a humbling and exciting day

Today I was humbled, Over at a43 doing the finishing touches. One of them being the final install of the teak top. We were asked to install hardware that would prevent a chest lid from slamming. Gagan was given the task, I was working on the teak top. The interior designers bought the hardware and dropped it off. I was skeptical because I have not been able to find such hardware, EVER. At first Gagan said it can't be done, I showed him another way it might work and he set about on that, then the designers arrived and wanted to know if would work. I told them in no uncertain terms that it was not going to work and they should have heeded my advice when I months ago told them it was not going to work. So then shortly after Gagan comes out of the mudroom saying it works, it works, look look. And sure enough it worked as beautifully as we all wanted. That was the humbling moment. The designers hardware that I had scoffed at and said wouldn't work did indeed work. I know these designers really well and have been working with them for years and they sort of know me thankfully, anybody else would have looked at me as a fool. Have to whatch out for things like in the future.

After that I left Gagan to finish up at that house and I took off in the hopes of making some new contacts. I went to The Van Millwork home series seminar. Some would call that inappropriate as I am a competitor of theirs. But I don't think I make the competitor list. Van Millwork is a huge company, with several showrooms, and their own complete line of moldings that are sold in most lumber yards. I am a five man company clawing my way through the bottom dregs of residential construction. I am a market aggressor no doubt and they are the market leader, for me I was intrigued by the topic of today's seminar. Being Landscape design. The speaker was excellent and had a wonderful selection of photos of which I quickly sketched my favorite images. Her name is Rochelle Greayer of Greayer Designs Associates. I had the good fortune of meeting Rochelle after the seminar, I asked Rochelle where she got her inspiration. With out thought she said "from other designers". What a wonderful answer. I can totally relate to that. I look through all kinds of magazines, and my favorite books of my favorite architects for ideas. I bring this up only because I have been wrestling with design myself lately and chiefly finding and not finding inspiration. If anybody reading this is looking for a landscape architect I would recommend Rochelle.

So then back to my shop to prepare for..............are you ready, install of job b58. I have been waiting for this moment ever since I first starting doing the designs which was back in december. I started doing my lay-out today, upon inspection the walls of the kitchen are perfectly square, and level. That is unusual. I have high aspirations for the install. From this stand point it looks like it is going to go smooth. This will be one of the first jobs that we will be using are new system of tracking every single part, and trying to follow our pre-planned install attack where we decide the job into 3 phases.(see earlier posting for 3 phase break downs)
I am fired up by this install and in four days time i should have much to talk about.

design challenges

Cabinet plans for job b76 are finished, or at least the first version. They are submitted and awaiting critic. I have already started the next kitchen designs, job b77. That particular job Will require more creative effort, it is a type of design that I have not been doing so much lately and it require to call upon a job we did years ago number 16. I am really looking forward to the challenge. I have found it difficult so far mainly because the slate is blank. Until the cabinets take shape it is hard to do. I have to decide what I am going to draw attention to as well as the work flow with-in the kitchen, also what the predominant moldings are going to be.

latest teak top

I installed this top last thursday, I will have to return to the job this coming thurseday to install the back splash and surrounding molding. I couldn't do the job in one day becasue the back splash has to be fitted in between the counter and the sill of a window, we are installing an 8" high back splash. I wanted to reuse the existing teak back splash so we needed to take it back to the shop for refinishing anyways. As you can see from the photo there is an undermount sink going into this top. Most people would think that unconventional to use wood as a material here. But that is why we are using Teak for it's durability, and the finish is toungue oil at least 6 coats applied .

