Correct Me.....

[joemomma]

My guess is that everybody's as busy as we are and that's why there's not much action on the 'boards' of late. A few months ago the boss said if we got 1/4 of the jobs he had bid out, we'd be swamped for quite a while. Well, we got closer to half those bids, and all of them still haven't been let out. We can't work fast enough, and we can't work enough hours. This old man is getting tired of two or three 12 hour days a week, plus Saturdays. My back's killing me, my bones are killing me, even my pinky hurts. Of course the extra weight in my wallet isn't too much of a problem, but what really pisses me off is that all of a sudden, I'm in a Bill Gates tax bracket. Anybody else enjoying these problems?

[derf]

Kind of.... I have a smaller shop so I have been working 12-14 hr days however my battle with the insurance company is taking up a ton of time. My work is backed up a month and I am not prospecting as I normally do. My problem is getting the stuff out the door. I am either waiting for subs to get done or suppliers to get me product.

It's a good problem to have but it kicks your ass after a few weeks with out a break.

Edited September 15, 2006 by DERF

[B.O.P.]

We have been fairly busy lately with equipment sales. Certainly not what it was in the early 90's when I had 3 other people working for me, but it surprises me a little considering the state of the neon equipment market of late... with all the so-so "refurbished" used neon equipment being sold for bottom dollar in the past couple of years. Maybe people are finally tired of "getting what they paid for" and are willing to spend a little more to get better equipment? Who knows, but I am not complaining. I have sold some nice used burners and such in the past month after we have reconditioned them the *right* way instead of the *quick 'n easy way*! I have even had some former "refurbished neon equipment" customers contact me asking if there is anything we can do to help their equipment work better from how they received it. I found this interesting and enlightening considering the reputation the seller supposedly has for their "refurbished equipment". But after seeing some of it first hand it doesn't surprise me. I guess when everything is said and done you get what you pay for

[Travis]

We have the same 'problem' over this way Joemomma. We had a job a couple monthes back that had a ten man shop scrambling with each guy easily getting 50-60 hours for a couple weeks. I am in the position that I get to see and be a part of everything coming in and I saw no relief in sight. I would tell the guys that we should all keep up a similar pace as the work load would allow it without getting the bossman uptight about paying all the OT. I am the only one, aside from the boss, that continued with the 50-60 hour weeks. Periodically one of the guys will put in some time but nothing like it should be. It is a period when the boss should call manditory OT.

Here is the pet peave of it all. When we are busy the guys bitch that they are working to much and have no life outside of work. When it is slow they bitch that they arent making enough money. When its busy they only want to work 40 hours. When it is slow they want to work the 60.

[Erik Sine]

I've been way buey as well. 12-16 hour days, I don't wanna complain that i'm busy but hell it's nice to say that I wanna complain . Also I'm packing up and geting ready to head to the river for jet skiing and some light gambling. I think I need to find a young kid to help me out and teach him from the ground up. I;ve been working my ass off the last few days to leave for the weekend and I'll have a ton of shit for me waiting when I get back.

I notice it's been dead too but that's a good thing, means the electric sign industry is busy busy.

[South Texas Sign Guy]

Have to agree with all other posts.We run 8 employees at our shop & been pulling the 10-12 hour days lately with no end in sight.Were already booked through mid November with installs & that means we might have to work every Saturday from now until Thanksgiving to just keep up with work load.Besides that it now seems that every job that comes in motor frieght has at least 5 to 6 broken neon units & with the problems we have had with our neon plant (which BOP well knows about) it just compounds the problem.Also now days you got what we call "Sign Brokers"that want you to get thier job on the calander well before the product arrives.Then you dont receive product on time & then your schedule gets totally screwed up & then everybody starts really bitching about when are you gonna git this or that done.Man it just gets to be an endless cycle of bullshit. "ENJOYING IT" Oh Ya Man its just great.Some days I feel like myself,but I just end up going home & relax for a few .Then the next day back to work & we try to .Just another day at a sign shop.

Hope Everybody Has A Great Weekend, this is one & maybe the only one for awhile that were not gonna work. :mebeer:

[Travis]

>>Hope Everybody Has A Great Weekend, this is one & maybe the only one for awhile that were not gonna work.<<

Slacker!

[Blake]

Backed up here as well. 6 sets of channel letters for just one job. But I'm going to enjoy the work while it last.

[Goatboy]

We had a mild slow spurt to get some fishing in but after that week or 2 its been buried up here...and getting worse. We bid out some "custom" signs when it was slow thinking the extra time needed for them would keep everyone busy. Thats biting me in the arse daily when I walk in at 6am and leave at 7pm. Hopefully I'll be around a bit more now

[Freddy@NDS]

Swamped.