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do you get rush orders?

Started by hackberry jake, July 30, 2015, 09:04:30 PM

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hackberry jake

I just got a text from a guy wanting 6 10' cedar 4x6s by the end of the day tomorrow... All my cedar logs are under 9'. So I'm not sure if I can accomplish this or not. I'll have to harvest six 10' logs, cut them into 4x6s and deliver them over an hour away.
https://www.facebook.com/TripleTreeWoodworks

EZ Boardwalk Jr. With 20hp Honda, 25' of track, and homemade setworks. 32x18 sawshed. 24x40 insulated shop. 30hp kubota with fel. 1978 Massey ferguson 230.

JustinW_NZ

Quote from: hackberry jake on July 30, 2015, 09:04:30 PM
I just got a text from a guy wanting 6 10' cedar 4x6s by the end of the day tomorrow... All my cedar logs are under 9'. So I'm not sure if I can accomplish this or not. I'll have to harvest six 10' logs, cut them into 4x6s and deliver them over an hour away.

Is there anything but rush orders now days?

Cheers
Justin
Gear I run;
Woodmizer LT40 Super, Treefarmer C4D, 10ton wheel loader.

Den-Den

I do woodwork / sawing more for myself than others but do get orders, some of them are what I consider "rush" orders.  Often I turn down rush orders unless the materials are already in my shop.  Having to haul a small order like that would get the order turned down unless it was a good customer or friend AND I had the material.
You may think that you can or may think you can't; either way, you are right.

WDH

I just tell them that I do not have it. 
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Jim_Rogers

It's only a rush order on his part.

My favorite saying is "lack of planning on your part, doesn't make it an emergency on my part".....

If you want it by this weekend order it last week.

Charge extra for rush order, tell them up front that it will be extra because it's a "rush order" and let them decide if it really all that much of a rush.

Jim Rogers
Whatever you do, have fun doing it!
Woodmizer 1994 LT30HDG24 with 6' Bed Extension

drobertson

yep, happens quite regularly, and this is no time to be in the timber around here, especially when dealing with cedar, it has been said, and a motto to go by from my stand point, " Your lack of planning does not mean an emergency for me"   I have fought off more alligators than one can shake a stick at, pretty much done with it, with a few acceptation's.   And it most often times results in a better pay check, but brutal just the same.
only have a few chain saws I'm not suppose to use, but will at times, one dog Dolly, pretty good dog, just not sure what for yet,  working on getting the gardening back in order, and kinda thinking on maybe a small bbq bizz,  thinking about it,

hackberry jake

He just called and said he found some. That's a load off my back. Thanks for the info fellas!
https://www.facebook.com/TripleTreeWoodworks

EZ Boardwalk Jr. With 20hp Honda, 25' of track, and homemade setworks. 32x18 sawshed. 24x40 insulated shop. 30hp kubota with fel. 1978 Massey ferguson 230.

woodmills1

I move my three best repeat customers to the top of the list even if they don't say rush order.
James Mills,Lovely wife,collect old tools,vacuuming fool,36 bdft/hr,oak paper cutter,ebonic yooper rapper nauga seller, Blue Ox? its not fast, 2 cat family, LT70,edger, 375 bd ft/hr, we like Bob,free heat,no oil 12 years,big splitter, baked stuffed lobster, still cuttin the logs dere IAM

WV Sawmiller

    Got one a few weeks ago. Said he wasn't in a rush but needed all the floor joists sawed before Friday. This was Wednesday. Other guy had been set up several weeks but had not got them done. I got them sawed that afternoon and studs next day to keep ahead of his worker crew. Turned out to be a good job and a great referral source - he is a big local farmer and the guy who owns the local feed store.
Howard Green
WM LT35HDG25(2015) , 2011 4WD F150 Ford Lariat PU, Kawasaki 650 ATV, Stihl 440 Chainsaw, homemade logging arch (w/custom built rear log dolly), JD 750 w/4' wide Bushhog brand FEL

Dad always said "You can shear a sheep a bunch of times but you can only skin him once

Chuck White

If I got a rush order, which I thought would put a damper on other jobs, I'd charge a little extra for it!

