Past the Point of No Return

Some of you surely remember an email that was sent about 6 months ago that was titled 'The Point of No Return'. It was about the decision to acquire a very fine piece of machinery which will allow us to manufacture some extremely delicate watch parts. A major investment, a venture into a completely new field of micro engineering without any real understanding of how such a piece of machinery will be operated and how long it would take to learn how to use it. A leap of faith.

Many responded with letters of support but a cautious few pointed out the obvious. Even if I'm able to acquire such equipment (let alone being able to afford it) where would I place it? In other words, such piece of equipment would be simply too large to be fitted in our office. Not to mention that it would require a 3 phase electricity outlet, extremely rigid concrete floor, air conditioned environment, a compressor, coolant pumps and fluids and a secure operational environment.

To put it simply, before I can even dream of such a machine I would need to acquire an adequate industrial unit, which will be transformed into a proper machining workshop.

The realisation was painful. But I had no choice. To cut a long story short, after a few months of searching for suitable industrial units I am happy to report that, as of last week, we are proud owners of what we call the rebelde Northern Beaches Horological Workshop.

Yes, it is a fancy word for premises which require a complete strip down and refitting but we are very proud of the fact that in just a few weeks we will commence the building works.

And hopefully by February/March next year our workshop will be ready to see the first piece of CNC equipment moving in. Yes, this job will require a lot of man power but as said before, we have no other option but to keep going forward.

One thing that we're very proud of is that we will be taking on the full financial risk and so there will no pressure from a third party for us to start making a profit immediately. A project like this cannot be embarked on under pressure so we will at least have the liberty to grow at our own pace.