I thought I'd write a review of the tour provided by GM yesterday,
Firstly I'd like to thank Edward, Richard, Peter, David et al for not only the invitations for the forum members but also the structure, openness, enthusiasm and time they provided us with yesterday. I have to say that it was a real breath of fresh air to be able to participate in the tour with them and as others have said elsewhere their passion and pride in their operations were genuine and massively apparent to all visitors.
My day as with most started at 05.30 and involved and long easy drive up to the Nottingham area, sadly it had to go wrong and 90 minutes to travel the last 11 miles were stressful with my colleagues no doubt predicting a late arrival with glee. I got to see a few suburbs as I hacked a route avoiding the traffic and was technically only 5 minutes late.
We started with an introduction to the history of GM and a display of the origins of the cricket bats with some fantastic examples being passed around the room, the bats from 100 years ago were more or less as they are today. That was then followed into the reasons behind the use of English willow in bats and the reasons why nothing else will work. We viewed a comprehensive video of the complete GM 2011 range and afterwards made our way through the warehouse to the willow store outside. There we were able to view the new deliveries of clefts that are being air dried outside before being finishing off in a state of the art kiln at the back of the factory. The clefts are monitored and when the correct moisture levels are achieved they go into the factory to have the waxed ends sawn off and pass through a 5 cut moulder to be cut to a consistent size. The next room found the grader, Adrian, who will inspect the cleft and grade it accordingly as well as check that the end marked for the handle is right. The graded clefts are then kept in a humidity controlled store being being order picked for production.
The main part of the factory contains the CNC lathe and all machining and finishing sections. The CNC lathe is a really good bit the kit, the 5 axis head is great to watch and gives so many options in shaping the bat. There are 2 presses used and each performs a different role, 2 saws with set jigs for the splicing are also used and then the handles are glued before shaping. We met Kevin who was busy beavering away finishing the handle shapes and Watsontotty showed him a new shape that he had obviously been mulling over for some time.....
We viewed all the other aspects of finishing from the sanding, polishing, binding, gripping, labelling to final grading in the main factory. There was a high quality production line feel to the factory and all the workers seemed to be genuinely enjoying their part in the processes as per the "Proud" video that we were shown and given a copy of. A few "Pro" bats were winkled out and as you would expect they were big, light and posing a real dilemma to those handling them and able to view the exit but under observation.
After the relaxed and open factory floor we retired to lunch and a great spread provided for all concerned. Next was an open session where we were asked about our views on GM in the market and bat buying in general as well as an insight into the CAD package and its abilities. We were then invited to view the 2011 range and some new innovations were explained and the thinking behind them clearly put forward which was great to hear. A group viewing and open inspection of the full range followed and it was comprehensive and insightful.
We ended with another viewing on the big screen of the "Proud" film which really summed up how the team at Unicorn and GM feel about their operations, staff and products before being very kindly presented with a GM Polo shirt and DVD to go with our catalogues from earlier in the day.
In summing up I would say that the thinking behind the investment in production and the commitment to remain in the UK when all other comparable competitors have outsourced production to India was demonstrated and presented in a thoughtful and compelling manner. As I have said earlier the passion and pride of the team from the MD down was clearly evident and heartening to me. GM are a well structured and balanced company and I think they opened quite a few eyes to the quality in planning and production that maybe a few of us have been dismissive of in our views on brands. I had a great time and was completely enthralled by the people and production on show. Once again I would like to thank Edward Lowy and everyone else involved in the setting up of the tour.
After our brain expanding session most of us made our way, via a few extra junctions and back streets, to Trent Bridge for a net. The net itself was the hard quick solid floor that enabled some interesting short deliveries at the head of the helmetless helmet guru from Roco... All batters managed to produce some flourishing shots and murder the odd bad ball despite the best efforts of the bowlers and a subdued Peplow. I found the net went very quickly and really enjoyed the company of all the fellow forum members, enough so to indulge in the some food and drink in the next door Trent Bridge Inn.
What can I say about a pub that sells a choice of beer at £1 per pint and serve an 18oz burger for £6 that beat me..... We had a good chat about the tour, cricket, bats, willow, forum members, bats and lots more. A top evening with some top people and looking forward to the next event whatever it may be. A 10.35pm leave was tactical to avoid traffic and it worked a treat.
Author
Topic: My GM visit (Read 4079 times)