Archive for category: Alex Weaver

Lessons from Honeybees

Guest writer Alex Weaver continues with his theme of lessons to be learned with this week’s blog, “Lessons from Honeybees.”

My most recent blog “Three Lessons from Dad,” I listed some of Dad’s interests and work. Beekeeping was on the list.

For my dad, bees and beekeeping were a labor of love, respect, and business. My Dad, his dad and a brother kept and tended several “apiaries,” or groups of hives. Maximizing production by moving them from SW Missouri to Iowa in the summer for Alfalfa pollination. Alfalfa produces great tasting honey. They produced and sold honey all year. There is a seasonal focus on beekeeping depending on what plant is blooming. A bee yard was fifty to several hundred hives. Not in one location but scattered across several locations, usually farms in southwest Missouri or southern Iowa. My Dad became a bit of a “Bee Whisperer” and often discussed his observations that became life lessons. He was very observant as he worked with the bees. 

Honeybees are essential in our lives. Honeybees are big money makers for U.S. agriculture. These social and hardworking insects produce six hive products – honey, pollen, royal jelly, beeswax, propolis, and venom – all collected and used by people for various nutritional and m medicinal purposes. Honeybees pollinate $15 billion worth of crops in the United States each year, including more than 130 types of fruits, nuts, and vegetables. Honeybees also produce honey, worth about $3.2 million in 2017 according to USDA-National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).

Why is learning from Honeybees important? Because they have been successful for a long time.

“Bees lived during the time of the dinosaurs. During the Mesozoic era on earth, the earliest dinosaurs appeared about 245 million years ago and disappeared after an asteroid hit earth around sixty-five million years ago. The oldest fossil bees are from circa one hundred million years ago, found in Myanmar.” – Mann Lake LTD

So, what can we learn from Honeybees that apply in our workplace and our homes?

My comments here echo information available in many books today about honeybees. Scientists have studied and continue to study these hardworking and extremely focused insects. But I also include some of my dad’s comments. 

Teamwork –

“Honeybees are nature’s ultimate team-players. They cooperate in everything they do. They also behave as if it were an individual matter, while at the same time keeping the common good of the hive as their priority. If one bee is suffering or falling behind, the others step up and do the work, making sure that collective productivity is never reduced.” – 

Using teamwork, they produce honey. It is the only food that includes everything that is necessary to sustain life – water, minerals, enzymes, and vitamins. Honey also contains pinocembrin, an antioxidant associated with improved brain functioning. 

Without teamwork, the honeybee ecosystem could not achieve its goals.

Roles and Responsibilities – 

Every member of the hive population has a job to do. The queen is dedicated to reproducing, repopulating the population. The queen can lay as many as 2,000 eggs per day. Drones give up their lives to mate with the queens and contribute to succession. Worker bees can serve multiple roles. Scout bees are on the lookout for the next area to harvest pollen. They escort forager bees and soon a “pipeline” is formed. Forager bees haul pollen to the hive and return “empty” for the next load. Guard bees provide security.

Clearly Defined Roles and Responsibilities drive increased production and success.

Efficient – 

“Honeybees don’t multitask. Instead, they focus only on the top priority. They each have different jobs and they stick to them. This is how they are efficient, wasting no time on anything other than living their purpose and contributing where they are most capable.”

You have heard the expression, “Busy as a Bee – because they work hard every day. “It takes three hundred bees visiting two million flowers to make one pound of honey. Rest is part of being efficient. Honeybees spend two-thirds of their time resting. Bees need five to eight hours rest. Or they become inefficient.” – Paul Rigby

Work hard, but rest is important.

Process – 

Honeybees can be fun to observe. My Dad taught me this. Air Traffic Control. If you observe closely, there is no traffic jam around the entrance to the beehive. Bees that are inbound with pollen approach the hive at about 45 degrees, on the left side of the entrance, and once they have deposited their load, they depart, at about 45 degrees on the right side of the hive entrance, as you face the hive. Other bees flying around or near the hive can be on “orientation” flights, which is how recently hatched bees learn   which hive is their home and how to fly in and out.

