the rush is on again

[Mike]

last ,monday I contracted a 40' meridian enclosure   the guy asked me when I could start and how long I would take, well I told him id start the next Monday yesterday and time to do it about a week for the bridge and half a week for the aft deck. so yesterday I got the patterns and this morning he calls 8am to see when im going to start , well I said I patterned yesterday ( its at a marina)  well when will it be done I said well about mid next week, " oh I was going to go for a cruise next weekend   now when I got the contract I for him week n a

so now the rush is on I also have to do a rear sunpad upholstery and a t top 3 window enclosure I always bite off too much  :-*

[JDUpholstery]

you and me both Mike....only I bite off enough that my shop can handle, with me, 1 experienced upholsterer and an unskilled helper, but then the upholsterer never shows up and keeps setting me behind schedule! yesterday I had a job on schedule, replacing just the grey portion on the back rest and side bolster of this ski boat, I scheduled it to take 8 hours.... I came in to work at 8AM, had the pieces removed and ready to rewrap by 930 when my upholsterer showed up...had to go out on 2 service calls so was out of the shop most of the day, he got 1 side wrapped and only half of the second one.....told me dont worry I will finish in the morning...I know better so stayed in the shop til 9PM finishing it myself....good thing too because he did not show up today


heres a picture of the job..am I just nuts or did this guy screw around all day...no reason that wrapping one side and half of the other should have taken 8 hours...especially considereing that other than wrapping the grey, I did everything else on the job, removing, teardown, and rebuilding and reinstalling the bolsters

[Mike]

8 hours I think id be able to tear down pattern and recover bolt the bucket seats and take a nice lunch
funny I could never get much winter boat  work upholstery in NH the 12 year I was there , if I didn't have my bait shop id gone broke . but that's what happened no work and one winter I got a motor hoame and went to florida on vacation.

[baileyuph]

Knowing only that the grey was replaced on the back rest (both buckets?) and the side bolster (back rest bolster of both buckets?) isn't fair enough information to estimate on.  As you know the tear down wasn't trivial, the scope could be or not be fairly significant.  But anyway 8 hours was estimated and what did the total job take, 12 to 14 hours? 

Anyway, you are the best judge, what would you estimate on the same job again?  Still only 8 hours?  If so, there probably wasn't as much vinyl replaced as I percieved.

If there was only one bucket involved, I tend to agree with you JD.

Looks good!

Doyle

[scott_san_diego]

Jd, I usually let my upholster know when the customer is going to be coming to pick up the piece of funiture or when I will be delivering it.  Over the years I have found that if I am not specific then there is more time for them to find other things to do, other than what you need to have them do while you are out of the office.
I feel your pain.

[Mike]

Doyle i took it jd meant the backrest of the rear bench that curves into the side bolster. I meant i could upholster the entire two. U ket seat start to finnish in the time giving the one bolster andonther half were done only doing o e color.

[JDUpholstery]

yes I meant the grey on the rear bench down the sides...tear down was completed by me by 930 in the AM when he showed up....by 4PM he had 1 done and half done on the second, unacceptable...I worked from 5 to 9 (4 hours) and finished wrapping the grey on second one, put everything back together...bolsters went from floor to gunwale and had to be dismantled completely to change the small grey strip in the center...and had it back in the boat....1 hour in the AM reinstalling wiring and throttle and screwing everything back in...so by myself I had 6 hours into it...the easiest part IMO was the wrapping of the grey, 2 hours to pattern cut and sew 2 covers is not asking alot...I did the cushion in the center as well myself....I know I cant and am not complaining because the only person's fault that it is is my own, for putting faith in someone who time and again has let me down....I just get irritated that I spend the day running the business, finding and bidding new job, and at the end of the day I have to come in and finish the jobs as well...of course that is part of being the boss!

[Mike]

sounds like hes just loafing off alone you know , when the cats away. does he know your not happy with what he got done? does he have the skill do do it faster if your present? I kinda know how you feel when I had my shop in new Hampshire I had a snall tackle bait shop adjacent to the canvas shop and had a worker in the bait SHOP   id be making the big money and making sure this guy was paid but sometimes hunter would come it hand they  would start tal;king hunting and the customer who wasn't buying anything would tell his hunting story of how he was in the wood and steped in a branch "crack" while im working hes over there chatting and getting paid

[JDUpholstery]

yeah, he is fully capable, I have been doing this for a year and a half now, he has been doing it for 25, I am self taught, he is wyoming tech trained....I work 10 hours a day, is doing good to give me 6 hours....I know fire his arse right...I had considered it, in fact almost pulled the trigger until a friend of mine...an old man with many years of successful business told me not to fire him, because around here you wont find another skilled upholsterer, just dont rely on him, when he is there great, when he isnt oh well.....but I am beginning to wonder about the wisdom, when he is there he seems to actually slow me down....

I did a recliner warranty repair on 2 identical recliners, the bonded leather back rests were both peeling....factory sent me presewn covers, just stuff and staple....the customers requested that I add flaps at the head rest because they were worried it would not hold up again...I did the whole job but asked him to make me 2 squares with folded over clean edges 24X18....it took him 1.5 hours to get them to me...granted they were nicely done, but dang I was figuring 15 mins tops 30....WTF right!

[kodydog]

When I worked in manufacturing I always made sure to work in factories who paid hourly wages. Every once in a while, when management felt we wern't working fast enough, they would come out and threaten to put us all on piece work. Just the threat alone would kick everyone into a higher gear. Just saying, could work for you.

[byhammerandhand]

I have a friend who's an expert in historical woodworking.   He was telling me once about the industry in Britain in the 19th century.   The shop owners (garretmasters) would hire journeymen to work sun up to sun down.   In the summer, they were paid by the day; in the winter they were paid by the piece. 

And remember Britain is about as far north as Labrador with long summer and short winter days.

[sofadoc]

When I worked in manufacturing I always made sure to work in factories who paid hourly wages. Every once in a while, when management felt we wern't working fast enough, they would come out and threaten to put us all on piece work. Just the threat alone would kick everyone into a higher gear. Just saying, could work for you.

Years ago, I had a guy working for me. At first, I paid him by the piece...........he slopped through it as quickly as possible. So I started paying him by the hour............he took twice too long to complete a job.

The moral of the story is, if the guy is a problem employee, then neither method will produce satisfactory results. 

[Mike]

I was going to say mention piece work.

[JDUpholstery]

He is on piece work already....with as slow as he works, I wouldn't want to pay him any other way....I pay him a percentage of the labor rate (not material profits) of each job, variable based on how much I do with a max of 50% if he does the entire job....needless to say he hasn't gotten 50% on very many jobs

[regalman190]

I hear you Mike. I'm sure you remember from up north....February gets here, and everyone starts thinking about their boats again. Booked two enclosures this week and both stored inside. 8) 8)