Tired of time and money being more impotant than quality

Date 12-30-2007 19:33

Always done fab work, Got tired of costomers wanting to half do something to save a dollar. So I got to doing bridges about 12 years ago. Was pretty good but now starting to get like alot of other stuff were time and money is more important. I know time and money are very importants on everything. And being a welder I got in to bridge because I was told that the best of the best was work in that field and some were alot has already retired. Alot of the younger and older welder just want to get done to say how fast they did it, but don't want know body to see it. As a welder I want other weld to say that some good welding. I beleave when you can get other good welder to pay u respest for your welding u are doing something right. Because they know what you had to do to get that uniform bead with no undercutting and can stand back and look at what you have put togther and know it was done right. But on the other hand being a contract welder running my own bussines thats were time and money come in, I believe that quality come before anything else. But its getting harder to make other people to think that way. Don't get me wrong have a few company that believe that way the only problem is they don't have enough work to keep me busy all year. If they did I wouldn't have nothing to complane about.

By SPARKYCA (**)

Date 12-30-2007 21:16

I'm sure there are a lot of us who have cut or ground out " quantity " welds and replaced them with quality welds. Time does mean money, but as a freind of mine put it to one of his customers - Do you just want it done, or do you want it done right ?

By commonarc (**)

Date 12-30-2007 21:19

Rework is killing my trade. The "good" welders are getting pretty PO'd for being used as clean-up welders done by the lightning fast gangs who can't pass an xray or even a visual. They knock it out fast and we go back and fix it. It's getting old.

By David Lee (*)

Date 12-30-2007 22:18

Bravo!
Your interest and pride in your work means the world.
What happened to everyone else?
I'll tell you it's called fast money........
I'm proud to be an inspector but more so often I'm being rambunched by "People of higher issue's"
The fact is we all have to pay the piper. Will it be better to hurry a job through and have numerous repair's that cost $$$$$.
Enough said.

By 4theluvofgold (*)

Date 12-31-2007 15:50

I agree as well. I'm still a rookie compared to many here, but even I've been called on to fix things for the speedy's. The initial estimates look good for costs but rework is a killer. I was a helper and had to grind and grind and prep things that should have been done right the first time. I didn't know it then, but now that I know, my quality is always first.

And like you said, I feel privileged to have experienced welders compliment me about my welds. My other younger counter parts who try to show production are failing left and right while my tally of good ones are going higher.

safety,quality, production

By dbigkahunna (****)

Date 12-31-2007 21:27

I am finishing up on a job which cost the customer $50K with another contractor. They made, uh , some errors and ommisions and the customer had to re-bid the work. My company got it for $91K. I LOVE following up. Why would I care if another contractor uses bozo's when it means $$$ in my pocket. If I find out I have a bozo, i.e. misses two x-ray welds in one month, he gets to re-test. If he bust, he has a choice to go back to entry level for 6 months or passes the test again or out the gate. THe company I work for pays above average wages, has excellent work conditions and benifits.
If you pay like crap, treat your workers like crap and demand they do their work in a hurry, you get crap.
BUt I could be wrong.
BABRT's

By cwf07

Date 12-31-2007 23:22

That is true but it is the person doing the job he's respondsibility to do the best job he can, and if he don,t like the pay find another job that pay more or will pay him what he is worth. I feel like you should be the best employee you can be and if the company don't respect you or reward you for that it is their lose. That is one reason I work by my self I am not going to start some one off at the top of the pay scale. I feel like they should prode they are worth of it because they are to minny that can talk the talk but can't walk the walk.

By CWI555

Date 01-01-2008 18:44

I agree, if you pay peanuts, you get a bunch of monkeys.