Process defines productivity.

Communication – 

Scout bees find forage and flowers to harvest. A scout bee can waggle its body to send out the scent of the flower and this permeates the hive. The foragers know what flower to harvest.

Constant, clear communication improves productivity.

Security – 

Ten to Twenty guard bees remain airborne, near the entrance to the hive watching for predators. Bears, skunks, hive beetles, raccoons, and opossums seek Honeybee hives to raid for the honey and the bees. The bees defend their hive by stinging the predator in groups. The larger the predator, the more bees join in to sting and thwart the invader. Honeybees understand they face threats and are prepared to defend their hive, their factory and home. 

Lately Honeybees have come under attack by a “disease” called Colony Collapse Disorder. Much research is being done to identify the cause and protect the bees.

Without vigilant security, the Hive (Enterprise) won’t survive.

Interesting Next Step – 

As mentioned above, the Honeybee population is declining. One industry pundit has suggested that the decline could be slowed if there were more “Hobby” beekeepers. Maybe, many households could each set up and manage two honeybee hives. It is more work than a cat or dog, but extremely rewarding. The first time you remove a full frame of honey from a hive, cut the honey from the frame, and put it in a bowl, your kitchen is changed forever. Honey and honeycomb, fresh from your hive, is wonderful. Honey can be used to flavor recipes, spread on baked goods, base for sauces, including baked Salmon. 

Beehives are a good teaching venue for teenagers and family members. Several years ago, my younger sister and young adult daughter kept two hives in their backyard. Also, I helped my neighbors set up two hives. The hives flourished and they grew to five hives and produced enough honey for their own consumption, and some left to sell. In both instances the hives resided in suburban backyards.

In many communities there is a Beekeeper’s Club. Such clubs offer help to newcomers wanting to get started. There are hundreds of books available in print and online. I will list a few below.

The time is now. Why not give two beehives a chance? You and your family can be successful and help our honeybee population grow. And enjoy your fresh “Honey from the Hive.”

Books for your consideration:

“The Five Habits of Highly Effective Bees” – Thomas R. Seeley

“The Wisdom of Bees” – Michael O’Malley, PHD

What The Hive can teach business about leadership, efficiency, and growth

“Honeybee Democracy” – Thomas R. Seeley

“A Book of Bees” – Sue Hubbell

“Honeybee:  Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper” – C. Marina Marchese

Books currently in my library:

“The Beekeeper’s Handbook – Diana Sammataro and Alphonse Avitabile

“The Backyard Beekeeper” – Kim Flottum

“Keeping Bees and Making Honey” – Alison Benjamin and Bran McCallum

“Natural Beekeeping” – Ross Conrad

Honeybees have been around for one hundred million years – as quoted above. They have a proven successful operating model. We can learn a lot from these little insects.

Credit where credit is due:  There is text in the above document highlighted by parenthesis. If I knew the author, their name follows the text. Some I did not have, so understand, these are not my words, and I don’t take credit, but agree with the message.

Did you enjoy this blog? Read more great blog posts here.

For our course lists, please click here.

Employee Satisfaction in 2022 and Beyond

Guest writer Alex Weaver continues the year-end reflections with a look at employee satisfaction in 2022 and beyond…

Recently we looked at measuring our business / commercial performance around four metrics:

• Financial Performance
• Market Share
• Customer Satisfaction
• Employee Satisfaction

In October, we discussed some factors influencing Customer Satisfaction and today’s marketplace.

At year end, let’s look at Employee Satisfaction. There is a lot of press recently concerning people of all ages and skills, leaving the workplace and not returning.  Also, some younger potential employees are choosing not to enter the workplace.

In today’s challenging economy, the norm appears to be that dealers are continuously struggling to fill 10%, or more, of their jobs.  And it doesn’t appear to be improving. 

