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3 Tips To Save Money On Air Conditioning Running Costs

Author: James Fletcher

Air conditioning systems can be quite expensive to run if improperly used. Reverse cycle (refrigerative) units like central air conditioners and wall splits can really cost a lot of money if they are not correctly used. If you want to save money on your air conditioners running costs, read the 3 tips below, and you will be sure to save some money from the hip pocket.

1. Use The Fan Setting - On mild days, using the fan setting can save you a heap of money. Air conditioners cost money when the compressor is running. On mild days, you should be able to get away with just running the fan. This function will help cool the home on these not so hot days, and you will save in running costs.

2. Keep Filters Clean - A dirty filter can really harm your air conditioning system. A blocked or dirty filter makes the air conditioner work harder to try to draw air into the unit itself. This not only means you pay more in running costs, it also shortens the life of your air conditioning unit itself. To save money and look after your air conditioner, be sure to clean the filters at least monthly or whenever needed to ensure optimum performance.

3. Use The Wind To Cool Your Home - After a long hot summers day, you often get home in the afternoon to a hot home. If you run the air conditioner in a hot home, it will cost quite a lot in running costs. The outside temperature however is usually cooler than the inside temperature. By opening your windows, you can quickly and freely cool your home. Once your home has been cooled by the breeze, you can then turn your air conditioner on. By doing this the unit will start cooling at a lower house temperature and therefore will not have to work as hard to cool your home, which will save you money.

By following these simple 3 energy saving tips, not only will you save money but you will help lessen the impact of energy use on the environment.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/3-tips-to-save-money-on-air-conditioning-running-costs-970785.html

About the Author

Want more air conditioning tips and advice? Please visit us for more information on hvac air conditioning, air conditioning brands and much more.

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Essential Cooktop Buying Guide

Author: Stephen Haworth

It’s exciting buying a new appliance from your home. However with the abundance of products around it can be somewhat perplexing with the huge amount of choice around. Our guide will help you navigate the end of possibilities when buying a new cook top.

The cook top is perhaps the most vital piece of equipment in your kitchen, what would we do without one. You will what to balance neat features with ease of use. To find your perfect one follow some simple guidelines.

First decide how much you’re willing to spend. Once you have selected your budget your new cook top won’t become a burden however fancy it is because of having to pay back money you don’t have. This first step will slim your selection down.

Choose a color you would like one in – pick a color that looks good in your kitchen and flatters your other equipment. A neutral color could be a good choice if you’re planning to change the style of your kitchen in the near future.

Make sure you get the measurements where the cook top will be placed before you depart with any money. Smaller spaces can always be made bigger but vice versa could cost you money. Don’t forget to measure the depth – you don’t want your cook top sticking out into the kitchen!

There is a choice of which energy source to use – gas, induction or electric. Gas is great because of its even heating, induction is quick while others prefer electricity.

There are many manufactures offering cook tops each having their own distinctive features. Delonghi, Blanco and Bosch all produce sophisticated cook tops at the high end of the spectrum. They sure will make you feel like a pro !

Westinghouse and whirlpool have been producing cook tops for a long time. You know with these companies you are purchasing a product with a long rich history and they have different models for different price ranges.

The easiest and most convenient way to shop for cooktops is online. You will have millions of links to choose from, however, you will be able to shop from your own home without fighting traffic or dealing with pesky salespeople who do not listen to what you want.

Another advantage of online shopping is that many retailers offer special discounts and incentives when you make your purchase from them, which can save you hundreds of dollars.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/shopping-articles/essential-cooktop-buying-guide-326230.html

About the Author

Washing Machine Wizard provides the washing machine reviews of many brands including Washing Machine Wizard provides the Whirlpool washing Machine Reviews

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Installing Molding and Trim: Five Easy Ways to Add to Your Home Decor

Author: Tom Kraeutler

Not every room has instant architectural interest, but you can create a dynamic look by installing molding that is reasonably priced, paintable and offered at any home improvement center. Here are just a few of the many affordable ways installing molding can give a space an expensive look.

• Add crown molding to a room, and you also add pedigree. Profiles range from simple to elaborate, and some can create the illusion of a sculpted ceiling.
• Install a chair rail to add elegance and definition to a space. This element also creates the opportunity to marry two complementary colors or a solid color and pattern for additional visual interest.
• Use a small crown molding and parallel trim piece to make a frieze along the top perimeter of a room, and paint a border design or apply texture or an allover pattern between the boundaries.
• Apply beautiful pieces of wallpaper directly to a wall and then trim out with decorative molding for a pretty framed-art effect. Or swap in solid color as a backdrop to a collection of framed photos or other keepsakes.

Change a rooms mood by installing molding and painting with colors from a tone-on-tone palette or by using contrasting colors for dramatic effect. 

For step by step tips on how to install each type of molding, see this Guide to Installing Molding.

