Industrial Solutions - Anticipating the New Year!

I have always been a car guy. Even when I was a kid, I was a car guy. It’s odd because no one else in my family was even remotely interested in cars. When I was a little kid (and, no, I did not have a pet stegosaurus), I loved Matchbox and Hot Wheels cars. I loved those little friction race cars, too. I’d push the car to the floor, pull it backward and then…wait…I could feel the tension in the little springs inside the car wanting to unleash the built up energy…I’d aim the car carefully and then let it go! It would shoot across my bedroom floor and crash into whatever obstacle I had created for it to destroy. 

Of course, it took planning and execution to create the desired destructive effects.

As Christmas is fast approaching (less than a week from this writing), the automotive industry prepares for the year to wrap up and to a great extent, shutdown for the rest of the year. What happens during that time reminds me of my younger days when I would plan those little destructive scenarios in my childhood bedroom. This is the time of preparation and suspenseful build up…waiting for the next year.

Playing with those cars, I learned that the more planning and effort that went into each scenario, the more spectacular the result. So, I take this time of year to check in with all of the folks that I am working with on the customer side to remind that we are still here and we eagerly await an opportunity to help each of them achieve their goals. 

I remind them that this is what we do.  We help them achieve their goals three ways:

·         By Simplifying the Manufacturing Processes

o   We Improve Efficiency

• By Eliminating Inefficient, Off-Line Assembly & Kitting Processes
• By Opening Manufacturing Floor Space, Allowing Greater Flexibility

·         By Simplifying the Management Processes

o   We Facilitate Fiscal Responsibility

• By Purchasing the Inventory, Improving Your Cash Flow
• By Controlling the Inventory & Managing Your Supply Base, Improving Your Allocation of Resources

·         By Simplifying Your Business

o   We Provide Peace of Mind

• By Using Our Interlocked Assembly System: Ensuring Quality (14 PPM FY12)
• By Using Our State of the Art MRP System: Ensuring On Time Delivery (99.5%)

So, as you prepare for 2014, consider the benefits of contacting Telamon Industrial Solutions to help you reach your goals for 2014 with spectacular results!

-John Weeks

Director of Sales
Industrial Solutions - Telamon Corporation

About Telamon Industrial Solutions:

Telamon Industrial Solutions provides Assembly, Kitting and Third Party Logistics (3PL) services in a culture of quality and efficiency that reduces our customer’s total cost of ownership using robust, unique design processes, creating a worry-free, cost effective purchasing experience.

Energy Solutions - IND Solar Farm Q&A

Vincent Liu, the head of Telamon’s solar division, answers some key questions regarding Telamon’s participation in the IND Solar Farm project at the Indianapolis International Airport.

·        What makes the IND Solar Farm the largest airport-based solar farm in the country?

The IND Solar Farm is a 12.5 megawatt DC solar photovoltaic system that encompasses 75 acres of land. At peak capacity, it has the capability to produce 16.5 megawatt hours of electric energy per year, which is enough to power more than 1,800 average American homes for one year. The solar farm consists of 44,128 panels, each capable of producing 280 watts at peak power production.

·         What will be done with the power produced?

The energy produced will be sold to Indianapolis Power & Light via a 15 year power purchase program.

·         Why was Telamon interested in the project initially?

Telamon was interested in the project because solar was a new market for us. We knew that winning the RFP would present us as a forward thinking leader in the solar industry since the IND Solar Farm is the largest airport-based solar farm in the country. The Indianapolis Airport Authority came up with the idea of putting a solar farm on their property. Telamon simply responded to the RFP.

·         What was it like to get funding for such a large project?

The project cost was $35-$40 million. Any utility-scale solar project developer knows that financing is always key to the success of project execution. Telamon has a strong balance sheet and good industry/banking relationships. Telamon’s core business has had an established, adequate financing mechanism for years and this solar project was of no concern.

·         What were some of the challenges Telamon faced?

Some of the challenges included: 

1. Solar is not big in Indiana, which is mainly a coal country. The incentive program is not widely adopted.
2. The original feed-in-tariff and tax burden makes the project not-bankable. It took a lot of effort to make legislative adjustment.
3. Since it is the first major utility solar project in the state, a large amount of coordination among all stake holders was required.

·         What was the most fun aspect of working on the solar farm?

For Telamon, working on this project was very fun. We were able to garner partnerships that we can continue to use for future airport solar installations. We also built a brand around the IND Solar Farm with a distinct logo and both web and social media presence. This has never been done before for any solar farm in the world. 

·         How long did the project take to construct?

The project began construction mid-March & finished mid-October, so a total of 7 months.

·         Looking back, is there anything you would change about the way you handled the project? What was the most important lesson learned? 

Persistence and having faith. There are always many uncertainties which can kill a project of this size. The biggest lessons are:

1. To build a strong partnership and not nickel and dime on every piece of the project.
2. Make sure the financing partner is strong and dependable.

For more information and to view real time monitoring of the solar farm, please visit the IND Solar Farm website at www.indsolarfarm.com.

Business Process Solutions - Focusing on Faster Resolution Time by Liberating Your Staff

Holiday preparations are well underway. Nothing else seems to remind us about squeezing every moment out of a single day as a typical workday during the holiday season. Therefore, if you're looking for ideas on how to improve customer relationships to kick off the new year, then Telamon's Business Process Solutions division is here to help your business. We help our customers by managing their redundant document management processes, so our clients' staff can focus on improving customer resolution times.

There is no question that speed is considered a hallmark of good customer service. Customer response efficiency metrics often focus on measuring the speed to first response time. Keep in mind that your team could pick up a phone call within two rings or average an hour respond time via e-mail - however, if they are spending 2-3 correspondences with the customer to solve one issue, then you might not be deploying your staff the most efficiently.

Here is one example on how to enhance your document management workflow to empower your staff to solve cases as fast as possible during the holiday crunch. Consider using a business process management partner, such as Telamon, as a resource to process data entry tasks, indexing, post payments, etc. Our skilled staff will integrate with your existing business process methods. While we execute the workflow and handle the majority of e-mail support related to workflow issues, your staff is liberated and gets involved only when needed. The concept allows managers to focus on streamlining faster customer resolutions.