Jay and Andrew both had deaths of people they loved. This leads to a discussion of legacy and what they want to leave behind as shop owners and men. They also discuss Andrew's new idea of dedicated "improvement time", hiring and onboarding remote workers, and Jay's idea for a Gordon Ramsey like show about improving shops (it would be awesome).

How do you avoid decision fatigue? How many good decisions can you make in one day? How can you make your decisions ahead of time? How can you brainstorm effectively? These are a few of the important issues Jay and Andrew tackle in this episode of "Lean Built."

From discussing the merits of expanding quickly versus gradually to exploring the pivotal role of the shop floor in fostering career development, Andrew and Jay have a lot to talk about in this episode. They tackle the idea that anything repetitive should be automatable and ponder what it takes to build a company where employees aspire to retire from. They also examine the importance of assembling a diverse team with varied skills and preferences and the potential of gamification in enhancing productivity.But it's not all about speed. Andrew and Jay emphasize the significance of being careful with aligning incentives within the shop environment. They shed light on the concept of "sooner, not faster" and the utility of tools like Gantt charts in managing workflows effectively.Books mentioned: New Shop Floor Management: Empowering People for Continuous Improvement by Kiyoshi SuzakiHenry Ford: My Life and Work by Henry Ford

In this episode of Lean Built, Andrew and Jay dive into the world of machining mishaps and shop space dreams. Andrew recounts the story of a wild thing that happened during vacuum workholding, which leads to some tips for safe vacuum hold-down machining—plus a discussion of other downright scary machine malfunctions.Plus Jay and Andrew begin to delve into the topic of planning for future shop expansion.

First up, Jay and Andrew dive into the art of effectively documenting workflows. How do you avoid the pitfall of keeping everything in your head?Next, they explore the world of AI and how it can be used to address frequently asked customer queries.Then Jay shares a story of transitioning a process from digital to analog, prompting a discussion on the pros and cons of both digital and analog methods. When do you embrace digital tools and when do you stick to the tried-and-true analog methods?All that and more in this episode of Lean Built.

Jay and Andrew talk about the power of deletion and the joy of 3D printing. They discuss the importance of embracing the development process, even when it includes ideas that don't work out. They offer insights on how to effectively engage with influencer marketing (there's a way to do it and a way not to do it). Plus Andrew reveals his trade show strategies.

Andrew and Jay talk about keeping the right amount of inventory without causing a bottleneck, the awesomeness of vertical lift modules (and just generally turning square feet into cubic feet), avoiding monuments in the shop, and how kanban is not just cards ... it's a system for exposing weaknesses.Book discussed:New Manufacturing Challenge: Techniques for Continuous Improvement by Kiyoshi Suzaki.

Andrew and Jay delve into the depths of lean maturity (or the absence of it), discussing how small companies can avoid reinventing the wheel, skillfully use redundancy, adhere to fundamental lean principles, and deliver answers right where the questions are most likely to be asked.

Andrew's just got a new lathe and we talk about it in this episode. There are plenty of challenges, including moving the shop layout. We also talk about how new employees help you find problems, and Rock Fuel University.

Jay and Andrew talk about rigging, how money eases the way, making our environment serve us, relationships vs profit, establishing value through the right comparison, and much more.Books mentioned:Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense by Rory Sutherland.The Brand Gap: How to Bridge the Distance Between Business Strategy and Design by Marty Neumeier.New Manufacturing Challenge: Techniques for Continuous Improvement by Kiyoshi Suzaki.

Andrew and Jay talk about building in margin, feeding your interest and curiosity, doing life-giving things, why you might not want to tie up funds in overstock, why technology should never be the bottleneck, and more.Book mentioned: New Manufacturing Challenge: Techniques for Continuous Improvement by Kiyoshi Suzaki.

Jay and Andrew talk leadership development, hiring when you don't need people, utility players vs bench players, where KPIs (key performance indicators) are useful and where they aren't, why the best expeditor is no expeditor, where to place a lathe, and more.Books mentioned:The New Manager's Handbook: 24 Lessons for Mastering Your New Role by Morey Sterner.How to Become a Rainmaker: The Rules for Getting and Keeping Customers and Clients by Jeffrey J. Fox.The Story of the Paratroops by George Weller.

Andrew and Jay discuss some of the lessons from 2023. Topics include the need for lean to be flexible, how lean should align with a company's culture, the importance of intentional lean practices, setting diverse goals for different companies, establishing and executing measurable goals for employees, fostering employee ownership in their respective areas, and delegating tasks to enable more time for creative pursuits.Books mentioned:The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership Workbook 25th Anniversary Edition: Follow Them and People Will Follow You Paperback by John C. Maxwell.Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business by Gino Wickman.

Jay and Andrew discusses Andrew's new company truck (which he bought in the least lean environment possible), how buying ahead to appease short-term tax write-offs can be a long-term bad investment, avoiding long term accounts receivable, cash flow vs cash position, trusting employees with their own credit cards, same day shipping and package tracking, and how prototyping is not necessarily lean.They also begin a conversation on what they want to improve in 2024 as they look back on 2023, which will continue in next episode.

Jay and Andrew talk about Andrew’s forklift and how he’s applying “digital training wheels,” how robots and automation can lead you astray, seeing how pain and expense add up, using AI to make expertise scalable to a wider audience, and much more.

