Radio Broadcast (May 1929-Apr 1930)

Record Details:

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SHALL WE BUY OR MAKE PARTS? By DAWSON J. BURNS Vice-President and General Manager, Ward Leonard Electric Company In any manufacturing business involving the assembly of a number of component parts, the question frequently arises as to the economy of manufacturing these components, rather than buying outside. Naturally, an alert production department is anxious to add new processes which will level off production peaks, and the cost department feels certain that the labor and material costs will be kept well below the best outside supplier's quotation. A careful analysis shows three major premises in favor of internal manufacturing, rather than outside buying: first, better utilization of employed labor; second, lower final costs; third, closer contact with, and consequently better control of production. The idea of improving the quality of a part through internal manufacturing, rather than outside purchases, seldom enters into question. The parts manufacturer is generally recognized as best able to turn out his specialized product. A manufacturer who contemplates making a part inside his own plant, almost invariably has the idea of turning out a part which will do the job satisfactorily, even though it may not be equal to a job of an outside manufacturer. As a general premise I shall say that a manufacturer can buy parts more cheaply than he can make them. However, this must be qualified by saying that it is broadly true only if the process of making that part is fairly difficult and if technical skill and background enter into its design and manufacture. Take, for example, the case of a resistor manufacturer with which, naturally, I am most familiar. The manufacture of high-grade resistors, while it may appear a rather easy task, really involves extensive engineering background, not to mention any number of production problems, which at first glance are not apparent. From the standpoint of cost, we feel that no one can manufacture, as a component part, resistors of the high quality demanded in radio work, and produce them at a lower price than we do, without losing money in the end. A brief analysis serves adequately to illustrate the point. To set up for internal production of an item, let's say resistors, a manufacturer must automatically increase the personnel or place a burden on many departments. The purchasing department must gather materials and return defective parts; the technical staff must closely supervise and test the quality of incoming materials, and the engineering department must design the desired product and follow it through production. All departments concerned must handle and be responsible, not for one item, but for a multiplicity of items. The executive management of the company must correlate the work of the several departments. Personnel must be greatly increased or there is bound to be a costly and even a disastrous slip somewhere along the line, which will delay the final production of the completed unit. If a radio company adds executives to cover each minor manufacturing process it finds itself involved in a mass of production details far removed from its primary function of turning out and selling radio receivers. Where the manufacture of new items is undertaken inside the plant, the risk to the merchandising success of the completed receiver becomes greater. Things which looked easy turn out to be difficult and there is apt to be one costly delay after another. Let us take the case of Ward Leonard The development of the radio industry has seen a gradual trend towards the manufacture rather than the purchase of many of the component parts necessary in the production of radio receivers. However, the economics of this problem are not entirely settled, and it is for this reason that we present the following comments by Mr. Burns on some of the factors that must be considered. The question, we realize, is a controversial one. It can only be answered by a careful and complete study of all the factors that are involved and we expect in a future issue to present more complete data on the subject. Meanwhile the Editors would be glad to have the opinions of engineers and other executives who have given the matter some consideration. — The Editor. as an example. Our company consists of specialists in resistors. We have and maintain executive, engineering, and research staffs. At present there are some 75 electrical engineers devoting their entire time to designing, improving, and supervising the manufacture of resistor units. We would no more presume that these men could turn out a really well-engineered radio set, than we would expect a radio manufacturer to turn out really wellengineered resistor units. THE HI-Q 30 KIT (Continued from page 211) describing in dstail the design of the Hi-Q 30 and it is suggested that interested experimenters send for this booklet. It can be obtained for 25 cents directly from Hammarlund-Roberts, Inc., 424-438 West 33rd Street, New York City. Cost of Kit The following is a list of the Hi-Q 30 models, numbers, and prices: Kit A. C. Battery A. C. Tuner Battery Tuner Code 30-R-A.C. 30-R-Bat 30-T-A.C. 30-T-Bat Price $162.50 119.15 138.65 93.80 A list of the cabinets available for the Hi-Q 30 receiver is as follows: Price $600.00 Name of Cabinet Milan Arden Raleigh Stratford Cambridge Yorkshire Oxford (Table) Windsor (Phono-Radio) Blacks tone 96.50 75.00 55.00 96.00 75.00 28.50 175.00 150.00 ANSWERS TO PROBLEMS Answers to problems given in "Engineering Review Sheet" No. 29 (page 215) areas follows: (1) Approximately 7. (2) 1.35 megohms. (3) 15 milliamperes; 5 milliamperes. (4) From — 9 to — 159 volts; 53 milliamperes; 190 volts. • FEBRUARY 1 930 • ELECTRAD PERFORMANCE Your Protection Against High SERVICE COSTS k ELECTRAD SuperTONATROL A volume control designed especially for use with the high voltages of modern receivers. Made on a new and superior principle. The resistance element is permaTechnidyne nentIy fu9ed to the its' Pals surface of an enam 1034103 eled metal plate. A 1034104 pure silver contact gives marvelously smooth action. 7 types for all usual uses. List Price, $2.40 to $3.50. tfe,S/ee o,»*&* J&e* *A 4 /• TRUVOLT The Safe Resistance' for Eliminators Heavier-than-usual Nichrome resistance wire. Air-cooled — perfectly insulated — accurate values — longer life. Variable models (illustrated) simplify eliminator construction. 22 sizes, list, $2.50. Fixed models have exclusive sliding clip for exact setting. All usual sizes. 4 175 Varick St., New York, N. Y. ELECTRAD /wwww\ INC . . • 239