Delivering the goods — be bigger, better, faster, cheaper By TIM UNRUH Salina Journal Marc Wingo's strategy for besting bad economic times is building parts cheaper, better, faster and, if needed, bigger than anyone else. As the part owner and general manager of Grain Belt Supply, which makes precision parts and components for clients locally and around the United States, Wingo said technology, and lots of it, has always been a must. "Sales is a key part of keeping the flow going," he said. "We've gotta sell fabricated parts, do a good, quality job, and get it out the door quick." Along with 140 employees, many working four 12-hour shifts a week, the expanding campus at 217 E. Diamond is loaded with computerized laser cutters, metal benders, robotic welders, tube cutters, fabricators, a water jet cutter and powder coat painting -- most of it cutting-edge equipment. "Then we add new technologies that are complementary," Wingo said. The goal is being a one-stop maker of parts. Some customers don't need the precision or the cost of laser cutting, so Grain Belt has added equipment, such as a plasma cutter, for those who value speedy delivery at slightly lower cost. Parts for cost-conscious "It's twice as fast with 15 percent less quality," Wingo said. "That will allow us to cut more parts for the cost-conscious." Grain Belt makes hundreds of different parts for clients in Salina and throughout the nation, such as Kawasaki, Caterpillar, John Deere, AGCO, and closer to home, Sunflower Manufacturing in Beloit, Pro-Fab in Minneapolis and Great Plains Manufacturing in Salina. The company doesn't just make things out of steel, other metals and alloys. Its water jet machine cuts glass, rock, cardboard and plastics. 'We're selling capacity' Volume is key when "anybody with a hacksaw and a hammer" is a competitor, and many have computerized equipment, he said. "But how many are going to have $25 million worth? We try to do efficiencies through economies of scale. We're selling capacity." Grain Belt has to deliver when the call comes, which is why it's expanding from 150,000 to 210,000 square feet of manufacturing space this spring, close to five acres under its roof. Another expansion is planned in five years. Wingo purchased three houses in early 2008 in the company's north Salina neighborhood to gain three acres of land. It's all about delivering. "I just got a call for parts that have to be ready this Friday," sales manager Dave Walker said on a Tuesday. "In sales, on the custom fabrication side, everybody wants it now," he said. Grain Belt's record for taking an order and delivering is one hour and 15 minutes. The company regularly turns orders around in two days. "As a rule, the bigger you get, the slower it gets. We try to fight that," Wingo said. The frenzy for parts might have calmed a bit, Wingo said, but Grain Belt stays busy by offering speed. While volume has dipped, the cost of materials has also gone down, Walker said, some of it by 40 percent. "When the economy comes back, we'll have the ability to serve a lot more customers at once. We'll be ready to go," Wingo said. "We can probably double production with what we've added, and should be doing 35 percent more now than what we're doing." Below in-house cost Grain Belt does work for individuals, such as painting a race car, but its major projects are making parts for other manufacturers. "We'll do it for 10 percent below their in-house costs. We have to do a better job than they do," Wingo said. To spread the word, Grain Belt direct-mails slick color cards to clients "by the gazillion," Wingo said. Those are produced locally at Arrow Printing. Requests by Internet Technology is key in winning business. Customers request bids through the Internet. "You're seeing 70 or 80 people bid on one job," Wingo said. "Our hit ratio is substantially down. If I did 100 of those Internet quotes, we were getting three. Now we're basically getting less than one." Most important is the old-fashioned, "face to face" sales calls. Managers, including Wingo, spend time on the road meeting with customers. "People sell people," he said. • Reporter Tim Unruh can be reached at 822-1419 or by e-mail at ©Salina Journal