“Employee retention is important to any business: the expense of hiring and training new employees can be very costly. Another cost lies in the productivity lost while seeking to replace the employee who’s no longer there. In blue collar jobs, which are generally labor-focused, employee retention is often lower than in office and executive positions. High turn-over rates in blue collar occupations typically occur when employees feel they are under-appreciated, undervalued, and over worked. These perceptions can make employees feel unfulfilled and send them searching for better-paying jobs.”- IDI Workforce Management

Several factors or keys are frequently mentioned in employee retention.

Five Traditional Keys for Employee Retention

1. Competitive Compensations and Benefits – Pay employees what they are worth.
2. Provide Professional Development
3. Promote from Within
4. Improve Working Conditions
5. Provide a Positive Company Culture

Given today’s labor market we should look beyond the above core.  What is our ‘Humanness” factor.

1. Listen to our employees – provide opportunities to listen, be an approachable communication culture.  It is not all about formal surveys.
2. Prioritize Action based on Employee Comments / Suggestions
3. Provide a menu of additional Perks and Benefits.  One size does not fit all.  
4. What about flexible working hours or schedule?  
5. What can we learn from the Covid Pandemic?

Where does our industry fit in today’s changing labor market?  How do we recruit “human resources” that are interested in our industry? How are we viewed by younger persons regarding our industry, our machines, and the work those machines perform? 

Does our industry provide a bright future for young and / or first-time employees.  Is our workplace attractive?  Do young workers seek a career or a job?  Many of our grandfather’s sought careers and the gold watch recognition at retirement.  Some worked for the same company their entire work life.  At one time our industry was an attractive recruiting opportunity. I know of construction equipment career individuals that started out with a Tonka toy, or a scale model of a bulldozer.  Transitioned from the toys to the real thing.  A child in a sandbox to a career in our industry.

That was then, this is now.  Looking to the future provides opportunities for creative career opportunities for all employees. 

Provide incentive for employees that recruit new hires.  The recruiting employee can serve as a mentor of the new hire. Both the new hire and recruiting employee receive incentives for career longevity and performance. Offer 10 year and 20-year incentives for recruiting employee and their new hires.

Be more flexible in determining new hire career paths.  Think out of the box.  I remember one company I worked for allowed a secretary to transfer to performing work on cylinder heads in the component rebuild shop.  From desk and typewriter to bench and torque wrench.  She was a successful supplier of shop labor.  

Expand on traditional employee and community Open House events.  Offer information on machines and performance characteristics.  When possible, offer a machine demonstration.  Inform and sell the “public” on the positive nature of what we do and how we do it.  Host career discussions at Open Houses.

Involve employee family members by offering summer or vacation jobs to employee’s children.  Create Intern Programs in all facets of career opportunities. 

Today and tomorrow are more of the same, but some change and additions to how we view our family of employees.  Employee satisfaction is fostered by a sense of inclusiveness and belonging to something important. 

Last thought:  Of the items discussed above, I think the best opportunity for quality recruiting is leveraging your current employees to assist in your recruiting efforts.

Happy Holidays and Best Wishes for a prosperous New Year.

Alex Weaver

Co-Founder – agiltiONE.com

Did you enjoy this blog? Read more great blog posts here.

For our course lists, please click here.

 

Construction Equipment Used Parts

Guest writer Alex Weaver writes this blog post tonight on the topic of Construction Equipment Used Parts.

Construction Equipment Used Parts is similar, in some ways, to the automobile or on-highway truck salvage business. A core is purchased for salvage, disassembled, parts are evaluated for inventory, and some parts and components are repaired or rebuilt and sold. The business was created out of a need or demand for additional price points in the construction equipment replacement parts business.  

A successful Used Parts business contributes to overall company goals. Assume, a company has the following high-level goals:  Financial Performance, Market Share, Customer Satisfaction, Employee Satisfaction. Used Parts impacts these goals in the following order. Customer Satisfaction first, Financial Performance second and Market Share third.

Used Parts increases Customer Satisfaction by providing additional price points, and in some cases parts availability. Today, parts availability is not as certain as years past. In fact, some very large consumers of parts have created their own internal used parts operation to support parts availability needs. To insure they have the parts they need when they need them. Customer Satisfaction or loyalty positively impacts market share. Used Parts can impact financial performance by adding a revenue and profit stream for the seller. Used Parts can increase customer loyalty. Used Parts, also, contributes to harvesting a greater share of a customer’s wallet.  

