Just another screwed up day

[jeffmoss26]

I hear ya there! Whenever I do a voice or data cabling job, I try to take everything I can think of but always end up leaving SOMETHING behind and have to run to HD/Lowe's/supply house.

[dll932]

Wow...that is a lot of inventory!!

It might seem like it if you are a one man shop but we have 5 trucks on the road so if you divide that up it isn't that much. Time is money so for example having to make a trip to pick up a pivot because you don't have the correct one could cost you a couple of hours minimum. That two hours could pay to stock about 6 sets of pivots. Now what happens if the job is at 4:00 PM or miles from the shop or at night. The job wouldn't get done until the next day. Now you have potentially lost a job possibly a customer. It is also frustrating as a locksmith not to have stock when you need it, I know it used to frustrate me no end where I used to work.

We also are of the business model that prefers to replace than to repair. Over time we have decided that a repair will fail on occasion and then the customer will be upset, you will lose money on a return trip. New parts are less likely to fail and come with a manufacturer warranty. This also demands more stock on hand.

I agree in general with replacement, but with older houses it's not always easy to find a new substitute. Also, many times people WANT the old hardware to be preserved. We made a good deal of money taking out older mortise lock hardware, overhauling it and having it replated, then putting it back in.