Posts By: Paul Ventura

How Strong Human Resources Can Improve Your Job Shop

Human Resources

The Human Resources department in a job shop can often be overlooked. However, with all of the changes that 2020 has brought, it’s become more important than ever to handle employee changes smoothly and understand what employees are thinking about their jobs. If you want to keep your employees, get great new employees, and improve…

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4 Reasons Trade School is a Better Option than College

trade school

In the US, most high school students are told they need to go to college to get a good career, but that isn’t always true. Trade school is an excellent way for students to begin a great career in manufacturing. A manufacturing career can take a person up the corporate ladder, let them grow their…

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How Can Section 179 Help Your Shop?

section 179 savings

If you haven’t yet reached the deduction limit for section 179, there are less than two months to make your purchases. You don’t want to leave money on the table. There have been a few changes to this section of tax law for 2020 to continue to help businesses. This article gives a quick overview…

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5 Proactive Safety Measures for Your Machine Shop

safety on the machine shop floor

Safety is crucial in a machine shop. No one wants any injuries in the shop. Injured workers can also cost the shop money and time. Injured workers will have medical costs and admin costs for the shop to process the necessary paperwork. If an employee needs to take time off because of an injury, then…

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ECI Software Solutions Completes Acquisition of Shoptech Industrial Software

Fort Worth, Tex.—November 10, 2020— ECI Software Solutions, a leader in cloud-based business management solutions, today announced that it has completed the acquisition of Glastonbury, CT-based Shoptech Industrial Software Corp., a provider of ERP software for job shops and made-to-order manufacturers. ECI previously announced, on September 9, that it signed a definitive agreement to acquire Shoptech,…

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What You Need for a Strong Job Shop Website

updating your job shop's website

With social distancing in effect and travel cut down, more and more people are turning online to find what they need. That includes manufacturing customers. If you have a website, you may not have had many visitors to it before, but that has likely changed. Your shop’s website can be a way to convince people…

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Manufacturing Apprenticeships: What You Need to Know

apprenticeships in manufacturing

When your shop is trying to hire qualified candidates that are also good employees, apprenticeships can be invaluable. In a recent survey done by Thomas, they found that shops with apprenticeship programs were less impacted by the lack of skilled labor. In addition, in companies they surveyed, more than half of their apprenticeship programs were…

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Post-Lockdown Improvements through ERP Software

how technology can help your business

2020 has hit hard. As manufacturers reopen and continue to find ways to keep their employees safe and their machines running, efficiency and improvements become even more important. Technology can help any job shop become more efficient and keep it running. Below are three ways ERP software can assist a shop post-lockdown to run even…

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4 Things Potential Employees Want to See in Your Job Shop

what potential employees want in a job shop

When your job shop is looking for potential employees, it can be hard to know what to tell people about your shop. Do you focus on the industries you work in? How many new machines you have? The answer, as it turns out, is at a more basic level than that. Industry Week did a…

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3 Ways Preparing for a Crisis Helps Your Job Shop’s Bottom Line

preparing for a crisis in a job shop

No one wants a crisis to happen. However, preparing for a crisis instead of ignoring the possibility can save your shop money. Preparing plans for various crises takes time, but it’s worth it in the time and money those plans will save you when a crisis happens. As 2020 has shown us, huge problems can…

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Great ERP Software Has a Community of Support

support team

When choosing ERP software, it’s important to consider support. Most vendors will have phone lines available for support, but there are times when different methods are better. Sometimes it’s best to make answering your question a group effort. Shoptech’s E2 Customer Community truly is a community of Shoptech customers that allows them to come together…

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Shoptech Wins Hearst CT Top Workplaces 2020 Award

Top Work Places Winner

Hartford, CT—September 28, 2020— Shoptech’s Hartford, CT office is honored to have been named a Hearst Connecticut Top Workplaces by Hearst Connecticut Media Group. This award is based solely on employee feedback gathered through a third-party survey, which is administered by employee engagement technology partner Energage, LLC. The anonymous survey measures 15 indicators of engaged…

