Avoid Headaches, Manage Your Shop Effectively

"I anticipate that number growing by 25 percent in 1998," says Goss. "We're constantly working on our system to make it better."

When he purchases a new system, Goss will be looking for one that offers scheduling, business management-accounting, inventory control, job tracking and estimation—in that order. Goss believes that estimation should not be a priority when purchasing a system because if an in-plant categorizes its work, it should know the estimated cost of the jobs regularly.