Venting

The latest teak counter top was installed today. It went OK. I put the first scratches in it today. Not to happy about that, kind of ashamed. I didn't give it my best I was focused on the install and everything. I really should have had another person there to help me. It is a replacement top and I thought I would be able to handle it myself. Which I did just fine, it is that if I had another person there than I would not have scrathed it. I haven't heard from the client. That may be why I didn't give it my best I just have never really felt appreciated at this particular client's house. And I don't mean to blame anybody for the scrathes(which are very negligle I am a perfectionist) I just think that no appreciation leaves its mark on moral. The teak is drop dead gorgeous, and I don't think that any one will ever notice other than me. People will notice but they won't tell me. You know who will get the credit it's the contractor and the interior designer. which I suppose is the way it should be. It is the client who makes a difference by saying that they appreciate the work. To the contractor and the designer its just another job, I don't think their heart is in their work the way mine is. Going out to the job today alone was a mistake on my part, maybe that is why I don't have the jobs that I want to have now becasue I am viewed as an amature by the market place. Unrelaible enough to install a wooden top scratch free.

training event

Each post is its own thing. I am really bummed that my first inspiration post didn't come through. We will just have to talk about that again sometime. I oiled this next teak top again today several times including the last time before installation. Before my last coat I steel wooled the top more so than before, which lent to a much more translucent coat. My newest approach to oiling these tops is to apply thinner coats and steel wool more aggressively in between coats with the finest grade steel wool. I don't think I talked about our last training event which was on Tuesday morning. We focused on installation preparation. It all starts when the job is in production. it entails making a list of all the parts needed for a job. It can be a big task for a larger job, we talked about we should break down the larger jobs into segments that can be understood. For the smaller jobs like c74 or the current job a1 it is much easier to make this list. We also talked about how leadership should be shared among the staff and myself. We used this install list as a way for leadership to be shared. Each one of us at the shop can make the install list it shouldn't be me, not all the time. I am expecting my people to take on such responsibilities. The install list is broken down into three main parts. phase one, two, and three. So the thinking is that production only needs to make things for phase one first, as those will be moved through the paint room first and to the job site first. No need to cut shelves for the cabinets until they are needed by the client. And the client does not care when they are cut until they want to use them. We don't need to make pedestals until the day before we need to install them, otherwise they just get in the way, like the shelves. When we are really busy this sort of planning comes in handy. If the client is a general contractor then all that is important to him is keeping the job moving forward. If I bring on a job every single part of the cabinets it just gets in the way of the other workman and we risk damage. So we bring on the job only what is needed to prevent holding up the job. And the items on the phase 1-3 list are laid-out accordingly.

Inspiration

that is nice, my last posting didn't come thru on the blog. I talked about inspiration and how i struggle with finding it. But before i go into it again i need to make sure that the blog is posting properly.

inspiration

Our meetings

I had to suspend my normal Monday am staff meeting today until Tuesday. Ordinarily that would drive me bonkers. Gagan called in sick Sunday afternoon. There is not much sense in doing the staff meeting with-out him when we can just as easily put it off a day. Well tomorrow we will not only have our staff meeting but also have a two hour training event. How does a small business afford all these meetings? Staff meeting is only about 20min. The two hour meetings happen once every two weeks. We know how much this cost us on a yearly basis and we have budgeted for it. The two hour meetings are based 100% on improving ourselves. The 20min. meetings are based primarily on immediate task completion and teamwork. The times of the meetings are some what flexible and we fit them in between other priorities. We have made the chief objective of the company for 08 to be at the very least holding all the meetings. For each meeting there needs to be a leader some one who prepares an agenda for the meeting. That person receives a substantial bonus from the company. It remains the number one reward for leadership at kidder blaisdell. The next bonus could possibly be for adding content to this blog. Tomorrow's training event will be on shop drawing organization and install game planning. Installs shouldn't be throwing everything into the truck and hoping that it's all there when you take it out and start assembling. I think it should a carefully executed plan with check off lists and ways of measuring how we do.

Colonial Style

I am really focused on designing right now. I have two kitchens that I am working on right now. Where do I go for inspiration. Primarliy I go to my own library, where I have a collection of books both new and old. The last book I bought is called Colonial Style by Treena Crachet. I am not crazy about colonail style but I have to say that as far the cabinets and woodwork go there is much to be offerd. In the cabinets I think colonial is one of the more creative. they did things that really stood out and were different yet very functional. Nothing worse than a cabinet that looks great but has no function. People want both, great looks and high functionality. One of the biggest challenges that I am facing with desinging is using the computer. All of my designs are done in AutoCad 08, I can't seem to get the curves that I want on the computer. I mean I can't draw curves the way I can freehand. I know that it is possible to do so but one I don't know how and two it is a completely differnet expereince. I really need to find another AutoCad tutor.

