Chapter 3 - Have I got a suggestion for you!

Well so much for a slow introduction to January, its been a busy couple of weeks and here's hoping it will continue for the rest of 2017. We are nearing the end of our Valley Venture accelerator program graduation is on the 30th of January, and I thought it worth sharing a couple of insights.

We become involved in the program as a way to network and learn from our peers about how we could significantly increase our business. On the negative side there are unfortunately no magical fixes, but there are some pretty magical outcomes.

As part of the course we where advised / pushed / motivated to talk to our customers both potential and current to understand their issues and challenges, so that we could better understand our opportunities.

One of the biggest learning experiences was finding out the secrete of getting new customers. When we talked to our customers and asked them how do you find new customers and suppliers, the key  response was we ask people we trust for recommendations. Specifically the key role of referrals, and getting into the habit of asking for them is very important. Having learned in the past that what gets measured gets done, we have started to track referrals.

Lets see if this measurement correlates to increased sales......

Volo Aero MRO is an FAA and EASA certified repair station providing brilliant machining services to our aerospace partners. For more information please visit our web site at www.volo-aero.com

Understanding your customers to deliver Value

We are all familiar with the three requirements of customers, FAST, Quality and Cheap and the saying you can have any two of the three. We smile knowingly and nod our heads, the one issue with this is that the customer really does want all three.

As a participant in the Valley Venture Manufacturing accelerator program Volo Aero MRO has been tasked with developing and better understanding our customers. Letting you into the big secret, we talked to our customers and asked them! I know a shocking peice of insight so keep this little gem to yourselves.

Does Cheap  equal Low Cost ?

In the aerospace market particularly in repairs and also in grinding for new manufacture there is great pressure to deliver as quickly as possible with zero  defect and we compete in a global market. So when customers talk about the lowest cost does this mean falling into the lowest price point? Our position is that when you are left negotiating on a price point you had better be in a commodity market with the lowest cost production base, or you need to change the discussion.

Well we are based in Massachusetts, not globally known as the lowest cost of operation on a global market so e take a different approach.  We will provide Fast turn times, Zero defect quality and VALUE. we cannot provide the lowest price but we can provide the best value.

So what is the best value that you can provide a customer? Any guess who can tell you that........

Pick up the phone , get in the car, get out of your workplace and go speak to your customers, they have the answers.

Volo Aero MRO is an FAA certified repair station based in Massachusetts, we provide brilliant precision machining solutions to our aerospace partners. Delivering capacity and capability they can trust every time. For more information please visit our web site www.volo-aero.com

Thoughts from a small Business Chapter 2

Ramblings of a January morning

As time progresses in the world of small business I am constantly learning  and developing what I beleive is the best way to run Volo Aero MRO. Through my working life I have worked with a great many individuals, coworkers and managers and there is a lot I have learnt from doing myself, failing on my own (and with others) and seeing how other people work. The leasons that can be learnt from watching others is truely a gift- even if all it shows you is what not to do!

Throughout my working history I have spent a considerable time with customers, getting to know them on a personal level and getting to know thier fears and concerns. The trap I tend to fall into is that once I have learnt something I tend never to question it so if a customer explains thier issues to me 5 or 10 years ago I remember. The problem with this is that things change, you would not expect this to surprise me  after all change is constant and ongoing.

A classic example for me was dealing with an OEM cusomer who for years was always driving down price year after year after year, otherwise known as the margin death spiral. Yes a process can be leaned out and improved but there comes a point where incremental improvements are not going to yield significant gain- the process is about as good as its going to get. So whilst trying to figure a way of telling the customer what we could do and could not do to meet there expected request I prepared for the dreaded call.

Well the day came I prepared myself and the call did not pan out the way I expected, the reason was the customer had changed thier proorities, its now all about on time delivery. The customer had reviewed its metrics and realised that its true savings would be better delivered by delivering more engines quicker than saving a few dollars on repairs. A realization that sometimes you need to look at the bigger picture to deliver real savings.


 

Jig Grinding 102

Jig grinding is well known as the best method of grinding highly precise through holes and blind holes to a very close location, true position  and tolerance requirements. With the advent of modern CNC milling and turning machines with their improved capabilities we expect to see a reduction in work for Jig grinding.

What has surprised us is that there is still a large demand for jig grinding in aerospace both in new manufacture and repairs when parts have coatings applied. The application of sprayed on coatings is still not controlled accurately enough or applied in the thicknesses required without the need to finish grind to final dimensions. 

With the new engines for the A320 Neo (GTF) and 787 GENex we are seeing requirements for Jig grinding. This technology is still relevant to today's needs.

Volo Aero MRO is an FAA and EASA certified precision machining provider, for more information please visit our web site at www.volo-aero.com

Thoughts from small business- Chapter 1

Alternatively called musings from the front line.

Here at Volo Aero MRO we face challanges and opportunities on a daily basis the same as many companies across the country  and arround the wold. So we thought it would be interesting to shine a light on some of our experiances with the hope it will bring a smile and possibly some insite for others.

After all we all like a good story and a giggle at someone elses expense, otherwise known as a learning opportunity!

So a little bit about Volo Aero MRO- Its OK you can skip this paragraph if you want. We are an aerospace company that performs specialized machining services to fix broken parts and to complete the manufacture of new parts. Established over 50 years ago and located in East Longmeadow MA we mainly perform grinding services with Jig grinders and OD/ID grinders. In a moment of weakness I purchased the business in 2015 with the hope of world domintion or at least a living wage!

The subject of todays musings is the people challange, specifically is it really that difficult to find good people? Through the years I have had the pleasure of working for some great teams and hiring and developing great people, but like most people I have also worked with some people I would prefer not to have and in my case I have hired some people which in hindsite had me asking " what the heck was I thinking"

Lets start with the mistakes- or Things I now know:

1) When hiring for customer service positions in a sales type environment, the similar type of charactoristics I was looking for I found in an exotic dancer- in my defense I did not ask if that had been a career decision as it was not on the resume or came up in the interview!

2) When hiring a machinist - its important that when they arrive for work their clothing isn't offensive, did not think that would be an issue, but hey thats why we now have a uniform policy...

3) When hiring keep interviewing at least until the new hire turns up for the first day, or at least comes back after lunch on the first day, yep had both of those.

4) As an FAA certified repair facility we have pre employment drug and alcohol tests, which we tell all prospective hires about, and yes we still get people failing them.

So what do we do now: Things we learnt and pit into practice!

We hire people- not skills (these can be trained), so we look for people who can join our team and fit our culture, we want people with our values as we know these people will be happier working in our environment. Thats why we have our values by the front door and we talk about them all the time.

Jig Grinding 101

Flag Precision d/b/a Volo Aero MRO  is a company with over 50 years experience in precision machining and grinding. Our core expertise is with jig grinding.

Jig Grinding  is a process for grinding high precision holes in location. We deal with tooling and aerospace markets  where exact locations are required. The Jig grinding process is performed at the final stages of manufacture  when the holes are already machined and there is only a small amount of material remaining to be removed.

In the picture above we have a large fixture plate weighing over 400lbs where we performed a finish grind of 8 holes.

In this blog I will hope to explain some of the benefits and challenges of Jig Grinding from an outsiders- non engineering point of view.