Installing molding is also becoming simpler as smart manufacturing ratchets down the skill levels required. For example, So Simple Crown Molding is made out of foam and can be help in place with just caulk. Plus, all corners are pre-cut which eliminates the most difficult crown molding installation step, cutting a compound-miter corner.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/installing-molding-and-trim-five-easy-ways-to-add-to-your-home-decor-1560973.html

About the Author

Tom Kraeutler is the Host, Founder and Chief Home Improvement Evangelist of The Money Pit. He is a hands-on home improvement broadcast journalist and the kind of guy homeowners want to call at midnight when their basement floods. He first earned his home improvement stripes as a professional home inspector, amassing over 20 years experience learning how houses are put together, and how they fall apart!

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Choosing Your Golf Apparel

Author: Nicky Michael

When playing golf, there are many rules. It isn't juat a matter of turning up to a golf course, playing a round of golf and then going home. You have to show good golf etiquette to be able to fit in with your surroundings and also to be allowed to play at the golf club.

One of the many rules of etiquette on the links is for each golfer to wear the proper golf apparel. This is one of the most important rules on the golf course. Following a strict dress code on the golf course, is something that most golf clubs and courses, even the public ones, require the golfers to do. Probably the most popular rule is the one of requesting that the golfers wear a collared shirt, although many courses also require long pants to be worn - not jeans of course - and proper golf shoes.

The primary rule of etiquette when actually hitting the links, is to show up on schedule for your tee time. It is important to be considerate of others and for you to not arrive a few minutes before tee off, still wanting to have a few practice swings on the driving range. Give yourself plenty of time, along with practice time, you will also need to find somewhere to park your car, purchase your golf balls, get changed into the correct golf apparel and collect your cart.

Cell-phones are also a big no no. Cell-phones are not part of the correct golf apparel and this should be considered before setting off on the course. They should either be left behind in your car or locker or if absolutely neccessary and needed for emergencies, should be kept in your bag, turned off.

Be sure that, when you are out on the golf course, you have a good understanding of the rules by which the other golfers want to play. Know, in advance, whether they honor the preceding holes score, for insance, by letting the golfer with the best score tee off on the next hole, or do they let whoever is ready to tee off, go first? It is possible, if you aren't careful, ot offend strangers, if you have decided to join their group when you play, by not playing to their rules.

Along with the plaid pants, sweater vests, flat caps and other stereotypical golf apparel, golfers are also best known for their obsession with silence on the golf course. This does, however, make sense when you are concentrating into putting everything into your swing to hit a tiny ball with a long nearrow stick. Silence is a must!

So, even if you are just playing a round of golf with your friends, make sure to observe the basic rule of keeping quiet during shots and not to stand in the shooters direct line of vision.

Follow the rules, treat others on the course as you would like to be treated and have a great enjoyable game.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/choosing-your-golf-apparel-2189857.html

About the Author

Find tips about pruning geraniums and ivy geraniums at the Geranium Care website.

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Air Conditioning The Gateway To Comfort In Summer

Author: Newyorkcityair

You will get a common answer when asked to people why they have opted for air conditioning of their home. The answer you will get inmost of the replies is that for the summer comfort because of the uncomfortable ness which comes along with this season. Now to get the benefit of air conditioning you need to have a maintenance work done at regular intervals so that here is uninterrupted service during the long summer. Many of us think that jus installing an air conditioning system is the end to get the comfort, but no if there is no maintenance; it is sure to breakdown in the middle of the summer months thereby causing much trouble than ever thought. More over just think that a little bit of servicing will not only extend the life of the air conditioner but also increase its efficiency.

An air conditioner is a very tough piece of equipment, engineered to withstand all sorts of rough use and keep on running, but how long? It needs a maintenance work to be done. So no way should complacency about maintenance should set in. Just like cars, bikes an air conditioner needs regular tune-up to work properly.

If no regular maintenance is done, an air conditioner looses its original efficiency each year but the good news is that you can recover most of the lost efficiency through regular maintenance. It means that the cost of maintenance is recovered in a short time in terms of savings on your monthly electric bill Andover that a properly serviced air conditioner will also do a better job of dehumidifying your home

There are many air conditioning firms which offers annual service contract that insure that you will be reminded beforehand of the need to service the air conditioning system a at the beginning of the cooling and heating season. But make sure the air conditioning service company is a reliable one, verifying it s track record of the service offered at various times to tits customer base. Also look into the factor of what type of professionals are working, whether the professionals are certified or not, how much experience they have behind them. A discussion with your friends, colleagues or relatives will help you to make a decision about choosing an air conditioning service company that will provide you with an uninterrupted service during the long summer as well the winter to keep you warm then.

It is very important that the service check should include cleaning the condensing unit coils, oiling the motors of the fan, see that the belts are well adjusted, checking the system operating pressures and temperatures against the manufacturers specification. One of the most important things to be checked is the coolant level, because it is directly related to the cost of operation.

In additions to the yearly tune-ups, buy good filters and change them whenever the need is to ensure a high level of comfort and proper system operation. Keep bushes and other materials away from the outside unit of your air conditioner; avoid closing air outlets in your house as closing supply outlets is detrimental to the operation of the overall system.

So a little of maintenance will avoid a major break down, extend the life span of the air conditioner but also ensures an increase in comfort level for less money.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/advertising-articles/air-conditioning-the-gateway-to-comfort-in-summer-1990693.html

About the Author

You can find your best  hvac service in nycNYC Air Conditioning HVAC Company Serviceat Newyorkcityair.