Our next Training Day

We had to stop the oiling of the teak due to some scratches that surfaced. I have to commend Gagan on that he saw them and said he could sand them out. So he has successfully and we will start again with the oiling tomorrow. Anybody who sees that top is impressed. It is mainly the sink cut out that does it for people, it has such a bold look.
Job b67 is starting to fill up the paint room and drying area. The install for job b58 should be getting under way with in a month can't wait for that. That will open up some space for b67 in the finished goods area. I am prepared to have two installs going at the same time b67 and b58. I think that b58 will primarily go first. That gives me about three weeks to finalize the designs I am working on now. Once the installs start I will lose the majority of my day time. I will need to have work for the team laid out just as if I was away on vacation. Getting time that is uninterrupted is crucial for success, and I can get that out on the installs.
Sondu when you come back to work we can really use you in the finishing area and engineering. Ventura has shown strength in touch-out work or stage three install. In engineering we need you to do more of the shop drawing break downs, and installation instructions.
The design work that I am doing interest me very much and i find it very challenging. My Auto CAD tutor told me that my people would start the drawings and I would finish them. I find that so hard to imagine, it seems to me that the only way to do things is for me to start the drawings and have my people finish them.
Esteban is going to start the wet bar for job b67 tomorrow. I reviewed the shop drawings with him for that today. I was startled at the amount of information that I left off the lay-out. When I refined the lay-out and prepared it for the bench man I also made an install list of parts that can be checked off as the job moves thru production. I think I focused to much on that parts list and not what dimensions and instructions the crafters need.
I think that this weeks training day should be focused on the shop drawings and how that information is presented. I don't want to do a lecture on it I want to sit with the team and talk about what would make their jobs easier and what information is importnat to them. That will have to be monday or tuesday since Gagan is out tomorrow and Saterday

another busy day

This weeks focused work load in the shop is primarily b67. I am very pleased with the progress, we will be so prepared for this install. I am now turning my focus to the items that are most important to the progress of the job and that is the base cabinets which support the counter tops. As soon as I start the install everyone will want to know when we can have the counter top template guys on site. So tomorrow I will send over to the print shop drawings of the wet bar, and the master bath vanity and cabinets. Those will be next to be built. After that we will start with the frig panel for the kitchen and the two base cabinets at the range. It won't be long until I am 80% fabricated with job b67.
I stopped in quickly at job a61, The owner of that project wants another bin similar to the ones we just finished, for his pool. We are also waiting to get some plans from his architect for an exterior bench that I am looking forward to building.
Job b78 is well under way now it is another kitchen. It is a small kitchen and also a fast track job. I told the client today that we could have the job ready in a few weeks, which is true. It is small and not very difficult, and it will require no more than what my team is excellent at. IT is a clear cherry kitchen full overlay style, with shaker style doors, a few drawers, smooth frig panels, stainless steel fronts on appliances. It seems to easy to be true. It will be interesting to see how it turns out and how well we do at it. If I apply all the things that we have applied lately than it should be easy. Basically we break down the install into phases and itemize all the parts. One of the best things about b78 is that it is near one of my favorite lunch places, Boca Grande on Mass Ave. Cambridge.
I installed at a33 today in the afternoon, some closet cabinets. More like closet shelving I felt like California closets. But no matter it was a profitable exchange for me, mostly because I had Maruo help me. He is a building maintenance guy who graciously offered his help, including the clean-up and bringing the merchandise into the building and up to the 5th floor. He saved me an hour of work easily. And on an $800.00 job that hour is where you make a profit, also I didn't get the anticipated parking ticket so I made another $75.00 there. I had good luck with the parking gods today.
Also late in the day I started to oil another teak counter top at the shop. We have to replace a teak top that we installed about 9 months ago. The wood top was glued up incorrectly, and warped shortly after install. I am forced to replace it. It is a costly endeavor I spent $900.00 an the material alone, and my install time will be free taking about a day and a half of install let alone the labor to make it and finish it. But no matter, I like the top and enjoy doing the work so it out weighs the loss. The grain of this piece is very clear and it h as a wonderful natural color. There is a under mount sink in this top, so that adds quite abit to the look of the top. Seeing the cut out in such a thick piece of wood is impressive to me, so I can't imagine how it looks to the lay-man. Gagan did such a nice job making the top he is really a very talented wood worker.

