Let’s face it, 2020 wasn’t the year anyone hoped it would be. Though we made it through to the end stronger as a team united towards a common goal, we all welcomed 2021 with open arms. With hopes of “normal” life returning to us in the first half of 2021, we look with bright eyes at all the possibilities of this New Year.
December 23rd, 2020 (Elkhorn, WI) – As we enter the final weeks of an unpredictable year, I’d first like to reflect on the many Pluses of 2020 before looking forward to 2021. January was a great month for shipment and business activity in general. Our industry trade association, the Precision Machined Products Association (PMPA) hosted its annual Strategic Planning session in Cape Coral, FL. It was good to spend time with industry colleagues, competitors, and staff. The collective wisdom of the group has helped us navigate difficult times in the past and I was happy to contribute.
November 1st, 2020 (Elkhorn, WI) – Even though we were unable to invite members of our community into the Precision Plus facility to celebrate with us this year, we still had a great Manufacturing Month. Not only was production strong as ever, but also employee morale was up. Some of the added fun can be attributed to WOW (Work of Winners) Wheel Wednesdays, when each employee had the opportunity to spin for a variety of prizes. I had the distinct honor of being the most sought out prize on the wheel, “$100 CASH from Mike!”, which was well worth it when I saw how much excitement and energy our team had from this weekly activity. Thankfully for me, the wheel wasn’t weighted, and our employees saw a wide range of winnings from delivered lunch of their choice to various gift cards. Though Manufacturing Month 2020 has come to end, we will continue to celebrate here at Precision Plus, where every day is Manufacturing Day.
As summer officially comes to an end and we enter one of my favorite months, it seems fitting to reflect. As many of you know, October is Manufacturing Month in the state of Wisconsin, and the first Friday of October (October 2nd, 2020) is National Manufacturing Day. Manufacturing makes up a huge portion of Wisconsin’s economy and workforce, and we are blessed to be a part of such a great industry. Before we delve into why I am thankful for the manufacturing industry, let’s look back on the history of Manufacturing Day.
The Virus
I have got to say, I did not see this coming. Just over two months ago, I was sitting with my business network members for our monthly gathering when someone in the group asked, “Are any of you concerned about this new virus spreading around China and what this could mean to us here in the U.S.?” The rest of the group shrugged it off, and we all agreed that it was nothing to be too concerned about. He repeated the question and encouraged us to think deeper and bigger, but we were still unmoved. How wrong we were; if only we had all heeded his warning of what the economic impact would be. Hindsight is 20/20, but not even the wisest of economic forecasters saw this coming either.
With Christmas landing in the middle of the week on a Wednesday this year, our Precision Plus team is happy to have a little time off for the holidays. Being closed December 23, 24, and 25 means the team is working as hard as North Pole elves in the days leading up to our break. We welcome the time off but know these last days will be busy ones.
The calendar still says August, but we’re experiencing cooler temperatures and the coffee shops are already reintroducing pumpkin spice lattes. It’s starting to feel like fall around here. Once again, summer has come and gone in the blink of an eye. As we head into Labor Day weekend and say hello to the new school year, we also say goodbye to our college interns heading back to campus.
This week, we celebrate Independence Day – or as it’s too often simply referred to – the “4th of July.” What does this day mean to each of us? For me, it brings back memories of parades celebrating those who have fought and sacrificed that we may enjoy the freedoms we all love so much. Standing on the sidewalk, I watched men and women in uniform marching past, and I wondered about the journey that brought them to this point, but I rarely got to know them or their stories. Then come the memories of the fireworks celebrations overlooking Veterans Park, where we often wondered if the spectacle in the sky was worth the blood extracted by the swarms of mosquitoes preying upon us. Those of you who live in areas without mosquitoes have no idea what I am talking about; be thankful for such.
Greetings,
We are well into February, and it is hard to believe it has been more than 6 weeks since I last posted. It is not for a lack of news to share, but it has been a challenge to find time to write about it.
Another year is behind us as we look forward to the next.
As we close 2018, I can only say, what a year. The last 12 months were filled with many exciting events, some of them positive, and some of them left us scratching our heads. Here at Precision Plus, it has been a transformative year, as we on-boarded three new executive management team members, we overhauled our employee handbook along with many policies that were long outdated, and we pressed hard for better accountability top to bottom.
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