Author: Algood

I love technology. I am an Apple junkie with my iPad, iMac, iPhone and Apple Watch. I only read magazines using a device. My iPhone wakes me up in the morning and my watch tells me how well I slept. But despite my infatuation with the world of tech, I’m the first person to acknowledge that there are skills and knowledge that cannot be replaced by the microchip. No matter what advances are made in artificial intelligence, there are things that only I or another human being can do.

In my personal life, the limits of technology are also pretty clear. I haven’t found a computer yet that can figure out which way the wind is blowing and then hit a tee shot so that it lands in the centre of the fairway a hundred yards from the pin. Hell, I can barely do that. No technology will replace the thrill of attending a Raptors game or any other live sporting event. Even with my tech swag, I’m still taking out the garbage and walking the dog.

In the business of caster manufacturing we have automated huge parts of our production. As I have written about before, those advances didn’t eliminate jobs in our company. Rather, they changed what we need people to do. For example, while the new CNC lathe we purchased will expedite production, we had to hire someone to program it in the first place.

Personally I get involved in a guess-timating element of production planning and that cannot possibly be replaced by artificial intelligence. We proactively anticipate customer requirements based on a combination of market trends, buying patterns, and personal interactions. And, we usually get it right so that we are almost always able to meet our customers’ needs.

In addition, there are functions that only a person can fulfill. When someone calls our customer service department, they want to speak to a person – someone who can provide solutions based on a unique set of requirements. In fact one of our distributors advised us not to include too much automation in the new website we will launch next year because, beyond a certain point, it will take a person to find the best caster or wheel to meet his needs.

That’s also the reason we have resisted having an automated attendant answer our phones. Despite the efficiency, we know that our customers enjoy talking to real, live, human beings.

The best quality assurance systems can’t replace what happens when someone looks at and touches a caster to make sure it’s what the customer ordered and has been manufactured to standards. And here’s one for you. Find me a computer that is going to load a truck so that it’s organized to match a delivery route.

It seems to me that the key to technological success is a combination of embracing what computers can do and, at the same time, recognizing their limitations. At the end of the day, there are some things I will never want an AI driven matrix of microchips to do for me. Sometimes, you just need a person.

It seems like every manufacturing conversation I have these days is somehow connected to tariffs. Whether it’s our customers, colleagues or our competitors, the current tariffs, and the looming 25% surcharge at the end of the year, are having a huge impact on the caster business. Many of the people I speak to are frustrated and see the tariffs as a kind of destructive doomsday. While I hear them and sympathize, there are clearly two sides to the tariff situation.

Let’s back up a step. Earlier this year, President Trump imposed a 10% tariff on imported goods from China including steel, casters and caster components. Subsequently he announced plans to increase those tariffs to 25% on January 1- and that’s what’s really got the industry in an uproar.

Importers are scrambling to get product landed by the end of the year. That means they are behind on completing orders. With transit time from the China of at least four weeks, we are about a month away from last day to produce goods that can be sold at the pre-tariff cost. That’s causing chaos. Beyond that, they must re-conceive post 2018 business models that will see a huge portion of their bottom line stripped away.

Suppliers that both import from overseas and manufacture in the U.S. are working furiously to re-align their operations and quickly increase their on-shore production capacity. That’s kind of like turning a cruise liner. It doesn’t happen fast and they are not able to respond to the demand. In addition, I hear that some manufacturers are having trouble finding qualified staff to support the intended production increases.

Distributors may no longer have stable supply chains. Their vendors are raising prices and restricting delivery. That’s not a good combination. Fabricators who use casters as part of a finished product are in an even more tenuous position. They have quoted and provided delivery dates on goods but with the chaos in the caster market, are at risk of being late and above budget. That’s also not a good combination.

While all of this is playing havoc with the industry and there will certainly be companies that become casualties, there is a clear upside to the situation. For years, the reshoring movement struggled to convince companies to bring manufacturing back to North America. But the unbelievably low prices on imported goods were irresistible to a competitive marketplace where small differences in price accounted for huge differences in sales and profit. The tariffs will do what moral and patriotic arguments could not. When the storm subsides, there will be more casters being manufactured in North America, which means more jobs, more investment and more growth. There will be lots of short term pain but it’s very possible – maybe even likely – that it will be overshadowed by the long term gain.