How do you handle a backlog with lean? Andrew gives a little masterclass on that, since he just had to do it, thanks to the holidays and employee sickness. Then Jay talks about why he's thinking about getting a space pod (office pod or silence booth). Plus, they talk about why adding Credit Key was good for Jay, making quality of life improvements at the end of the year instead of hoarding cash, shipping in the holidays, and how to handle Christmas break.

Jay and Andrew talk about Andrew's new forklift, the pros and cons of handling inventory for other shops, tax incentive buys at the end of the year, as-needed budgets, systems vs goals, "use it or lose it" mentality in bigger companies, delaying gratification for wants (but not needs!), and how to avoid being at the mercy of the supply chain.

Andrew and Jay continue to talk about what kind of lathe would Andrew like, as well as false ways of achieving economy, the drawbacks of big sales, seeing where you only partially think of things, the value of high-priced CEO meetings, and more. Books mentioned:How to Sell at Margins Higher Than Your Competitor by Lawrence Steinmetz.Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense by Rory Sutherland.

Jay and Andrew discuss the benefits and dangers of allowing people to buy on a payment plan, nurturing good relationships with vendors, reevaluating the company after the loss of a key employee, job prioritization, custom software, and calculating true cost. Additionally, they pose an important question: Does your ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system truly work for you?"

Should Andrew buy a lathe? This is the question of the hour, leading to all sorts of useful discussions, such as ... do you spend money on a crummy machine just to learn? Or buy your good one first? If you have a machine, will the work come? What happens if getting use out of a machine relies on one rockstar employee? How do you play the odds in a small business? How do you avoid "monkey like shiny" syndrome? What makes a visionary, and why do Jay and Andrew both kind of hate the word? Would either of them ever hire a CEO?

Jay and Andrew talk 3D printers, color matching vs color coding, after-market mods, and ponder what it would take to sell their companies and start from scratch with what they know now.

Andrew is putting off buying a lathe, which leads to a discussion of what to prioritize in buying machines, returns and exchanges, how Amazon makes it easier for people to rip you off, and more.

Andrew and Jay talk about teamwork, pushing a machine until you break it (to learn how far you can push it), onboarding new vendors (plus vendor management in general), over-communicating as a violation of lean principles, organizational clarity, and more.Books mentioned: The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive: A leadership Fable by Patrick LencioniRocket Fuel: The One Essential Combination That Will Get You More of What You Want from Your Business by Gino Wickman and Mark C. Winters

Jay and Andrew talk about Jay's new Zeiss CMM, how to not burn up somebody's goodwill, documenting processes, face to face versus shoulder to shoulder versus face to screen, the high cost of small errors, and the dangers of automation. Plus Jay pushes back on whether Andrew should get a lathe ... side quests are dangerous!

Jay and Andrew talk about lean drift in other shops, waiting on other contractors, construction crews doing wrong things, shop layout improvements, inventory systems, known knowns vs. known unknowns vs. unknown unknowns, when routine becomes inhibiting, customers wanting to modify equipment, and more.

Andrew and Jay talk a lot about the philosophy of buying machines ... do you buy a piece of junk first just to learn? Or sink money into something great when you don't know what you're doing? They also talk about hiring, finding good candidates, company culture, how the manufacturing industry is and isn't like the software industry, and much more.

Jay has some riggers coming which leads to a discussion of memory and checklists, dealing with dishonest sales reps, give-aways and order returns, plus Andrew's new 3D printer!

Andrew and Jay talk updating workflow, picking battles, the "three-legged stool", optimizing processes, top line vs bottom line, the importance of trust, helping people in an efficient way, and much more.

Andrew and Jay talk about fixing problems (not symptoms), teaching employees without making assumptions about what's intuitive, Fusion 360 vs Solidworks, stress and control in decision making, half measures, the 95% rule, and a lot more!

Andrew and Jay talk about communicating lead times, managing customer expectations, the mystery of memory, malice vs. incompetence, and much more.

Jay talks about why he walked away from a big purchase because of a feeling, Andrew talks about the perils of moving shop, they both talk about perceived value versus psychological value, and a whole more.

Jay and Andrew talk about customer service software, systemization, and problems with shipping, plus Jay talks about how he smokes everyone on building a lego set ... and the business application of said skill.

Andrew and Jay talk about buying used equipment, navigating vacations, interoffice communication, the "Lego test", competitive advantage, and more.

Jay and Andrew talk about solar panels, insurance, Relevant Selling by Jaynie Smith, selling machines, minimizing decisions, and more.

Andrew and Jay talk abut giving every employee the right to see what's not working, how to decide what to fix when, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, customer satisfaction vs company sustainability, and more.

Jay and Andrew talk about vacations, coming back from vacations, their latest lean improvements, the great opportunity that comes with a new employee, and more.

Jay and Andrew talk about what makes a useful (and intuitive) design, employee personality types, perceived value vs actual value, and more.

Andrew and Jay talk through the 6 Types of Working Genius by Patrick Lencioni, reward vs. burnout, mitigating against your own weaknesses as a leader, and a whole lot more.

We're off and running, folks, as Jay and Andrew talk about how they each start they day and how that impacts company culture, the three bin system, distributing for other manufacturers, taxes, the eternal trade-off of time versus money, structuring a team, ruthless culling of social media, and more.