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A Guide to Inventory Reduction

Author: Paul Deis

This article is also available on our website at PROACTION - Generating Best Practices. It is an excerpt of a paper originally written by George Miller, Founder of PROACTION. It has been modified and updated by Paul Deis, PROACTION CEO.

INTRODUCTION

How many firms think their inventory investment is low enough? What is low enough? INVENTORY is the largest single asset on the balance sheet of many manufacturers and distributors. It is usually the most expensive asset to own and maintain as well, with estimates of carrying costs typically running 25-30 cents or more on the dollar annually. Therefore, any useful suggestions to optimize INVENTORY investment and associated expenses would be most valuable.

The paper addresses how to manage INVENTORY investment to optimum levels, which means a reduction or major redistribution of it in most companies. Optimal INVENTORY levels come down as management makes the operation more efficient by improving processes, reducing lead-time, managing supply and demand better.

One can't "attack" INVENTORY effectively, but only its underlying causes, which will be discussed. Most INVENTORY "problems" are merely a reflection of management, design, process or operational problems. Current literature on Just-in-Time and World-Class Manufacturing addresses how inventory reduction is a by-product of doing things right the first time.

WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF INVENTORY?

Why is INVENTORY "bad"?

INVENTORY is a major capital investment affecting cash flow and profitability. Inventory comprising one-third to one-half of companies' total assets isn't unusual. There are significant expenses associated with possessing it. INVENTORY reductions can do more to improve ROA (Return On Assets) in most companies than most other factors. For instance, a 50% reduction in INVENTORY will typically account for a 10-25% improvement in ROA! Certain industries, such as aerospace and defense, widely believe that INVENTORY is a non-issue, because they receive "progress payments" from customers or because they "write-off" job-end variances and leftover "residual" inventories. The facts are that these companies need to watch inventories even more closely but first they need to be made aware that there are INVENTORIES to watch. Just because the government or other customers finance the cost of money for INVENTORY, doesn't mean that there aren't many other hidden costs, most of which are hiding in burden and serve to make the company less competitive and profitable.

Excess inventories subject the manufacturer to additional liabilities for things such as obsolescence, rework, storage charges, etc. Most of these ultimately end up "written off" and are applied to "overhead", but this eventually raises the overhead rate, which increases costs of doing business, which raises prices, which makes companies less competitive. It really doesn't matter that much (except for tax purposes) whether costs end up as direct, indirect, expensed, burden, or whatever: they all affect profitability, investment and cost of manufacturing.

Carrying Costs

Let's look at what goes into INVENTORY "cost of ownership", frequently called the "carrying cost" and expressed in terms of percent cost of INVENTORY valuation per year of ownership. For example, a 25% carrying cost would indicate that it costs about $.25 to own each $1.00 of INVENTORY each year. These costs consist of:

• Cost of money - The cost of capital to the company or, in some cases the "opportunity cost" or return that could be earned on the money by applying it productively elsewhere. The cost of money has ranged anywhere from 6% to 18% in the last 25 years. Obviously, cost of money has a very significant impact on investment strategy.
• Obsolescence - The risk of INVENTORY never being used, or needing rework to make it usable, needs to be factored into the cost of owning INVENTORY. In theory (and practice), the larger the INVENTORY is, and the longer it is held, the more likely engineering changes, customer preferences and technological changes will render that INVENTORY unusable. In the clothing industry, it is not uncommon to see inventories depreciate as much as 90% when styles change. Certain portions of the electronics industry have problems with INVENTORY becoming obsolete very quickly due to technological changes.
• Shrinkage - A portion of INVENTORY becomes unavailable to the owner due to loss, damage, theft or spoilage. The longer INVENTORY is there and the more there is, the more likely this is to happen. Steps to prevent it only raise carrying costs in other areas, such as security, air conditioning, better control systems, recruiting policies, etc.
• Quality Factors - Allowances for yield, attrition, scrap and rework. This is really more of a function of the process than the amount of INVENTORY invested and is more related to throughput, but is usually expressed as part of the aggregate INVENTORY carrying cost.
• Technological or Price Obsolescence - Prices don't always go up. In fact, in industries such as electronics, prices often plummet due to constantly improving designs, product and process technology improvements. Therefore, it is desirable to minimize inventories in high-risk areas.
• Taxes - There are two dimensions to this: 1) In some areas, a tax is levied on inventories, so the more INVENTORY, the more tax is paid. 2) INVENTORY is regarded as an asset by most accounting and tax rules. Therefore, building large inventories shows "profits" and profits are usually taxed, usually by multiple government entities.
• Insurance - The cost of carrying insurance on INVENTORY needs to be considered, as well as insuring the space, equipment, people and other resources needed to control it.
• Space - Costly storage space sometimes occupies 25-30% of the total facility, when one considers raw material warehouses, stockrooms, work-in-process storage, receiving, shipping, outside warehouses, MRB and residual storage areas. INVENTORY reduction campaigns frequently help companies avoid the need to move to large facilities, or permit them to shut down or cut back existing facilities.
• Manpower - All of this INVENTORY needs people to order, receive inspect, record, move, count, store, retrieve, post it to the ledger, etc. People are the largest or second largest expense (behind material) for most manufacturers.
• Record Keeping Systems - Software, procedures, equipment and paper must be used to stay on top of INVENTORY.
• Material Handling/Storage Equipment - Conveyors, fork lifts, bar code readers, scales, AS/RS, trucks, carts, bins, racks, shelves must all be purchased, leased, maintained and cared for.
• Physical Inventories, Reconciliations - Must be conducted to ensure that inventories are properly accounted for and maintained.
• Transportation - Must be provided to move INVENTORY in and out of the facility, to vendors, within the facility to different workstations and storage areas.
• Energy - Heat, light, humidity control, air conditioning, refrigeration and fuel must be consumed to make all this happen.

