Are Bottlenecks Preventing Your Full Production?

by Rick White, President 180BIZ                                                             (Estimated Read Time 5 minutes)

Today’s topic is the slowdowns in the shop. I often see shop owners pretend they don’t exist or accept them for what they are. And more so than not, bottlenecks are the cause of the slowdowns. Let's define what a bottleneck is. A bottleneck is anything that prevents you from reaching your production capacity. Anything that prevents you from hitting a hundred percent capacity in production is a bottle deck.

Figure out the capacity of your shop.

Recognize that they're there. That's what I'd like you to start doing today. Figure out what your capacity should be. What should you be getting out of the shop in an ideal world, with all the planets lined up, everything going the way it should, people saying, “Yes,” the right parts come in on time and they work. What should you be able to produce in your shop?

Get tired of SSDD and want better.

I can almost hear someone saying, “Oh no, Rick, come on. That's never going to happen.” And you're absolutely right. It will never get better until you start to demand it. It  will never get better until you decide that you’re tired of it and want better for your shop, team, family, and clients.

Overscheduling is usually caused by production issues.

There are so many shops who are overscheduled. Not because of the schedule, but because of production issues. And that's the true issue here. You're scheduling for this, you're getting that. And you're wondering why you're getting backed up on your schedule or you can't get stuff done. You’re wondering why you're always trying to catch your tail. It's because you're not managing production. You're allowing activity to dictate what gets done. It doesn't have to be that way.

Step back, take a breath, recognize the bottlenecks, and write them down.

Step back, take a breath, and recognize the bottlenecks. Then write them down. Eighty to eighty-five percent of the issues that are preventing you from achieving full production are not technician issues. So bottlenecks, recognize they're there, be aware of them and start to document them.

If this video resonates with you, if you think this could help somebody, please share it. Let others in, because I'm telling you, there are so many shops out there paying eight hours a day for a tech and they're getting three, four hours a day and it can get fixed. So please share this video. T

Also, join me in our next Shop Owner’s Round Table.  It’s the second Thursday of every month at 7:00 PM Eastern time.  And check out my Pocket Business Genius webinar series.  I go into depth on bottlenecks. It’ll be a game changer for a lot of shops.

God bless. stay safe, have some fun, and go make some money.

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