For us at Algood, there is a bit of a boon in all this. Our products are not subject to tariffs and we have a fully integrated manufacturing facility in Toronto. We can deliver product that meets very specific requirements at competitive prices and in very favourable timelines. That is making us an attractive option for distributors and fabricators. We’re getting new business and we’re not complaining.

It’s distressing to me when I talk to our distributors and other customers who feel trapped by the current state of affairs. As a business owner, I empathize with their frustration and deep concern for their businesses. Unquestionably this is a situation that sucks for many companies and many employees. I feel their pain.

And then there’s the other side. That’s the real possibility that all this will lead to a renewed, healthy and vibrant North American manufacturing sector and increased demand for casters and wheels produced on-shore.

I guess there really are two sides to the tariff tale.

I take a walk every morning that is absolutely critical, but has nothing to do with exercise. My morning walkthrough of our manufacturing facility is the most important 20-25 minutes of my day. This is the walk that makes sure we’re walking the talk and fulfilling our quality casters commitment we make to our customers every day.

Our ability to deliver high quality casters & wheels on time is the lifeline of our business and the morning walk-through is my opportunity to get an unfiltered, first-hand look at how we’re doing. And because I take my walk with our VP of manufacturing, our plant manager and our quality control manager, key production decisions get made on the spot. No one can say, “I’ll get back to you on that” and there’s no room for procrastination.

The walk-through keeps me in touch with the heart of our business. It’s my summary of the day and it keeps me in touch with our production activity. The route I take through the plant is always the same.

The first stop is Injection Moulding where I check to see which moulds are running, spot check some of the wheels that are waiting for assembly and check cycle times.

The next stop is Welding – our two robotic stations and our hand-welding centre. There, I’m looking at changeovers, cycle times and taking a close look to make sure the quality of the hand welding is up to our standards.

Then, it’s on to Stamping to see what’s on the presses, check the accuracy of the stamped parts, and look closely at the finish of the steel.

After that comes Assembly where it’s just a matter of seeing what’s being finished and doing the occasional quality spot-check.

Testing is last. What’s on the machines?  How are they measuring up? Are we using testing procedures that will provide the data to match up with customer requirements?

The walk-through has other benefits. We take a close look at equipment and machinery, making sure it’s operating properly and being maintained well. We make sure that employees are using safe practices with the right protection. Likewise, it’s a chance to make sure that there’s a safe working environment with clear aisles and clean floors. Although it sounds trivial, it’s an opportunity to say Good Morning to our staff and let them see that we take a personal interest in what they are doing and their well-being.

The point of the walk-through isn’t to micro-manage. It’s the way I fulfill my responsibility as an owner and the president of the company. An important part of what differentiates Algood in the marketplace is that we’re not owned by a corporate conglomerate and that our management is hands-on. Walking the talk every day is the way we maintain our commitment to our customers and has been a huge part of our success for almost 50 years.

New product development is in some ways a really expensive betting game. It comes with a price tag of $30,000 to $200,000 excluding capital costs. That means we need to be really confident about the decisions we make. Also, when developing a custom caster, customers are looking for aggressive timelines. In many cases, we go from concept to engineering, design and prototyping in three to six weeks. Beyond the cost, that requires a tremendous amount of resources to be dedicated to one project.

So, the question is given the high stakes involved, how do you decide on which products to develop and which are a pass?  The answer to that question often has a lot to do with where the product idea is coming from. From my perspective with almost 30 years of experience in caster manufacturing, there are four sources of new product ideas.

1. Customer Driven. There are many occasions when customers bring us unique specs and requirements that can only be met by developing a new product. Obviously, in these cases, we need to evaluate whether the development cost will be offset by the sales potential. But you’ve also got to consider the relationship value. We always do our best to support our customers and provide them with the products they need to develop markets and opportunities.  Sometimes, the application or environment in which the caster will be used presents a unique opportunity that we want to be a part of. A great example that meets all of these conditions is the Hero caster we developed last year. I’m proud to say it is now being used in the most state of the art healthcare settings. It also helped to cement our relationship with our customer and we believe it is a caster of the future with tremendous sales potential.
   