WHAT AFFECTS INVENTORY?

One must "know thine enemy" to successfully deal with it. Now that we've discussed the significance of INVENTORY, let's determine why it exists and what makes it go up or down.

INVENTORY is not always evil. It usually exists for a reason, however a reason is not always true justification. INVENTORY is frequently kept as a buffer and masks other problems.

Major Reasons for Inventory

• Net Demand - Demand derived directly from customer requirements or internal demand.
• Pipeline - INVENTORY needed to sustain the process over its cumulative lead-time through all operations and holding points. Also included in the pipeline are paperwork operations, such as billing, which could increase inventory if not done timely enough.
• Quality - Yield, attrition, scrap, rework allowances impacting amount of inventory and time inventory is in process.
• Lot Size - Lot size considerations include vendor minimum order quantities, raw material and manufacturing lot sizes due to setup and other nonrecurring, lot-related cost considerations and run time impact considerations.
• Supply Buffer - Extra INVENTORY carried as a hedge against unreliability of vendor or factory schedules, inaccurate records, unpredictable quality or other fluctuations tending to reduce reliability of providing materials on demand. It is usually expressed in terms of "safety stock" (quantity or periods of supply) or "safety lead time" (bringing it in earlier).
• Demand Buffer - Extra INVENTORY planned due to uncertainty of the true requirement need date or quantity, which may vary due to poor forecasts, transportation problems, or various contingencies. It usually takes the form of larger quantities being put into process, or processes started earlier as a hedge against demand fluctuations. It is usually combined into the total buffer as described above. Another form of demand buffer is building "anticipation" inventory for seasonal fluctuations and other forecasted demand surges.
• Hedge - Inventory acquired for speculative purposes with the exception that prices will rise later, justifying the earlier investment risk.

Other Factors Affecting INVENTORY

The reasons given above are those that apply for a given set of circumstances or basic assumptions about design, processes, etc. The factors below are more basic and can have a more profound long-term effect on INVENTORY:

• Product Design - The number and type of parts, difficulty to manufacture and specifications for materials, reliability designed in and other factors, do more to set basic parameters for INVENTORY than anything else. A product design that minimizes the number of parts, picks easily obtainable materials and components, lends itself to manufacturing with the simplest possible facilities and equipment will minimize INVENTORY costs over the long pull.
• Materials Supply - Specifying quality materials, well suited to the process and application, with easy availability, low prices, reliability of supply and short response time are all big advantages that can facilitate INVENTORY reduction. Having the best sources for key materials or changing existing arrangements can do a lot to help minimize inventories.
• Processes - Good, reliable processes will help reduce INVENTORY, because they will help reduce scrap, rework and attrition, and also provide a more reliable flow of supply, which will help reduce buffer stocks, safety stocks, safety lead time INVENTORY and eliminate much accumulation of INVENTORY on the production floor. Better processes will also serve to reduce many other burden activities, such as inspection, MRB, management intervention, expediting, etc. Better process design, coupled with improved equipment selection and tooling engineering cannot only minimize the amount of set-up and other nonrecurring or lot-related activities to be performed, but speed up the entire process. Reducing set-up not only cuts labor, but also improves facilities/equipment utilization and decreases the amount of time that INVENTORY needs to be invested. This can result in capital investment avoidance, which helps minimize the asset base and operating expenses, which further improves return on assets/investment.
• Facilities Layout/Design - INVENTORY may be increased significantly if this is not done properly. Widely scattered plants, multi-story buildings with inadequate material flow capabilities and processes distributed over many different departments, all increase the amount of part travel, possibility of loss, delays and need for manpower and extra equipment to support the process. Poor utilization of space will also increase the cost per square foot and the number of square feet required to support the process.
• Service Objectives - The required response time and reliability of service to customers has a big impact on INVENTORY costs. For instance, if industry standards allow making to customer specifications from scratch, there may be less need to maintain finished goods inventories. If customers or distributors carry stock, that reduces pressure upon the supplier to maintain inventories and reduce them quickly. Once a competitor attempts to improve service by keeping raw materials, work-in-process or finished goods available, or by making the process quicker and more efficient, it puts pressure on competitors to meet this new standard.
• Outside Processing - Some firms lament the amount of money spent on outside processing charges. This is not a problem unless they are significantly higher than comparable in-house costs. If only a little bit higher, it's better to leave them outside if the vendors are nearby, reliable and provide good service. The reason for this is that these services are hard to manage, are frequently outside the scope of the business and are better left outside when fluctuations in customer demand occur, since this reduces the amount of money needed to support underutilized capacity.
• Planning/Control Systems - Systems employed to manage supply and demand and control the production process have a large effect on INVENTORY. The policies that management sets, the education/training it provides and the ongoing follow-up to ensure that these points are implemented and data integrity maintained, are decisive.

