Out of the Crisis.Org

[Louis Altazan]

Sometimes I sit back, rub the knots on my head and remember the past. The knots come from all the times I beat my head against walls. Somewhere along the way a few things must have soaked in, because I make a lot more money now, with a lot less effort.

Starting out in 1974, buying quality was seldom an option. For the most part, I bought what I could afford. Cheap stuff, that did not work well and did not last very long. At the time that was a fact of life, but also taught me a very important lesson. That lesson was to see overall lowest cost.

For instance, when I first opened my shop, I bought an air compressor. It cost about $500.00 lasted about three years, and had to be repaired twice in that period. Both times were a major inconvenience and cost me additional revenue. When I built my current shop, I purchased two quality compressors. The price each was four-times the amount I paid before. Yet they have given excellent service for over seventeen-years and are still in use today.

Often in the struggle to make ends meet, overall lowest cost takes a back-seat to what can be afforded. A shop must do what it has to do, but as Deming states in point one, adopt constancy of purpose. To me that means building and buying with an eye toward the future; an eye towards overall lowest cost. Quality goods and services are an investment. The price may be higher, but isn’t it the cost that really matters, over time?

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Louis Altazan
Owner/Manager AGCO Automotive Corporation
Baton Rouge, LA