   
2. Market Driven. Sometimes all you have to do is listen. I spend a tremendous amount of time on the road meeting with customers and distributor partners. In fact over the next three weeks, I have 15-18 appointments lined up. I’m always asking customers for their opinions and what they’re looking for. When you hear the same thing often enough, it could be a good indication that there is a product that needs to be developed. We made the investment to develop the Freedom – a moldon urethane wheel with an aluminum core – based on many different customers telling us “it would be great to have a crowned tread wheel that was really versatile with lots of capacity.” The orders that have followed validated that decision and we believe there will be even more sales growth in the future.
   
   
3. Hunches. It’s true. Sometimes you‘ve just got a feeling that new product development is going to pay off. We developed our RollX™ nylon glass filled wheels based on little more than an inkling that the market would respond. We saw a similar material being used in much smaller wheels but this wasn’t just a matter of copying an existing product. I have always maintained that if we can’t make a product better, we’re not going to make it at all. We knew it would take significant resources to dramatically improve the product and develop it into something with the potential for wider use. We committed to experimenting with different materials and the accompanying testing. At the same time, our design and engineering teams worked on innovative moulds that would minimize weight while creating a great looking wheel. In the end, the hunch paid off. We’re getting very positive response to RollX and Lava, its sister high temperature wheel, and as more customers hear about it and see it, the sales potential climbs.
   
   
4. Natural Growth. There are times when products take on a life of their own and need to be supported with continued development. Last year we developed new sizes for our Protech treaded wheels in response to customer requests and because it was a natural evolution for the product. This year, we have developed a new 3” tread widths for our RollX wheels and will soon be releasing new sizes for the same reasons.
   

In the final analysis, a huge part of our success over the past 47 years is a result of our commitment to new product development. It’s expensive and time consuming and not every new idea is successful. But it seems to me that to continually meet the needs of customers and respond to the market, you have no choice but to be product driven. Success, on the other hand, is a matter of sensing potential, being smart and just plain listening.

If you have an idea for a new caster or wheel product that will help your business expand or make your operation more productive, I’m ready to listen. Please contact me.

At Algood our competition keeps us on our toes but over the years we have learned that the best way to compete is to do what we do best and the best way to view our competitors is in the rear view mirror. Here are six ways in which we think about competition.

1. Competition can be a motivating factor. There are actually two ways in which competition can be a positive influence. On one hand, we will often combine competitive influences with our own capacity for innovation to create new products or improve existing ones. On the other hand, the practices of our competitors sometimes provide a guide in how not to do business. I am frequently shocked by the quality and deliverability standards of many of our competitors.
   
2. I take no comfort in negative comments about our competitors. Increasingly I am hearing more negative comments about our competitors from both distributors and OEMs. In fact, there have been times when I have witnessed a caster company being totally trashed by a customer or prospective customer. Believe it or not, I take no satisfaction in hearing those comments. If anything I am saddened by them because, to some degree, a negative comment about one company is a statement about the whole industry.
   
3. We have no desire to mimic our competition. We can learn from our competition. We are humble enough to understand that everyone is this business has the potential to teach us something. But we have to be true to our values and the high standards to which we are committed. For example, I would never ask our sales team to be like the salespeople of our competitors. We breed our representatives to be true castersmiths that combine rich knowledge with impeccable principles.
   
4. Imitation is the greatest form of flattery. My father taught me that when another producer knocks off one of our products, to take it as a compliment. Frankly, it doesn’t bother me at all when we are copied. If anything it is validation that we are providing the right products to the marketplace.
   
5. We understand the pressures of pricing. We understand that project budgets are critical and that cost-savings are a huge contributor to business success. We work closely with our customers to deliver the right product at the right price. However there are times when we are asked to match a competitor’s quote and our most responsible response is to pass. If matching a competitor’s price means putting our quality standards at risk or, in any way, not being able to deliver a product of which we are proud, it’s not worth it – no matter how much we want to help or how big the project.
   
6. Achieving excellence is the most effective approach to competition. We can never stand still and never be complacent. If we focus on using our integrated manufacturing facility to always be innovating to truly meet the needs of our customers; if we dedicate ourselves to producing the highest quality product and delivering it on time; and if we bend over backwards to service our customers to death, we will always be in the driver’s seat – viewing our competition in the rear view mirror.

