There probably isn’t anyone who hasn’t heard the old saying, “Good enough is good enough,” or even “Good enough for government work.”  the trouble is, however, that to a growing extent, good enough isn’t good enough, and if you determine that a job really is good enough for government work, chances are very good that you won’t ever work on another government project again.  And that goes even for companies that might not deal directly with the government, but even for those who do work for companies that do work for the government. Further, there are many industries where good enough simply isn’t good enough. This includes electronics and other work where a high degree of accuracy is required for a product to work as it should.  This is made even more complicated by the fact that in these industries inspections by the human eye doesn’t yield nearly the results required for thorough inspections.

The solution in these cases is auto optical inspections, which consist of specially designed machines that deliver the high precision products that are expected to be delivered in so many businesses.  These results include several that work in your favor:

Speed.  There are many things that are quicker than the human eye.  Fortunately, among these are AOI machines. After an AOI machine is set up, circuit boards that would normally take hours to examine are not only seen quicker, but they are also done so far more accurately than when human eye examination is the basis for review.  And even when an operator is called to review the mistakes that are found by an AOI machine, you are still talking about considerably less time than would be done otherwise by hand.

Accuracy.  The human eye is prone to error.  Everyone knows that. on the other hand, AOI machines are highly accurate when searching for and finding errors in circuit boards.  And when you use an experienced AOI machine operator, the chances of ending up with accurate and error-free circuit boards is exceptionally high.  And anyone knows that the earlier these types of errors are caught and addressed reduces time lost in later stages of the manufacturing process.

Fast Catches.  As soon as an AOI machine catches a problem, an operator is notified, which speeds up the process of manufacturing considerably since errors are addressed as they happen.  Once errors are caught they can be fixed before they head to further steps in the manufacturing process. With AOI machines, errors are caught before they must be addressed later on.

Greater Quality Consistency.  Having zero errors is important in circuit board examination.  But even more important is to have zero errors in quality consistently.  This standard, which can be achieved and maintained with high-quality AOI machines, is critical to a profitable operation.  The human eye is prone to consistent errors, ROI machines are not.

Less Stress and Strain.  Workers are prone to all sorts of factors as they work.  this is not only caused by stress and strain, but stress and strain cause humans to make errors.  ROI machines are not prone to these same influences. This makes them not only more reliable when they work, but a stress reliever for the humans who work with them.  

It is important to note that ROI machines aren’t perfect.  Just like humans, they can experience problems due to their work.  On the bright side, ROI machines have proven their ability to work at much higher levels than humans, and for greater quality time than even other machines.  ROI machines aren’t cheap either, but once they have been effectively employed, even with their shortcomings, they are a proven time and money saver that should be used in virtually every inspection process.  The point with ROI machines is not that there might still be errors, but the chances of there being errors are much less, and less likely to cause problems in the later stages of the production process. The bottom line for ROI machines is that they don’t cost, they pay.   And for those manufacturers who use them, it’s not a matter of use them and weep, but use them and reap, in both the short and long term.

 

It doesn’t take thinking about it too long before you realize that bringing your business to someone is much like buying a pig in a poke.  Until a business proves itself to you, you simply never know what you will get when it comes time to deliver. Fortunately, there are ways to get a preview of a business, especially when you know that the owners, and to a great extent, even the employees, have certain qualifications.  These owners and employees might be excellent craftsmen, but when it comes right down to it, there’s more to running a quality business than ability. It also takes attitude and the willingness to go above and beyond what is expected. That’s the primary difference between working with a veteran-owned business and virtually anyone else.

If you want to grow up quick and right, join the military.  Everybody knows that. It’s why so many young people join the military right out of high school.  There are certainly benefits to joining any respective service branch, but the military offers benefits unavailable practically anywhere else.  For example, installations are actually just cities, with those who are responsible for running them and those who do the day to day work. They are all trained to do their work in the most efficient and economical manner possible.  There are those who manage accounting, aircraft maintenance, and even cutting the lawns. Regardless of the specific job they do, those in the military learn to take as well as to give orders. Above all, however, they learn to complete a mission as directed.

Of course, this is all well and good when these men and women are serving their country, but when they retire or otherwise separate themselves from the service, they take the same can-do attitude with them in civilian circles.  That’s why so often you can pick a veteran out of a group, even among equally qualified people. A veteran will begin a job by ensuring that he understands his objectives, makes sure he has what he needs to complete that objective, then makes sure that regardless of the mission, that is it carried out.  

When you do business with a veteran or a veteran-owned business, you can rest assured that when they tell you a job will be completed at a certain time and to a certain standard, it will be.  This goes for your first order all the way to your 101st order. You will get the same exacting standard in everything they do. It’s not only the way they were trained to work in the military, regardless of the branch, but it’s the level of maturity and mental toughness they learn to use in getting a job done right.

How can you be so sure that this is what a given veteran will give you?  It’s because this is the way they were trained to perform in whatever task they were given.  It doesn’t matter whether they were given the mission of advancing on a hill or a beachhead or performing a print job.  They are driven to succeed and to give every effort their best, regardless of what that purpose is. Their standards are exacting, but they are high too.  That’s the way a military member learns to keep his subordinates alive as well as vital to carrying out their purpose. This is why hiring a veteran is the closest thing you or any employer has to get the assurance that a job will be done right, on time, and under budget.

Probably most important of all, a veteran wants to prove themselves in whatever job they undertake.  They might be wearing civilian clothing when they are working for you, but you will still get the same mission-oriented drive they learned and thrived on in the military.  You can take advantage of that same drive to your benefit. All they need is the opportunity. Why not give a veteran a chance? there are no guarantees, but there aren’t with a civilian either, but well give you odds.

Several years ago there was a book written by two professors,  Reis and Trout, called Marketing Warfare, which made the analogy of business being combat.  Why not hire someone who is most fitting for fighting the war of business?