Category Archives: Musings

My Blog Goes Berserk

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Craziness in the arcane intricacies of MySQL:

I wrote this morning’s entry and posted it, only to have the system notify me that of a database error. So, I tried again, and once more for good measure. After the third error message, I decided to pack it in and try again later … only to find that the system had indeed accepted each of those attempts.

And then what happened when I tried to delete two of the posts? Another database error notification.

I’m so confused. But even if I get an error message when I post this one, I’m only going to try it once.

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Cross-Post on Condescension Toward Manufacturers

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Yesterday I wrote a long post on the NC State of Business blog about what I perceive as condescension toward companies and workers who make things for a living. Rather than reproduce the whole thing, here’s the conclusion:

Manufacturing is vital not just to a healthy economy but to everyone, because it provides many (if not most) of the things that make modern life possible and enjoyable. It’s unfortunate that manufacturers don’t get more respect for what they do, regardless of where they make their products.

If you want to read the whole thing, here’s the link: Disrespect and Condescension: Can North Carolina Manufacturers Expect Anything Else?

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The Challenges of Enchantment: A Book Review

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(Cross-posted, with minor changes, from the NC State of Business blog.)

Some books entertain us, some books encourage us, some books challenge us — and some manage all three at once. Guy Kawasaki’s Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions, definitely scores the “hat trick.”*


(Guy Kawasaki. Courtesy of his web site, www.guykawasaki.com. Click to enlarge.)

So how does Enchantment, for lack of a better word, enchant?

I admit that the title of Guy’s book did not enchant me at first. As an Air Force veteran steeped in military history, the phrase “hearts and minds” connoted our country’s failed campaign to secure the support of the local population during the Vietnam War. But, reading the text, I quickly moved beyond that prejudice to enjoy the book’s solid advice.

Guy begins by laying out situations in which we may find it most valuable to be enchanting:

  • When we aspire to lofty goals or idealistic results
  • When we make difficult decisions that affect other people
  • When we need to overcome entrenched habits
  • When we find ourselves going against (or even defying) the crowd
  • When we aren’t seeing the good results that we are sure will come

But, having said that, Guy warns us that

Enchantment is not about getting your way solely for your own benefit. To the contrary, if you want enchantment to last, other people must benefit, too.

Guy introduces the foundation of enchantment as likability and trustworthiness, and discusses how we can develop these traits. As a dyed-in-the-wool introvert, I found these sections particularly challenging … but also very encouraging.

With the foundation laid, Guy then discusses how to prepare and launch our central idea or product, how to overcome resistance and produce long-lasting enchantment, and how new technologies can help us reach the audiences most likely to find appeal in our messages. Guy’s frequent use of real-world examples from famous and not-so-famous people makes the book very accessible and adds to its overall entertainment value.

Enchantment, it turns out, is possible even if it doesn’t come naturally for all of us. If you’re getting ready to embark on a new venture — a new commercial product, a service project, a political campaign, or just about anything that will involve other people — you’re sure to find something in Enchantment that will help you do it well.


(Enchantment book cover. Courtesy of Guy’s web site. Click to enlarge.)

Enchantment is on sale now. You can find information about ordering a copy on this web page.

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*Guy is a big hockey fan.

FULL DISCLOSURE: As I mentioned in a previous NC State of Business blog post, Guy’s book includes our “Manufacturing Makes It Real” Tour as an example of a good — and possibly even an “enchanting” — celebration. As a result of providing Guy with information related to the tour, I finagled a review copy of the book. Make of that what you will.

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Under the Dark Full Moon

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Did you get to see the lunar eclipse early this morning?

Instead of staying up late to see the beginning of the eclipse, I decided to get up early to catch it at its darkest. I didn’t even have to set an alarm; I rolled out of bed a little after 3 a.m., tossed on my sweats, and stepped outside to see … clouds.

The clouds were especially dark, in the approximate place where the Moon would have been. Normally a full Moon would shine through the clouds, but not last night.

I failed at going back to sleep, so around 4 a.m. I took a walk under the clouds and the invisible Moon. About halfway through my walk the clouds thinned enough that I thought I saw the limb of the Moon, recently unshadowed. Then the clouds re-asserted themselves and I completed my walk, and when I returned I thankfully got to sleep for a little while.

I hope you had better luck with your eclipse-viewing!

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Making It Real in North Carolina

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(Written as a guest post for, and cross-posted from, the Beyond Lean blog.)

Because I’ve driven across the country several times, from one Air Force assignment to the next, I sometimes think in terms of the nation as a whole and forget just how big some states are. Last week I helped the NC State University Industrial Extension Service (IES) conduct the “Manufacturing Makes It Real” tour, covering over 1100 miles in 5 days, and trust me: North Carolina is a pretty big state.

The central message of the tour was that manufacturing — the actual production of durable and consumer goods — matters to all of us, because it is the source of almost everything we have and almost everything we do. As Dr. Terri Helmlinger Ratcliff, IES Executive Director, wrote before the tour, “Manufacturing makes the difference between imagination and reality in ways that make modern life possible.” Invention creates new products, but manufacturing brings them into all our lives.

To spread the message about how much manufacturing matters, we went to every region of North Carolina: the piedmont, the mountains, and along the coast. As we traveled, we held rallies where manufacturers showed off their products and praised their workers. The host sites made the rallies truly “local” events: some had employees sing the National Anthem, some invited Junior ROTC or other school groups to perform, and one invited the local area’s apple orchards to bring some of their products for attendees to sample. Local, State, and even Federal elected officials attended various events, which usually included plant tours to show off the host sites’ capabilities in more detail.