constructive conflict todays meeting

We had a great staff meeting today. I cannot put an exact reason as to what it is that makes one staff meeting better than another. Other than the obvious of how the meeting goes. But what is it that makes me feel like we are better off as a team because of how the staff meetings are is elusive. It has to do with the attitudes of the attendants my staff in this case and that dwells in human nature which is inconsistent. Anyways today I talked about the three things that make an effective work group. I was challenged that it is the same thing that I have said before. But it is repetition that people learn from, and did point out the next step to creating an effective work group.
here are the first three steps:
1.Create a sense of structure and organization, a sort of this is what we do and this is how we do it.
2.create a sense dependency, I depend on my staff to do the work, and they depend on me to keep the business running.
3.Create a sense of inclusion, making everyone feel that they are accepted as team members.
this is what I have be teaching to my staff for several years. I introduced the fourth step last year but with drew it and went back to the first three. Honestly step one is the hardest to do. And my team works the hardest with step one. As for step four.
4. Constructive conflict, conflict is exposed dealt with and quickly put to bed, it is considered where the real growth of the group happens. Our trust for one another increases after a moment of conflict, as long as the other three things are real.
And this is as far as I have come with team building, there is a long road ahead, but we try every day to improve our team building skills, why? Because an effective work group will out perform any ordinary group in any market.

6 jobs one day

Wew, a whirl wind of a day. i went to 6 jobs, three of them were look sees. It all strated off at a75 where I installed 8 drawers. I did it in well under the estimated time. Usually I figure on 15 mins per drawer, that is slide, under mount clips and front. I did some pre-limenary stuff at the shop to the boxes which really helped out. the drawer fronts are always different making it very hard to institute standards for attaching the fronts. Today I installed 3/4" flat panels so I was able to use drawer mounting screws. But I didn't really need them. When I mounted the drawer clips I also predrilled and put in the 1" screw that we used to actually do the attaching, and that is what turned out to be smart and innovative. it really saved time on the site. I was able to cut my install time in half today, granted i did them assembly line style but I noticed less tools being used and faster progression with just that simple step done in the shop. Let me just add here that because of the floor finishers I had to go up a ladder and in thru a window on the third floor. That took extra effort fortunately I am in good physical condition, because it was a work out.
I left there and went to Brookline to measure up for our next teak top. Then off to Weston to spend two hours installing a door and servicing some of my own cabinets.
After that out to b68 to install a drawer in a vanity that we installed not to long ago, that went really smooth I did have to do some adjusting as my prep. was done hastily. I was interrupted by a prospective client early in the morning during my prep. which is ok prospect but it did throw me for a loop several hours later.
After that I went back to c74 to install another medallion, number 145. I think that cabinet is worthy of a medallion. When I got to c74 there were some very nice compliments for me there, The cabinet did look so good. But it was the client that made it really special. They said that if they could live their life over again they would consider woodworking as a career. It reminds me of my clients in brookline where I always see books about woodworking around the house. and I wonder who is it who is studying woodworking. WOodworking is something that everyone can relate too. It is like every one had a grand dad that had a little work shop, in the basement.
I forgot something job a61 after the drawers I stopped there to see how the GC did the install. He installed that cabinet and did a great job. Ricci Bros. is the name of the contractor he runs a really great business. I have taken the most from Dave recently when it comes to dealing with people in a face to face or phone to phone type of situation. I am always learning people skills, and mostly from other people I admire.