The systems we refer to are:

• Front End
-Forecasting
-Production Planning
-Master Production Scheduling
-Capacity Requirements Planning
• Engineering
-Bill-of-materials
-Change Control
-Routing/Process
• Material Planning
-Time Phasing Tools
-Requirements Calculations/netting
• Shop Floor Control
• Data Integrity
-Bill-of-material
-MPS
-INVENTORY, PO, RM, WIP, QA, FG
-Process

Cost

• Material Costs - Material cost increases (obviously) raise INVENTORY. Lowest unit cost does not necessarily mean lowest cost of doing business, or even lowest cost of material, for that matter. These can be deceptive, because as material costs go up, turns do not decrease, because they are being measured on a new and higher base. In a standard cost system, "variances" may be expensed and not immediately show up in some inventory systems, such as standard cost.

• Overhead - Burden rates of 300%, 500% or more are not uncommon. Having a high overhead rate is not "bad", only total costs that are too high are "bad". Your overhead rate is a reflection of cost distribution and accounting techniques as well. However, if overhead is going up without attendant drops in other areas and if other industry competitors are doing better, then it's "bad."

• Setup and Other Nonrecurring Costs - In most companies, these are either part of direct labor or buried in overhead. I broke them out separately here because of their differing characteristics. Many manufacturing people feel that the way to reduce the set-up portion of overall run time is to increase lot sizes. Unfortunately, the attendant increase in INVENTORY and other related expenses sometimes negates setup reductions. Another argument is that long runs increase capacity An interesting ideas, but large lot sizes also take up capacity and confuse priorities. The real answer is to reduce setup times.

• Labor Content - Reduction of direct labor has been one of the few bright spots in American productivity improvements over the years. It has gone down to a much lower percentage than before. It amuses me that some major manufacturers and government regulatory agencies focus so much attention on reducing direct labor content, which is a low as 3-5% in some industries. The area to look at is labor variances, due to down time, quality problems, material shortages, etc., and in indirect labor. In short, reduce the overhead due to other factors increasing labor.

The preceding sections should give you a better idea of the significance of INVENTORY, and what affects it. If you have been reading carefully, you have already seen opportunities for reduction, since knowing the question is frequently half of the answer. The next section will amplify and clarify some of these...

HOW TO REDUCE INVENTORY

Advice To The Boss

Let's now discuss some specifics for helping to tame the beast. To begin with, let's first set up a program to do this with little initial out-of-pocket costs, a fast payback and subsequent return on investment!

Your controller will love this.

It sounds almost ridiculously simple, but there is a sequence that one ought to address inventory reduction activities in:

• Don't bring it in. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Don't order what you don't need. For existing commitments, cancel or reschedule where practical.
• If you already have it, ship it. Work on eliminating constraints to getting product shipped. Sell excess inventory at full price/cost, if possible.
• Try to rework or substitute. Attempt to rework, retest inventory, try to substitute it in place of parts that have been specified.
• Salvage it for cash at a reduced rate
• Dump it. If all else fails and it's really not needed, throw it away, because the tax write-off and lower holding costs alone will make it worthwhile.

Try the specific recommendations contained in the sections following...

Short-Term Activities

Since it is an "established" fact that most managers think "only of short term profits," let's cover the stuff we can do right away first. The author doesn't believe that most top managers really believe this but knows that in order to keep a business going and to keep your job, you do have to show short-term results.

Assign responsibility/accountability for inventory reduction

Not just to the materials people, but production, sales and engineering also. This should probably be a team, with ONE person clearly in charge, who should a vice president, rather than a summer intern.

Get Control of The Checkbook

This is one of the first things that "turnaround artists" always do to rescue a foundering company. Insist on getting justification for all new INVENTORY expenditures - especially "A" items (most expensive ones). Sign all major approvals and checks yourself. Brook neither opposition nor watering down of this until things are back in control, policies are established, being followed and look like they can stay that way. This has an amazing and rapid effect on INVENTORY and has been practiced first-hand by the author and customers. It requires nearly no cash to implement. Consider having the requisitioner show up in person to plead his/her case of why the inventory is needed and explain all the nasty problems.

Use this process to force those responsible to justify what they are doing and why and to think through these policies and their enforcement in a new light - that of investment management. While you are doing this, use it to study the dynamics of INVENTORY planning systems and to decide what INVENTORY investments should be and what problems really are. You should develop a matrix of inventory days coverage targets by commodity by product line by planner. Then cost it out and track actual performance. Be sure to track commitments and planned amounts, or you may be disappointed again fairly soon.