When I heard about the recent criminal conviction of a site manager whose negligence took the lives of three employees, it made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I was incensed at the fact that someone in a management position would risk the lives of workers in order to save time or money. And I was reminded that manufacturing is a dangerous business that imposes an almost sacred responsibility on management for the safety of workers.

That may sound funny. People wouldn’t ordinarily view manufacturing casters as a dangerous occupation. The reality is that our employees work every day with all kinds of machinery that exerts huge amounts of force. If the equipment is mishandled or if a malfunction is not responded to properly, then injuries can happen. Believe me, I’ve seen my share of minor mishaps and even one or two serious incidents – and they are not pretty.

Safety is always top of mind for me. It’s always on my agenda and here’s what we are doing about protecting the safety of our staff.

Daily Walk-Through. Every day at 7:15 am, I’m accompanied by our VP of Manufacturing, our Plant Manager and our Quality Assurance Manager on a full walk through of the plant. While production is a large part of our focus, I am always watching out for matters of safety. Are employees wearing the correct safety gear? Are the exits clear? Are aisles uncluttered? Is machinery being used properly? If I see anything that is amiss, it gets dealt with immediately.

Health & Safety Committee. Just having such a committee isn’t a big deal but fully vesting it with independent authority is. The majority of our Health & Safety Committee members are employees, not management. And yet they have tremendous responsibility for the ongoing safety in our plant. They meet regularly, conduct their own frequent walkthroughs and create policy. I purposely stay at arms length from the Committee because even the tiniest possibility that safety would be sacrificed  – or be perceived to have been sacrificed – for any financial purpose is reprehensible.

Incident Response. When something goes wrong, I want to understand what happened in complete detail. On occasion I have spent hours reviewing video from the plant floor in order to be fully understand the cause of  – and the response to – a safety situation. Ultimately, it’s never just one factor that leads to an accident. There are always numerous cascading causes and being able to trace the root of the problem is critical.

Communicate. When it comes to safety there is a straight line from the factory floor to my office. I want to know about anything that is having an effect on the safety of our staff.  When something goes wrong, I personally speak with the production team involved. The point of the conversation is not to criticize or berate but rather to determine the steps that will make sure the problem never re-occurs. At full staff gatherings, it’s important that I’m the one who speaks about the importance of safety so that our employees understand that it’s an absolute priority.

Whenever I hear about a worker that is seriously injured or God forbid dies on the job, I am mortified. Every one of those incidents is preventable and I often think that if company owners or managers had been less concerned with profit and more concerned with safety, the incident would never have occurred.

At Algood our greatest investment is our employees and we will do whatever it takes to keep that investment safe and secure.

I will travel across continents to see a customer. With so many modes of communication at my disposal it seems crazy. I could call, email, chat or even video-conference without leaving my office. On top of that business travel can be very challenging with all its lines,  weather, flight and mechanical delays. Based on all that you might wonder why I would fly 3,000 miles for just one meeting. The answer is simple. You can’t replace face-to-face.

The truth is that I really enjoy personally meeting valued customers. It’s an opportunity to watch someone’s reaction as they handle a sample or sense their excitement as they talk about their business. It’s often a great way to help entrepreneurs see the potential that exists within their own customer relationships. Meeting someone face-to-face is doing business in real time and its very powerful.

At Algood, our casters are more than just a commodity. Every one of them includes the people that stand behind the product. When I meet with a customer, he or she  is literally seeing the face of Algood. With every commitment that is made, I am putting my personal reputation on the line.

Increasingly, our customers are being confronted by the erosion of good vendors. Loyalty is being replaced by opportunism. Customer service can’t compete with corporate sustainability. Our customers are in the trenches, day in and day out – trying to develop, build, sell, and provide – and they need a supply partner they can trust, that has their back and will stand behind a product. When I take the time to travel to see a customer, the message is clearly that Algood is taking the long view. We want to build relationships and establish trust. We’re looking for CFL – Customers for Life.

