Neal
Senior Member
Good news, and just in time for NAMM.
Oxnard Factory
- Thread starter teachingking
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adorshki
Reverential Member
Am I the only one scratching my head about why Mr. Ferguson chose that particular quote?
It just seems so....conservative....
It just seems so....conservative....
JohnW63
Enlightened Member
Ren does seem rather fixated on the flow of the factory floor and efficiency. Obviously, time = money, so, if they can crank out more guitars per unit of time, they SHOULD be able to sell them cheaper. Or... make more per guitar sold.
fronobulax
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Recall that Ren actually retired from Gibson and was lured out of retirement by Guild to work at New Hartford. My take, based upon public comments, comments at LMG, private conversations with former New Hartford employees is that efficient mass production with no loss in quality is very important to him and one of the reasons he came out of retirement. It's not like he hasn't designed and built plenty of guitars. So the challenge for him is to scale up that expertise. I've even heard it suggested that Ren reconsidered going back into retirement and the opportunity to build the Oxnard factory "from scratch" kept him from re-retiring.
rampside
Senior Member
IMHO, the philosophy is, do it right from the onset and leave nothing to chance. I think that's a formula for success.
txbumper57
Enlightened Member
Sounds to me like he has been teaching the new wood workers how to build guitars. There is probably a D20 or M20 hanging in the factory that has 2 necks attached to it, the sound hole in the wrong location, uneven dimensions across the body, and a bridge mounted slightly off angle that has a sign hanging from it that says "Measure Twice and Cut Once!" I spent a good part of my adult working life trying to pass on the trades I was certified in to the new generation of craftsman so they could pass it on themselves. I can tell you that the "Measure Twice, Cut once" saying was always rule number 2 even to this day. Rule number one was go home with the same amount of fingers and toes that you showed up with that morning. LOL!
adorshki
Reverential Member
Right, that's why I was kind of surprised it wasn't something with a little more "pizzazz", and thinking to myself "Well, yeah wouldn't that be, like, a given?"
But I suspect they aren't paying him to be charismatic, right?
I'm ok with that.
And yeah we only allow a guy to lose 2 fingers on the paper guillotine before we transfer him to another department.
Ren is a very modest, matter-of-fact guy. He'll say what's on his mind. He won't wax poetic about guitar manufacturing.
I'll be really interested to see what jumps out at folks who get to tour the factory. A guy like that with a clean slate and time to do a good job should really equate to some greatness!
I can't make up my mind yet about the D-20/F-20 first borns. The price point sound awesome. I'd love to have a brand-new D-25. Thing is, I really liked the GAD/D125. Of course, I love that it's made in the USA, but will that matter to new buyers? I can't say. What I can say is that my expectations are high.
I'll be really interested to see what jumps out at folks who get to tour the factory. A guy like that with a clean slate and time to do a good job should really equate to some greatness!
I can't make up my mind yet about the D-20/F-20 first borns. The price point sound awesome. I'd love to have a brand-new D-25. Thing is, I really liked the GAD/D125. Of course, I love that it's made in the USA, but will that matter to new buyers? I can't say. What I can say is that my expectations are high.
adorshki
Reverential Member
Yeah I noticed that, pretty darn sure it's what my D25 listed for new back in '97 when I bought it, or within $50.00 at least.
Factor in inflation, and that's making a pretty significant statement to the market.
The Guilds of Grot
Enlightened Member
I find the quote unusual in that there is very little measuring done in building a factory guitar.
Everything is either cut with CNC tooling or with a fixture/jig.
No tape measures required!
Everything is either cut with CNC tooling or with a fixture/jig.
No tape measures required!
Zelja
Senior Member
Agree Al, not a particularly inspiring quote which causes tingling in the loins but I he is VP of Manufacturing & R&D & not Marketing...
What it should translate to though is a quality product, efficiently made, which means it should come at a good price, as others have mentioned. The way they have built the factory from ground up should mean that there a very few comprises (apart from legislature induced ones) so that bodes well. Here's hoping...
What it should translate to though is a quality product, efficiently made, which means it should come at a good price, as others have mentioned. The way they have built the factory from ground up should mean that there a very few comprises (apart from legislature induced ones) so that bodes well. Here's hoping...
davismanLV
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That's what I was thinking, Kurt. I mean, it's not like they're making the first guitars ever or that things are not fully automated. I thought it a strange quote considering what state guitar building is in today.
JohnW63
Enlightened Member
Maybe "Measure twice, cut once " can be translated to " Take you time and do it right the first time ".
GuildFS4612CE
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And maybe it refers to the construction of the new factory from the ground up.
Think about it...a single error in design and/or inefficiency in the production line...takes you back to square one...and if you've already installed the equipment...
Think about it...a single error in design and/or inefficiency in the production line...takes you back to square one...and if you've already installed the equipment...
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It's an old carpenters' moto. All it means is to be careful. He could just as well said "look both ways before you cross the street". "If you see hoof prints in the sand you probably don't have to watch out for Zebras".
Westerly Wood
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I don't see issue with quote at all. Sounds like an old wise dude just making sure his new team has the right mindset. I would put in for a sunburst M20, but 1300 is just too high for me at present. I still think CMG needs to have a plan to get into GC. Start with westerly collection, then bring in the US models slowly. Their plan does seem to have a goal of producing a lot of MIC guitRs.