Conduct basic indoctrination of people affecting INVENTORY most dramatically—planners, buyers, production management, sales, customer service- establish some temporary "edicts" and enforce them until more formal policies/procedures can be established/changed later on. Make sure you know what you are doing before you establish these. Beware of mindless "across the board reduction" edicts that could result in hurting service and profits.

Have your people perform a quick "thumbnail" INVENTORY analysis

Start with items currently on order, in process, or being planned. As Al Agosti of IQR says, "first stop the bleeding. Then take away the knife." It always amazes me that companies will spend a fortune to analyze INVENTORY, which is already there, but ignore huge impending expenditures, which they can do something about before disaster strikes. If your company can't save a bundle the first month of this methodology, maybe it's too late already. To do this, perform a quick "ABC" analysis, identifying only the expensive ("A") items initially. In most companies, these are only 5-15% of the total items and can be leveraged to provide quick benefits in terms of investment management. After this has been done, get together with the management team, do a quick brainstorm and put together a Pareto chart, showing problems in descending order of importance.

Start with a calculation of what is actually needed:
• Go through all the arguments of why people need more, sooner and then get people to agree on how they can avoid doing that.
• Cut new INVENTORY scheduled to come in whenever possible.
• Determine right away what can be cancelled, rescheduled, returned to vendor for credit or sold for salvage. Balance the costs of doing this against the relative benefits.
• Work on getting product shipped and billed to get INVENTORY relief.
• Try to match INVENTORY input closer to ship date (reduce lead times and carrying time)
• Determine if excess/obsolete finished goods can be put on promotion or "fire sale." Do so if appropriate.
• Lean on customers who have cancelled/rescheduled orders to your detriment. Try to get them to pay for part of these costs, accept the INVENTORY, or use these incidents as levers to improve future terms.
• Look for obvious bottlenecks in the planning and processing of orders such as:
-Amount of lead-time and queue permitted.
-Lot size and cycle times.
-Scheduling assumptions
-Major bottlenecks caused by improper manning, defective or poorly maintained equipment, etc.
-Build-ahead and buffer policies

Set goals for inventory down to the level of managers and planners

Do this "rough cut," for "A" items first—more detailed analysis comes later. Set targets by planner, buyer, product line or any other meaningful political or production entity that will foster accountability, which you will want to later measure results against and enforce.

Go for the "easy wins" with the best payback first. Don't fall into "paralysis by analysis." You can do more in the first few months than you think. It won't cost much and will provide large net benefits. So far, we have not asked Information Technology to put together any fancy reports or programs, we haven't hired any new people, no new equipment has been purchased and we haven't revolutionized the way the business is done. That comes later:

Establish formal problem solving methodology

Use task teams, quality circles, natural work groups, tiger teams or whatever they're calling them this month and have these groups identify major problems, opportunities and then address the solutions. Our experience has been that almost any prior training in problem-solving approaches and reasonable coaching will greatly enhance results.

Perform "stock location audit"

In many cases, lost inventory holds up shipments and inflates inventory needlessly. Location audits are a quick way to find some of it. Simply go out to the shop and write down only the identity (part number) and location of all storeroom and/or work-in-process and other inventories, then compare to your records. Don't even bother to count it (that's what takes the longest). You will probably discover things you had lost or never even knew you had.

Take your "hits" for inventory early

As soon as you have some idea of the magnitude of excess/obsolete inventory, work on getting financial and general management to "write it off", in order to get the tax benefits, where favorable. There is normally reluctance to write-off because of the adverse "paper" affect on the financial statements and fear of blame. However, it's the best thing for the company in most cases, except for instances when stock prices, pending loans, etc, may be affected. Be careful, because failure to recognize true inventory worth might be considered misrepresentation in those cases, though. See your lawyer if in doubt.

That depletes my INVENTORY of quick fixes. Now it gets a little harder...

Mid-term Activities

In this phase, more careful planning, analysis, discipline and systems are needed. These programs should start early on and may not bring a lot of results for months or more.

Eliminate Bottlenecks

As an extension of the short-term problem solving activities, work on formally addressing major bottlenecks in areas such as material, capacity/equipment, paperwork/systems, engineering, personnel/training, etc. A good master scheduling approach should be included in these activities. Focus on cycle time reduction.

Inventory Analysis/Target Setting

Joe Barcy of Inventory Performance Systems calls it the "Divide and Conquer" approach. What he meant is that a company has to bring decisions and measurements down to the level of accountability and below (to the person/part/number/cost element level) and also aggregate this information up to meaningful levels for analysis by various levels of management.

First, group INVENTORY items at the part number level into categories by responsible planner and/or buyer and commodity. Do this in descending dollar sequence, preferably by projected usage (historical usage, if that's all you can find, but it has its disadvantages). If you don't have the ability to do this by computer, do it by hand for the A items first - look up production plans, sales forecasts and buy cards, then extend quantities by approximate costs. Use purchase history, quotes, accounting department support, or whatever you can get. Getting it done fast and approximately is much more important than carrying it out to four decimal places. Remember: money is being wasted while you delay!

If your current formal systems cannot deliver this type of information, consider using a "4th generation" report writer (they're calling them "Decision Support Systems" and "Data Warehouses" now and correspondingly inflating the prices), or maybe a system designed specifically for INVENTORY analysis and reduction.

