Everyone knows it, everyone says it, but you have to keep costs down. The problem is that it is so easy to buy things these days. I’ll get a project and immediately order tooling, fixtures, whatever. It’s easy and it seems necessary.
Last month I needed to run multiples so I immediately purchased some Mitee bites; turns out I ordered the wrong size ($250 gone, oh well, I’ll use them later) and re ordered the correct ones. $250. I also ordered a pallet, another $200. I did not really use any of them, $650 of just sunk cost. Those costs eat into your bottom line substantially. Paying for convenience is not necessary when starting out.
This month I am going to be incredibly stingy, only purchase exactly what I need on a per PO basis. I just received a big one, so I hope to learn a lot.
Bobby in the Shop 