Just make sure the price is agreed upon before the sawing starts!  ;)
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

5quarter

I deal with rush jobs in the shop quite a bit. I don't need to deal with them at the sawmill too. I understand you full time custom sawyers having to accommodate these people, But unless they're neighbors, friends or regular customers, they go to the back of the bus. The trouble is, most of my rush orders are for neighbors, friends or regular customers.  ;) 
What is this leisure time of which you speak?
Blue Harbor Refinishing

longtime lurker

Quote from: JustinW_NZ on July 30, 2015, 09:07:04 PM

Is there anything but rush orders now days?

Cheers
Justin

This.

Mind theres one guy that stands out... rings up, wants a quote, starts reeling off this list and... its a whole house, or the hardwood part of it anyway. Joists, rafters, roof batten, flooring, decking, VJ, posts, stairtreads, ladys waist, slats... everything except studs basicly. And not a small house either.
And I am just grinning away because I can see the dollar signs flashing afore my eyes. With the logs I had in the yard at the time this was the dream order of all dream orders: a full traditional Queenslander style house and I've got close on 2000 tonne of bluegum in the yard to cut it from.

Mate, give us an email address and we'll get a quote out to you. When would you be looking at commencing building?
Next week????
What, didn't you know you wanted to build a house until yesterday?

The quickest way to make a million dollars with a sawmill is to start with two million.

Peter Drouin

Quote from: Jim_Rogers on July 30, 2015, 09:20:23 PM
It's only a rush order on his part.

My favorite saying is "lack of planning on your part, doesn't make it an emergency on my part".....

If you want it by this weekend order it last week.

Charge extra for rush order, tell them up front that it will be extra because it's a "rush order" and let them decide if it really all that much of a rush.

Jim Rogers




smiley_thumbsup
A&P saw Mill LLC.
45' of Wood Mizer, cutting since 1987.
License NH softwood grader.

bandmiller2

Most of my customers are good customers I've delt with for a long time as I weed out the rest. If I can I help them out I will gladly. Frank C.
A man armed with common sense is packing a big piece

beenthere

Quote from: longtime lurker on July 31, 2015, 03:36:29 AM
Quote from: JustinW_NZ on July 30, 2015, 09:07:04 PM

Is there anything but rush orders now days?

Cheers
Justin

This.

Mind theres one guy that stands out... rings up, wants a quote, starts reeling off this list and... its a whole house, or the hardwood part of it anyway. Joists, rafters, roof batten, flooring, decking, VJ, posts, stairtreads, ladys waist, slats... everything except studs basicly. And not a small house either.
And I am just grinning away because I can see the dollar signs flashing afore my eyes. With the logs I had in the yard at the time this was the dream order of all dream orders: a full traditional Queenslander style house and I've got close on 2000 tonne of bluegum in the yard to cut it from.

Mate, give us an email address and we'll get a quote out to you. When would you be looking at commencing building?
Next week????
What, didn't you know you wanted to build a house until yesterday?

Sure he did, but he just received the billing from some other sawyer and he wanted your quote so he could jack the other guy down. All he was after was the quote... I'm thinking.
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

jueston

as a project manager, sometimes things change last minute and the cost of stopping an entire building project while i wait a part is very high.

i recently had a project with a porch where the architect had specified the wrong size beam, and we didn't notice this until it was time to install them. it was about $1,000 in wood and would normally take 5 days or so to get, but the owner would have gladly paid $2,000 to get them in 1 day and keep the project on schedule.

so my point is, when a customer wants something which is challenging or unique or they are desperate to get something done on a schedule while will make you do extra work, charge outrageously.

You really have 3 options.

1 say yes and work harder then you planned on to meet there needs, or possibly delay orders you were already working on.
2 say no and turn down work.
3 say yes but are really busy so you can do it for a premium and charge a lot.

Most people would prefer to hear 3 over 2.

there are material suppliers who will give me every bid that looks like this:

1 door: $800.00(5 week leadtime)

ADD to get door in 3 weeks: $200
ADD to get door in 1 week : $600

and i know people will pay for those adds when they need it to keep a project moving.


YellowHammer

If it's my best customers, I'll always try to help, within reason, but that means I have to bump another project which may keep those folks from becoming my best customers.

By and large, however, I tell people I can't rush because I'm already working as fast as I can.

YellowHammerisms:

Take steps to save steps.

If it won't roll, its not a log; it's still a tree.  Sawmills cut logs, not trees.

Kiln drying wood: When the cookies are burned, they're burned, and you can't fix them.

Sawing is fun for the first couple million boards.

