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Handling the "Unexpected" in a coating shop
In some previous blogs we addressed the importance of partnering with your powder coating shop through a consultative approach. Consulting on upcoming projects ahead of their arrival will increase the likelihood of everything going right.
For more information, see the articles below
Determining the Coating System
Design and Fabrication Defects
Sometimes even despite best efforts we are faced with orders that are in less than ideal condition for coating, or even worse - absolutely covered with thick grease, rust, and lead based paint.
This article will focus on what we can control within our company to avoid the risk of rework that can result from incoming orders that are not in the ideal state.
It was dropped off for finishing - that's all we know at this point....
From time to time we receive orders that no one was expecting – all we have to go by is a waybill and customer name. And so begins the process of determining the best course of action. Sales process and customer service aside, there should be someone who is trained to inspect goods once they hit the shop floor of a coating company.
From time to time we receive orders that no one was expecting – all we have to go by is a waybill and customer name. In addition to making sure that the parts are in a condition suitable for finishing, this is also the time to ensure we have all appropriate information for traceability: packing slips, waybills, and drawing packages will sometimes accompany orders – if you don’t have any of this information on hand the receiver at least is taking down a name and phone number when receiving the goods.
At our shop, every order that comes in the door has a photo taken and any critical areas are identified on the photo for future reference. This photo accompanies the order to the floor and provides an easy way to reference specific parts of the job without having to actually be in front of it.
If anything appears out of the ordinary this is the time to reach out to our customer to get clarification on what action can and cannot be taken when processing the goods.
This is also the time to discuss what the cost will be if the job is not yet quoted. If the job has previously been quoted and the parts are different from what was quoted/expected, we take the opportunity to address this ahead of time as well. It sounds like a simple thing but in a custom shop the focus is always on keeping work moving forward and all it takes is an overeager floor supervisor 5 minutes to decide that the new job will fit in the queue nicely.
(Hover over the green dots to see notes about how we will process the truck frame)
Keeping it black and white
Li
kely for the sake of exceptional service and quick resolution - new challenges are best discussed with the customer on the phone. Having reached an agreement, we are ready to move forward on processing the order. This is confirmed with a Work Order Acknowledgement that is sent via email. This ounce of prevention can spare us a pound of pain – and is especially worthwhile if the price has been renegotiated based on additional work that is required.
Strengthen the front line
The difference between a good custom coating shop and a great custom coating shop is the people that it employs to keep the production moving on a daily basis. There is always the temptation on the floor to overlook things that would typically be outside of the responsibility of the finisher. After all, we ask our customers to send us product ready to coat; why worry about some weld spatter or a bit of surface rust on some hot rolled steel?
We do our best to make it clear to everybody on the floor WHAT we want them to be looking for and WHY - here’s a great opportunity to raise the bar. This is why one of our core values is Play for Others.
Building up internal abilities
In addition to the receiving process that was described earlier in this article, some basic training on what to look for before starting a job saves time and money; and helps the customer avoid costly rework.
Using a receiving checklist to educate new employees is a great start for any coating shop.
In our shop we recently had an employee raise concern over what appeared to be missing welds on some structural steel components. When we called our customer to ask them if this was an issue we learned that every piece had to be inspected again.
Consequently, every piece had to be re-welded.
While this took us out of the project for two days, it did save our customer considerable expense and embarrassment.
Had our mindful employee ignored the question of whether the product was good enough before coating, it would have proceeded through production. We would have billed for it and shipped it. And only after the job was on site ready to be erected would the problem have been discovered – maybe.
The cost to fix the problem increases exponentially the further along the project time frame this job travels. Finally, we would have had to strip it and recoat it – even when rework isn’t our fault it is still demoralizing.
Win Win Win
A business provides countless opportunities to grow in virtues such as patience and perseverance.
The arrival of unexpected orders can be an aggravating and potentially costly way to learn how to operate next time.
However if there is a plan to fall back on to handle these situations - there is an opportunity to strengthen a business relationship with the customer - Win #1.
When investing in people and show them how they contribute to not only their company’s success but the success of the customers that is - Win #2.
Finally – making customers happy and the employees happy – that is Win #3 because it’s one clear sign of a healthy and successful business.
Win Win Win!