Analyze INVENTORY on the following suggested parameters:

1.ABCD classification (by annual usage value)
2.Turnover/investment performance
3.Highest dollars committed
4.Highest dollars in INVENTORY
5.Most longest period coverage planned/available
6.Items with coverage/commitments greater than policy

Once you have all this data, set targets, measure and control performance.

Data Accuracy Program

Set up a formal, ongoing program to clean up and maintain accurate records for inventory, bill-of-material, routings and planning data. See my article: Inventory Accuracy: How We Did it In 60- Days! (APICS Intl Conf. Proceedings 1989).

Policies/Procedures

Write/update policies and procedures to guide your operation. Conduct an ongoing education and training program to ensure that people know what to do and how to do it. Sometimes this is regarded as a "soft" project with indeterminate payback. Our experience and observations have shown us that a well founded and run program to do this is an excellent investment in a company's future. Even simple handwritten ones may be a big improvement, especially if you have none, or worse yet, they are so bad that no one will use them.

How to Optimize inventory Levels

If you're expecting a neat formula here to plug in your numbers, you're sadly mistaken. It doesn't exist and if someone tells you it does, it probably doesn't work. Here are a few ideas that have worked for me:

• Estimate target days coverage using the team's best judgment for each commodity/product line. Obviously there will be some exception items.
• The "one less" approach: Try reducing inventories in doubtful areas a little bit at a time. Pull back when you get in trouble or when you spot a constraint. Continue after you have relieved the constraint(s) some.
• The lead time/cost build up chart: Construct a graph per product showing the time phased cost buildup in cost of goods sold amount. Have the team meet to see where lead times, lot sizes, attrition factors and buffers can be reduced.
• Modeling tools, Advanced Planning Systems (APS), have some potential for optimizing certain situations, but they have been a bit oversold and are not easy to set up and maintain.

Long-Term Activities

Making really major changes takes much longer. While I will enumerate some recommended programs you should probably embark upon, a thorough discussion is beyond the scope of this paper and falls under such categories as World Class Manufacturing, Just-In-Time, Computer Integrated Manufacturing, Quality Function Deployment, Manufacturing Resource Planning, ERP, Total Quality Management and other high-sounding names. By the way "long-term" doesn't mean you wait a long time to get these started, but that is takes a long time to get results...and time's a wastin'!

Key Points

To summarize some important points for your future reference:

• Inventory reduction is one of the cheapest ways to improve profits
• Get control of the "checkbook"!
• Use Pareto's 80-20% principle to leverage your time and investment - choose your battles - biggest bang for the buck.
• Once of prevention = pound of cure
• Set targets - "divide and conquer"!
• Force accountability- Set up a responsible team- hold it accountable. Include in performance appraisals, incentives
• Question assumptions - eliminate waste
• Doing business right will automatically reduce excess inventory in most cases, but still needs monitoring and control

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/strategic-planning-articles/a-guide-to-inventory-reduction-47366.html

About the Author

George J. Miller, CFPIM, is Founder of PROACTION. Prior to selling the company to Paul Deis, George had worked with dozens of companies in assignments involving productivity, quality and service improvement, business systems, change management, acquisitions, divestitures, expert witness testimony, and others. Prior to founding PROACTION in 1986, he was Vice President of Marketing for Western Data Systems; Director of Planning and Development and Assistant Director—Operations for Purolator Technologies (PTI); Consultant for Booz-Allen & Hamilton, and Manufacturing Systems Manager for Becton-Dickinson.

Paul Deis, CFPIM, is CEO, PROACTION. He brings over 25 years of consulting and senior executive experience to his work, including detailed work with nearly 60 companies. Prior to acquiring PROACTION, Paul's experience includes running a small ERP software company, leading other consulting businesses, prior work with PROACTION, Manager at Deloitte & Touche, VP Manufacturing at Raypak, Inc., where he was very successful with an early Lean management initiative, and dozens of projects in the areas of enterprise software, operations management, crisis resolutions, in a wide variety of industries, business types, and scales. Our website: PROACTION - Generating Best Practices

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Carrier Heat Pumps Can Deliver Maximum Energy Savings

Author: Jordan Laurent

Buying Carrier heat pumps is like purchasing a bit of history, since the company’s founder Willis Carrier is credited with inventing the modern air conditioner in 1902. As a result of this discovery, Carrier went on to found the Carrier Engineering Corporation, the forerunner of the Carrier Corporation. At present, Carrier is the world’s leading manufacturer of heating and air conditioning systems.

Its line of Carrier heat pumps have high SEER ratings of between 13 to 19 depending on the model, and HSPF ratings of 8 to 9.5, to ensure maximum energy savings. SEER is a measure of cooling efficiency while HSPF measures heating efficiency. In addition, all of the models have high Energy Efficiency Ratings ranging from 11 to 14. Thus, it should not be surprising that the majority of the company’s heat pump models have an Energy Star certification. Carrier heaters are also supported by a limited warranty on parts running for either five or ten years depending on the model purchased.