Be smarter than the sawdust

sigidi

That'd a good one - lack of planning on their part doesn't make it an emergency on my part.... yeah it seems like no one knows they need timber until the day they need it...
Always willing to help - Allan

BradMarks

The 'ol "I needed it yesterday" is true in about every market type.  Just recently took an order which requires 28 working shifts of manufacturing to produce, and they thought a week would be enough time, including trucking.  Guess their clock ran 120 hrs/day ;D.  Typically we do not do rush orders, first in line, first served, so to speak. Everybody waits to the last minute, to their detrement. It is the breath of fresh air, the customer who plans ahead and says "no rush".

deadfall

So, how soon would we want that part for our mill?  :D
W-M LT40HD -- Siding Attachment -- Lathe-Mizer -- Ancient PTO Buzz Saw

============================

Happy for no reason.

BradMarks

Sooner the better, "no rush" :D

sigidi

Quote from: deadfall on July 31, 2015, 04:25:24 PM
So, how soon would we want that part for our mill?  :D

When it comes, if its service parts I buy then two services ahead. If its a part that has 'broken/let medown on a job unexpectedly' in the past, I always order two, so I have a spare sitting in my kit box waiting. Two reasons - 1 I Dont like being caught unawares and having a job wait just for a part, 2 I don't like ringing Lucas wanting them to fix something I should have taken care of
Always willing to help - Allan

deadfall

I do that myself.  Quite a bit, but not every part.  But then, I ain't in business.  Some parts I come to think of as consumables.  When one of two big solenoids failed, when I had repaired the other non-user-serviceable one last year and it was still working, I replaced both and kept the repaired one for a spare.  Just sawing for myself, it still felt like a rush.  So, I drove two hours to Wood-Mizer Portland to get them that day.  Got a nice restaurant dinner in order to miss returning in rush hour traffic and got the mill running the next day. 

I'm glad I don't feel rushed about much.
W-M LT40HD -- Siding Attachment -- Lathe-Mizer -- Ancient PTO Buzz Saw

============================

Happy for no reason.

longtime lurker

This thing - shorter and shorter lead times on orders - is causing me a lot of grief of late. Seems my two larger wholesale customers are using me for the "difficult" jobs more and more. Both only get a fraction of their lumber from us, with the bulk coming in from the bigger mills further away. Both buy enough that saying "No" would be difficult. I'm not getting the big pack orders from them and honestly... I don't know if I would want them. Some of them would be nice, at times we get choked up with all the stuff that is a different size or length to target when cutting orders, but overall I don't want the high volume low margin orders at the core of my business.

seems that around here what we get is about 5 working days of notice, which I know isn't them as timber merchants ideal either. Rather it's their guy calling them on Wednesday for delivery next Wednesday, so they call me for delivery by Tuesday afternoon. Sometimes I'll swear that the timber is in a house frame afore the leaves have turned brown, and there are grading issues with timber that wet... We can't grade until it's at 20%, so it's not getting a grade and I refuse to place a warranty on ungraded product so sooner or later I see an " I don't want it back and I won't send another for free" problem coming.

I get it with my builder customers. Most of them are pretty good, but sometimes when you lift a roof you find the unexpected and need stuff you didn't order. That happens as part of renovations as we all know and we carry rack stock for just that reason.

Seems the days of getting an order 6 months in advance and a deposit to go with it are well and truly dead around here... 10 days notice I now consider good.

But the rub is this: I've always dodged retail. Retail customers are a PITA in terms of needing someone to attend upon them, and when they go attend on them then they aren't doing what I need done to cut more boards. But there are as of yesterday, just on 25 cube of mixed size H3 framing, another 10 or so of mixed sized appearance ( don't need treating) timber, and a further 8 of timber off the saw last week waiting to go to treatment... That's 40 cubic meters total, around 20 MBF or so, of sawn on hand and we ain't counting stuff racked out to dry or dried feedstock, or cabinet timber yet.

Seems I've either got to change how I do business or just keep increasing stock levels to be able to fill more orders from the rack... And build another 10 racks and another shed to cover them. And I really want to do neither and just take those nonexistent 6 months in advance guys, but then I'd starve to death.
The quickest way to make a million dollars with a sawmill is to start with two million.

bandmiller2

Its a tough business tisk tisk that's why were paid so well. Its like dairy farming if you don't love it you can't do it. Frank C.
A man armed with common sense is packing a big piece

bkaimwood

Rush orders? Didn't know there was any other kind..please tell me all about the other kind, just in case I ever get one...so I know what to do
bk

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