Seeing new drycleaning equipment almost always generates a temptation to own it or another preferred alternative. It looks so fresh and appealing that the draw to buy is sometimes hard to resist. Should you surrender to that appeal or should you fight the impulse? The only logical answer is to weigh the impact of a purchase as thoroughly as possible. Some effects of buying new equipment are obvious, some are more subtle and may not be apparent initially. Results that are more easily valued are: 1 Higher productivity and pieces per operator hour (PPOH) 2 Lower cost of labor 3 Elimination of bottlenecks 4 Financial return on investment (ROI) 5 Availability of funds (cash, loan or lease) 6 Improved quality (cleanliness and finishing) 7 Consistency of quality 8 Better tracking and control 9 Increased effectiveness of management 10 More efficient use of space to allow for growth Higher PPOH on one machine may not result in higher PPOH in the entire plant unless it eliminates a bottleneck or frees labor for other productive processes. For example, if the only thing a team member can do is press household goods, it does no good to have them finish that job only to have the work wait for the rest of the items in an order to be ready for delivery. The ROI is dependent on the increased productivity of the entire operation.
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