more great cabinets

We wrapped up two jobs today, a61 and c74. I haven't seen a61 but I Will tomorrow and I am very excited about that. I worked on c74 today. C74 came out beautifully. I tried some new things and I am very pleased with the results. you can see from the photo, my favorite part is the shapes that come out from the cabinet at the top center. Particularly the way they seem to sprout from the face frames of the open shelving units, we call them unit fours in our shop. that is something new and i really love the interest it creates. The second best favorite thing for me is something that isn't quite apparent from the photo it is the finish. The paint job cam out spectacular, people can't believe that it is wood. It is more than that though. Their is something going on with the moldings and how perfectly straight they are and how that makes the depth of the moldings so apparent. IT isn't just about straight face frames and panel frames it is also the quality of the moldings themselves and how their consistency gives the cabinet a quality that is almost intangible. This cabinet is a fine example of how my team has learned what to do to make the moldings give a piece life. What needs to be remembered here is that different people built and painted and installed this cabinet, not just one person a team of trained people working together built this cabinet, each one knowing what to do and where to stop to let the next person take over. There is much more of this type of cabinet to come as job b67 is very similarly designed. I feel like this is the beginning of a style of cabinets. One other thing that I really like about this cabinet is the crown molding. IT is a two piece crown, I made the bottom piece myself and it is unique to my operation, it also brings life to a ordinary crown that runs through out the room, furthermore it helps out with handling the discrepancies in the ceiling being out of level. It worked very well and was everything I hoped for.

installing c74

today we started the install of job c74. It went ok, it could have gone smoother. I started later than I wanted too today. We got loaded up and were on the job by 10am. I spent a good deal of time preparing for the install yesterday. I broke the install down into two days. one of the big upsets was that I forgot a very important detail. Shortly into the job the client asked me how the color of the back panel looked. right then I remembered for the first time in several weeks that I agreed to paint those back panels different colors. So the two unit fours in the job had to have the backs stripped and brought back to the shop for repainting. It didn't hold things up that much as those who follow this know last minute changes are no problem hear. I was able to shift somethings around, like I installed the base board today instead of tomorrow I did some of the crown. tomorrow morning I'll start with the doors and drawers, and do the unit fours and rest of the crown in the afternoon. I'll bring Ventura with me to do the touch-up, he is the best at touch-up. We had a few other snafoos. The pedestals could have been 3/4" taller, we cut them down yesterday I am not sure why. And the depth of one of the cabinets was different than what I pulled of my PC. What happend there is that I had so many different versions of the cabinet drawn on the drawing file that I mistakenly took the wrong dimension. I also think that not putting the dimensions of the boxes on the plan made it difficult for the installer to figure-out the location of the pedestals and the front edge of the face frames which I like to draw on the plaster when I am doing the install. What would be helpful for the installer is to know the size of the boxes and the pedestals by looking at the plans. which can come from the PC but they need to be sure that they are getting the same dimensions as the bench man. I think that some kind of installation rules should be laid out in the plans. We can still keep all this info on the computer and hence forth be green. But just like a step one and step two and how the pedestals relate to the ceiling and the floor. It should be done in the engineering part of the job.

good employees

This morning I did a plant tour with a prospective client. I really love doing plant tours, I love my wood shop. I love it at the end of the day when the machines are quite and no one is around, I love the shop during the day when everyone is there working. So when I show the shop to someone I feel like there just isn't enough time to talk about all the exciting things. I know that is crazy but I have this enormous passion for woodworking, there is no other way to describe it. This prospect today already has a wood shop of about 3000 square feet and they brought that shop supervisor along today. For me having another shop supervisor in my shop is very special. There is no way that another shop super can cruise thru my shop and not admire the condition. The organization for starters is unmistakable. Right now we have alot of work in the shop for the prospect to see.What was most interesting and uncanny was this prospects last question. We were talking about employees and all that goes with having employees. His question was "how do you plan on keeping the good people that you have now?" It caught me off guard, it is an excellent question. What is uncanny about it is that just yesterday at the weekly staff meeting I talked about the ACE model. Which is how I responded i said "well I have the ACE model, and then described pretty much the same as yesterdays posting." It is an area that I feel pretty well versed in, I have been hiring and firing people for ten years and at one point had 9 employees. What better way to get to know how a business than asking them what they are doing to keep their good employees.