History

The Construction Equipment Used Parts business got its start in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s.  Enterprising entrepreneurs purchased U. S. government surplus war material from World War II   Primarily half–tracks. An armored truck, mated with a rugged bogie and track suspension system in the rear, allowed foot soldiers to quickly move with modern, mechanized attack forces. In civilian life, many found homes in large farms and ranches as a way to deliver feed and hay bales to herds scattered across many acres.  Some 12,499 M3 half-tracks were built by White, Autocar, and Diamond T during World War II.  The track bogie’s required replacement parts and cannibalizing other units became the best, easiest source. The companies that started here, gravitated toward other track type units. And, thus, an industry was born.

As the construction equipment product lines expanded, so did the demand for used parts and components. Product improvements obsoleted older technologies. From Mechanical systems to oil lubrication, hydraulics, electrical, and electronic. Dry clutch to oil clutch, Gasoline Starting Engine to Direct Electric start, Manual transmission to PowerShift, Cable lift system for dozer to hydraulic. Operator Environment – from no operator protection to Air Conditioned, Enclosed Roll Over Protection. Every step of the way, used parts provided opportunity. And, that opportunity continues today.  

Growth & Change – Scope and Scale

The transition from Half-Tracks continues. The number of construction equipment manufacturers has increased. The numbers of product lines and models has increased.

Heavier, bigger machine products as well as compact construction equipment. Many smaller models, and as a result many more customers. The construction equipment market now includes global manufacturers and distribution.  

Some products are now obsolete or out of production. But the original products/machines are still operating. Elevating Tractor – Scrapers, like Caterpillar, 613/615.  The used parts business helps keep these machines running.

It all adds up to used parts opportunity.

Operations

Used Parts can take a lot of real estate. Or not. Some combination of Core (a machine to tear down) storage, warehouse storage and physical space dedicated to core disassembly and parts inspection. Plus, space for counter sales. Some customers want to “kick the tires” or look at what they are purchasing before they purchase. Which means public access to the used parts operations.

In today’s world, there are environmental considerations. How do you wash/clean a core before dis-assembly? How do you capture the waste fluids from a core? 

Environmental Impact

In 1976, Congress passed the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act to increase recycling and conservation efforts as waste became a bigger problem. It is estimated that the slogan “reduce, reuse, recycle” was born at this time. The used parts business is a positive contributor to environmental opportunity. Used Parts maximizes the use of original material.  Reduce/Reuse/Recycle and now Repurpose are all in the used parts “wheelhouse”.

Accounting

Many used parts operations, assign or breakdown the purchase cost of a parts machine, to some larger, higher demand parts or components and value the “by-products “at estimated scrap value. Slower moving inventory is not overvalued. In some cases, the cash accounting model is more suited to the used parts business than the accrual method. Your accountant will have the answer as it applies. Proactive, managed scraping of unneeded material is an ongoing process.

Products

• Work Tools / Attachments
• Drive Train Components
• Hydraulic Components
• Cabs / Canopies
• Sheet Metal
• Structural Parts – main frames / track frames / booms / sticks

Condition

Used Parts products can be in prepared and sold in various conditions

• “As-Is” – removed during salvage process.  Take off with no condition offered
• Removed – Cleaned
• Removed – Cleaned – Inspected – includes condition estimate
• Removed – Repaired – base product used as core to make some repairs
• Removed – Rebuilt – base product used as core to rebuild to published standard condition
• Removed – Remanufactured – base product used as core for complete rebuild

Future

Our industry has grown and prospered by providing customer solutions.  Used Parts, starting with Half – Tracks, has provided, and will continue to provide customer solutions.  The details, models, applications, horsepower, reach, lift, capacity, may change, but the demand and the supply our industry provides will continue.  Used Parts has been a part of every product/market change.  

Did you enjoy this blog? Read more great blog posts here.

For our course lists, please click here.