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How to Have Difficult Conversations with Your Boss

conversations with your boss

This has been a tough year for everyone, and that provides more opportunities for difficulties to crop up at work. Some people are having new or stronger mental health issues, while others are just doing their best to make it through a pandemic. Whatever the reason, there are more circumstances that could mean you need…

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MFG Day 2020 is Different but Still Worth It

MFG Day 2020

Every year, the first Friday of October is MFG Day. MFG Day is a time for shops to show off what they can do, and for curious people to learn more about them. Like with so many other events this year, MFG Day 2020 is going to look a little different. Fortunately, the people behind…

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How Job Shop Goals Lead to the Right ERP Software

let shop goals be your guiding star

Before you start looking at ERP software, it’s helpful to have goals for what you want the software to do. These goals act as your shop’s North Star when you’re looking at ERP software. Most ERP systems will make your shop better in one way or another. However, if you want to be sure it’s…

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ECI Software Solutions Signs Definitive Agreement to Acquire Shoptech Industrial Software

Fort Worth, Tex.—September 9, 2020—ECI Software Solutions, a leader in cloud-based business management solutions, today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Glastonbury, CT-based Shoptech Industrial Software Corp., a provider of ERP software for job shops andmade-to-order manufacturers. Upon completion of the deal, Shoptech will become part of ECI’s Manufacturing division. Shoptech’s…

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Get the Right ERP Software with Great Training and Support

online training and support

When buying new ERP software, training and support are some of the most important parts of deciding which company to buy from. You need effective training to be able to use the software you just bought. In addition, a responsive support team is important for when you have questions after you start using the software….

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How to Keep Top Employees in Your Machine Shop

keep your top employees at your shop

Every shop wants to keep its top employees for as long as possible. However, since these employees are so good at what they do, they’re the ones who will have the easiest time getting a job somewhere else. With this in mind, it’s helpful to make sure your shop checks in with your employees periodically….

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8 Ways ERP Software Can Improve Your Job Shop

improving your job shop

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software encompasses many things. You probably know it can help you run your entire job shop, but what exactly does that mean? In general, ERP software helps your shop operate more efficiently and gives you the data you need to run it better. Specifically, it can help improve your job shop…

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Take Your Machine Shop into the Future with ERP Software

Going paperless with ERP

Over the years, ERP software has been changing to help fit its users’ needs. Most recently, those needs have made software that is safe, accessible, and smart. Imagine being able to hold all of the information you need to run your shop in the palm of your hand, and access it from anywhere. What if…

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4 Building Blocks for Manufacturing Success

Running a job shop is difficult work, and each has specific needs. However, there are four building blocks, along with a good ERP software, that can help any job shop. With accurate invoicing, a broad customer base, great customer relationships, and efficient scheduling, any job shop will have a great foundation to succeed. Accurate Invoicing…

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2 Big Ways to Reduce Meetings in Your Machine Shop

reduce meetings with ERP

Many people have been working from home over the past few months, and one of the side effects they’ve seen is fewer meetings. There’s a joke that many meetings could have just been emails. Now people are seeing the truth behind that. There are many things in a machine shop that you can’t do from…

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How 5S Can Help Your Job Shop Improve

How 5S can help your shop

5S is a method for organizing workspaces and entire shops to be more efficient, effective, and safe. 5S started in Japan as part of the Toyota Production System, and it’s one tool used in lean manufacturing. However, you don’t need to implement lean manufacturing or know anything about the Toyota Production System to use 5S…

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An Opportunity for Change in Your Job Shop

time to make changes in your shop

We’re going to continue to see the impact from COVID-19 for a long time. Your shop has probably already had to make changes, and you may have to make more. As long as you’re making changes in your shop, it may be time to think through some improvements you’ve been considering. These improvements can be…

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