Being on site provide unique opportunities. I can meet with a group of sales reps or product engineers or buyers and give them first-hand explanations of caster design and engineering – or introduce them to a new product line. While it may be expensive to bring all those people together, the benefit of the personal interaction outweighs the cost.

Often times, I’m able to accompany customers on a visit to their customer’s work site and see first-hand the conditions in which a caster has to perform. When I am able to personally see the environment in which casters are being operated and truly understand the objectives that are not being met, it makes all the difference in the world. I can personally guide the design and engineering of products that will better meet the end-user’s needs, which, in turn, establishes our customer as a trusted supplier.

My personal interaction proves that we understand that a customer is more than just specifications and requirements – more than just an order. My visits are an opportunity to learn more about the people, not the companies, who are our customers. It also demonstrates that Algood casters are more than just product. They are our craft and our livelihood and I am proud to sit with customers and talk about the casters and wheels we manufacture in North America.

There’s no better feeling than the one that comes from completing a sale in person. While there are dozens of ways to complete and execute agreements, there is something irreplaceable about shaking someone’s hand. It embodies the mutual trust that is part of our customer relationships and it represents the promise that we make when we provide our products.

Frankly, getting out on the road and meeting with customers is just good business. And it leads to more business because being there is no substitute for being face-to-face.

I’m always looking for opportunities to meet with customers. If you would like to have a personal meeting please feel free to contact me.

What does being the first to bring a product to market say about a company? Some might say it’s creative or innovative. Others might conclude it invests significantly in R&D. Still others might see that company as highly competitive. All of those things might be true, but from my perspective in the caster industry, being the first to introduce a new product means that you have powerful relationships with your customers – and that Leo Durocher was wrong when he said, “Nice guys finish last.”

All of the industry-firsts that we have developed were in response to customer requirements. For me, the most impressive example of that was when Algood was the first to put hub caps on casters.

At the time, thread guards were all the rage. Everyone was putting them on casters to protect them from dirt and debris. But they weren’t very attractive. We had a customer in the store fixture business that was working on a new display that needed to be totally outstanding. In fact, he told us he wanted a wheel on the casters that would make people say, “WOW!” So, we set out to satisfy our customer and break new ground.

The inspiration came, as it often does, in a very ordinary moment. I was in the car with one of our sales reps and noticed the great looking wheels on the car beside us. “That’s it!” I said. “We should we put hub caps on those casters and make them look as cool as that car.”

It had never been done before which meant we had to do tons of research. I went to the SEMA auto products show and came back with catalogues and magazines. Our design and engineering teams explored all the possibilities. We developed a number of designs and processes and worked with the customer to narrow choices. In the end, we came up with an industry-first, created a gorgeous caster and had a customer who was simply ecstatic.

The other great thing about this project was that it demonstrated how casters can contribute to the overall aesthetic of a product. So often casters are an afterthought. We’ve seen many situations where casters aren’t even included in the product specs. Then we get a panicked call from a buyer, engineer or product manager either needing casters in a real hurry or having to meet some unusual spec – or both. It was wonderful to work with a customer who saw the caster as an essential part of the product.

Of course, other caster producers tried to copy the WOW hub cap but none of them matched the quality and attention to detail. We are used to having our products copied. It goes with the territory. On more than one occasion, I’ve been in offshore manufacturing facilities and have seen exact replicas of one of our proprietary products being made. It’s frustrating for sure, but I prefer to see imitation as the highest form of flattery.

The truth is that, in some ways, we are always creating new products. With our integrated manufacturing facility we have almost unlimited resources at our disposal. We routinely modify existing products with new moulds, dies and stampings. Our 3D printing station allows us to go beyond visioning and be able to closely examine prototypes. Whether it’s custom stems, modified top plates or unique braking systems, we are always innovating. These products and components may not be as sexy as hub caps, but they are just as much a result of our dedication to meeting customer requirements.

Product innovation also makes our casters less of a commodity. It’s great for us to be able to quickly satisfy buyers with “off the shelf” products that can be delivered quickly. On the other hand, our customers know that we have the unique capability to create configurations that don’t exist in any company’s catalogue.

Ultimately being the first to market with a product is a result of putting your customers first. When you value your customers you’re prepared to innovate to meet their requirements. In turn, they value your commitment and creativity. When that happens you’re both number one.