Insights
I write a few of these a year, usually after something at one of the plants has been on my mind for a while. Five so far.
-
Lean Starts at the Header
Our first lean program died in a binder in 1994. At Cordell it started with a stopwatch at the nail machines and a fifteen-minute meeting at the start of each shift.
-
We Stopped Guessing on Wire Rod
Rod is half to two-thirds of the cost of a box of nails. Since 2018 we buy to plan, price off a published index and keep a spare mill qualified.
-
Why It Still Matters Where a Nail Is Made
The case I’d make to a lumber dealer starts with a ruler, and with a container of deck nails my old employer bought in 2005.
-
The Guard That Came Off
A night shift at a Kewanee wire mill in 1988, and what Cordell counts now instead of injuries.
-
Five Years on the Customer’s Side of the Counter
From 2003 to 2008 I ran sixteen lumber yards and kept a list of what nail suppliers did wrong. Most of Cordell’s distributor policies come from that list.