the ace model

there we are in front a61. A new team photo. a61 got medallion number 171 you can see it in the photo. It is such a cool piece of mill work that I wanted to put a medallion on it. These are very nice boxes and already the owner says he wants another one to go near his pool. I am very excited to see this mill work out of our shop we bid those work in November last year. We have so much work in the shop right now that it is getting a little crowded. As b67 continues to get built we will be pushed tighter and tighter. It is now time for me to start designing our next kitchen b76. I have high expectations for b76, I think it going to be a very quaint little set of cabinets, again we are going to build the table, at least I hope. At our staff meeting today I talked about the ACE model.
A for achievement
C for camaraderie
E for equity
Ace is an acronym. The is for the employees. Those are the three main things that I try to offer my people. We are always looking for new ways to define and improve them. and make them more real and tangible. Achievement is done by giving the guys projects that will push their skill level, and improve their knowledge. Camaraderie is done by being friendly with the guys myself, no one wants to come to work to fight. I always try to create an atmosphere of friendship here with myself and the guys and among themselves as well. Equity is one of the hardest things to create. I do that by offering uniforms, having fun events, doing the cash bonuses for leading a staff meeting or kaizen or training day event. I usually have snacks in the lunchroom, that sort of thing. The point of the ace model is to have enthusiastic employees. Enthusiastic employees will out perform unenthusiastic employees. Do we look like an enthusiastic bunch in the photo above, it's hard to get the guys to smile in the group photo's, but I know they are happy to work here. It is a good place to work.

being organized

So it looks like I am not all that I thought I was. There is no way I could have gotten the two rush jobs done in the past two days. I was able to complete the a75 rush job today so that is good, the install took longer than I thought but it went well all things considered. There was a classic thing that happened on the job today. I got there to do the install and there were three outlets and one phone jack right where the unit was going. Luckily the electrician was on the job, normally the electrician wouldn't be around and incommunicado. I did have to do a bunch of unplanned work myself to deal with the outlets and phone jack. It wasn't that bad, and I did have to wait for the electrician to do his thing. The install took every bit of all day. I don't know why nobody caught that. I bid the work and excepted the work site unseen. That is what is to be learned fron this, never assume anything, like the wall is going to be clear outlets because mill work is to be there. It really is because of a lack of planning, many times these types of jobs are just not planned enough in advance, so when the electrician is doing his rough work there is no actual elevation of the wall. Or I suppose it could be that the leadership on the job never did a walk thru before blue board to confirm all the mechanical. It makes me think of something that another contractor said to me about that. He said that he has to leave a job and come back several times to catch all things that are in the wrong place before the blue board goes up. These types of things are what happens in my day to day life of custom mill work.
We had another great compliment yesterday. One of our clients came in to our shop and said "you guys are organized, and I like that". Being organized is how we are different from many other shops. I think it is in large part why we can do so well at what we do. Being organized helps us perform our day to day duties. I personally think that being organized is one of the biggest hidden secrets to success in business. I see some businesses run so scattered that i can't see them making any money at all and if they are making money they sure don't know where or why. Getting organized is one thing and staying organized is another. I try to develop ways in which I can stay organized. There are so many things to organize in my business, the shop, the office, the trucks, and in each one of those is hundreds of little things. My biggest problem is that my time has to go into running the business and not into infrastructure. That is the sure sign of a new business.
To my good fortune the rush job a33 has turned into not such a rush job after all. The property has changed hands now and the new owners are having the floors done. That puts me off by a week. Even though I could not have done it today nobody is going to realize this.