You can also supplement the heat pumps with a Carrier gas furnace to create a dual fuel system for maximum energy savings. Under this system, when outside temperatures drop too low for your heat pump to function efficiently, the system switches to the backup heating system. The system could also save energy in the summer months if your heat pump is combined with a centralized air conditioner. The automatic control will determine the best time to switch from electricity-powered heating to a furnace, and it can be customized to adjust to changing utility rates in your area.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/carrier-heat-pumps-can-deliver-maximum-energy-savings-1653202.html

About the Author

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Lowering Your Home's Humidity Can Drastically Lower Your Air Conditioning Cost

Author: jamiehanson

The muggy summer heat can make air conditioning a very welcome treat but you could get burned once you see your next electric bill. Living comfortably inside an air conditioned house has its own downside - an increased monthly electrical consumption. You can decrease your air conditioner's work load - as well as your monthly power bill - by lowering the humidity level in your home which your air conditioner would otherwise do. The air conditioner's two-way cooling process An air conditioning unit delivers comfortably cool air in your home through two processes: - By lowering the air temperature - By taking out humidity from the air inside your home. Cold air cannot tolerate high humidity levels, unlike warm air. Humidity of 30 to 50% level in the air makes it feel more refreshing. During the hot summer months, the air inside your house can carry humidity level of 80% or higher. This causes you to feel uncomfortably hot and sticky. On the other hand, bringing down the humidity level produces cooler air. Decrease the humidity inside your home There are several small ways you can bring down the humidity level inside your home. Added up, they can dramatically cut the cost of your electric bill. Here are some cool steps you can use. - Always keep your doors and windows shut, especially on sweltering hot weather. Keep going in and out of the room at a minimum because humidity comes every time a door is opened. - Install exhaust fans in "moist" areas of your house like the bathroom, laundry room and kitchen. They will blow humid air outside your home and thus free the air conditioner from doing the job. - See to it that your clothes dryer vent is directed towards the outside so that any moisture coming from the dryer doesn't raise the humidity level inside. - Check all the plumbing inside your house for any drips or leaks. If you find them, repair them at once. Water from the leaks eventually evaporates and can increase the moisture level inside. - Go outside and check if any water from outdoor is making its way in through your walls. Also ensure that drainpipes and downspouts are directing water away from your house. - Cook according to the weather you're having. On hot days, don't raise the temperature inside your house further by boiling water in the kitchen. - Take your houseplants out during the summer to decrease the humidity in your home. Plants give off moisture through their leaves and inside your house. Get a dehumidifier Home dehumidifiers are sold for just $100 to $300 and perform a terrific job of removing moisture from the air inside. A small dehumidifier can take 10 quarts of water from the air everyday while a bigger model can extract over 25 quarts in a day. An energy-saving dehumidifier with an Energy Star seal consumes way less electricity than an air conditioning unit. Lowering the level of humidity inside your home is no assurance that you won't need to use your air conditioner again. If you do turn it on, there's still one thing you can be sure of. Lower the level of humidity inside your house and your electrical bills will follow suit.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/lowering-your-homes-humidity-can-drastically-lower-your-air-conditioning-cost-962198.html

About the Author

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Air Conditioning System - How Does It Work?

Author: Kenny Doucette

Whether you live in a place where it is hot all year round, or you simply love spending the hot summers camped inside where it is dark and cool, you will find that you have a lot to thank your air conditioner for!  For many years, an air conditioner was a mark of luxury, but these days, most people consider them a necessity and a fact of life!  Whether you life in a apartment building where there are several air compressors to go around or you have a wall unit that sits in your window, take a look at how these great machines work and how you are getting the cool air that you love!

The first thing that you need to think about when you are thinking about how an air conditioner works is what goes into making it work.  What are the moving parts that create the flow of air?  When you pop open an air conditioner, the first thing that you will notice is that there is a compressor, two sets of coils that are filled with a coolant and an expansion valve.  When people think of the way that the their air conditioning units work, they think that cold air simply being blown into their home.  The truth of the matter is that hot air is being taken from their home, cooled, and then pumped back in.

When you start up your air conditioner, the coolant, known as Freon, starts moving.  At this point, it is a gas, and it will enter the compressor.  The action of the compressor will force the Freon gas to heat, and then it will be released into the first coil.  Because of the high pressure shape that the gas has been put into, it will move along the path of the coil.  This is typically located along the outside of the building.  As it travels, the gas will begin to cool into as a fan will start and cause the outside air to absorb the heat.

At this point, the liquid Freon is fairly cool, and it will enter the expansion valve, where it is converted back into a gas.  The Freon gas will be released into the second set of coils, which is located on the inside of the building.  The air around it will be released into the building, forcing the air to cool.

This cycle repeats until the home or room is at the temperature that it is meant to be.  It will stop when it reaches that temperature, and when the heat starts to rise again, it will kick on.

In a nutshell, this is how your air conditioner works, so keep that in mind the next time you flip it on!

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/small-business-articles/air-conditioning-system-how-does-it-work-778127.html

About the Author

Looking for a Raleigh Heating and Air Conditioning contractor? Air Secure Inc. provides award-winning services including Air Conditioning and Heat Pump and Furnace Repair . Check out their Heating and Air Conditioning products .

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