Our convoy included a tractor-trailer with dozens of different “Made in NC” items that showed off the diversity of products made throughout the state. At each rally, people lined up to walk through the trailer to see their handiwork as well as others’. Many people expressed surprise at the variety of products made in the state: “from tortilla chips to microchips,” as IES Deputy Director Dr. David Boulay said.

I like to think the individual rallies were like “county fairs” for manufacturing, and we were pleased at the number of companies that attended, even though we didn’t have blue ribbons to award. And considering the weather we had — record levels of rain along the coast, making us travel on nearly-flooded roads* — we were very fortunate to make it to each stop and hold each rally on time.


(The Monroe Fire Department’s flag display at Scott Health & Safety. NCSU photo. Click to enlarge.)

The most memorable rally for me was held at Scott Health & Safety in Monroe (east of Charlotte). The Monroe Fire Department had set up two ladder trucks and suspended a huge U.S. flag to help the companies demonstrate their “Made in the USA” pride. That pride-of-workmanship theme was repeated at every stop, but the Monroe event was special to me because I relied on Scott Air Pak breathing gear when I worked disaster response in the Air Force. Their workmanship can literally mean the difference between life and death in dangerous situations. (I wrote more about the Scott Health & Safety rally on the tour blog**).

All week long, from companies big and small and representing many different industry sectors, we heard stories of continuous improvement through lean and Six Sigma, expanded markets through ISO certification, and risk-taking through entrepreneurial ventures and new product development. Company leaders admitted to a lot of belt-tightening and uncertainty in the last couple of years, but seemed pleased that people were paying attention to the good work they do.

The tour ended with a final rally at the NC Legislative Building in Raleigh, where NC State Chancellor Randy Woodson symbolically presented the truckload of products to NC Secretary of Commerce Keith Crisco. The speakers at the final rally, along with the companies that sponsored and participated in the “Manufacturing Makes It Real” tour, testified that manufacturing is alive and well in North Carolina. We are all committed to keeping it that way.

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*Not complaining! We needed the rain to counteract the summer’s drought.

**For more from the tour blog, including pictures from most of the sites, see http://mfgmakesitreal.wordpress.com/.

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On the Road with the Manufacturing Tour

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All this week I’m traveling with the “Manufacturing Makes It Real” tour, which the NC State University Industrial Extension Service is running to showcase and celebrate the state’s products and the people who make them.

My job, leading up to this, was to plan the route and make sure the bus and tractor-trailer get from point A to point B to point C to … the end. “There and back again,” as Bilbo Baggins would say.

Yesterday we traveled to RLCB in Raleigh, Thomas Built Buses in High Point, and Polychem Alloy in Lenoir. I’m typing this from my hotel room — isn’t technology marvelous? — in Fletcher, where this morning we’ll visit ArvinMeritor before heading down the mountain to National Gypsum in Mount Holly and Tyco/Scott Health & Safety in Monroe.

It’s already been quite the adventure, between miscommunication on where to meet yesterday morning, a flat tire on the bus that had to be swapped out at RLCB, and extra cars that blocked our entry to one factory. (That, in a way, is a nice problem to have: so many people showing up that we had to ask some to move their cars!)

Our industry hosts have been fantastic, especially considering the much-needed rain that forced all our events yesterday indoors. And the manufacturers who have come seem to relish the opportunity to show off their products and praise their employees.

We’re traveling all over the state, so if you’re anywhere along our route or near one of our stops and you have a little extra time, stop by and see what’s going on! A quick walk through the display trailer will surprise you, in terms of the variety of different things manufactured here in North Carolina.

Hope to see you on the tour!

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So Much for That Idea

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Last month I posted my thoughts on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and particularly my opinion that a brute-force method should be used to stop the leak. In response to my friend David’s comment, I sent the idea in for evaluation and the other day I received the boilerplate response:

> Dear Gray Rinehart,
> Thank you so much for taking the time to think about and submit your proposed solution regarding the Horizon incident. Your submission has been reviewed for its technical merits. Unfortunately, the team has determined that your idea cannot be applied under the very challenging and specific operating conditions we face. All of us on the Horizon Support Team appreciate your thoughts and efforts.
>
> Sincerely yours,
> Horizon Support Team

In the publishing world, this is known as a “form rejection,” with the only personalization being that the system grabbed my name from the electronic form and popped it into the letter. (I know this because I’ve received lots of form rejections for my stories, and have sent out my share as well.)

What amuses me is the phrase “cannot be applied.” I’m aware of “the very challenging and specific operating conditions,” since in 1993 I directed a search-and-salvage operation in the Pacific Ocean for pieces of a failed Titan-IV rocket; based on that experience, I still think my idea is feasible. But because it would render the undersea wellhead unusable forever, it is most certainly undesirable to the powers that be.

I could be wrong; it wouldn’t be the first time, nor the last. Nevertheless, I think the kid gloves should have come off a long time ago. By not making the situation better, the people in charge are definitely making it worse.

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Maybe We Should’ve Been Indelicate

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[Grain of salt statement: This is something of a rant. It is my unqualified opinion, as I’m not an oil man and the only floating oil rig I’ve ever been on had been converted to a space launch platform. This post is for entertainment and stress-relief purposes only: primarily my own entertainment and stress relief.]

I fail to understand why British Petroleum hasn’t written off the failed Deepwater Horizon as a total loss and taken steps to entomb it forever in order to stop it from leaking. Instead, it seems to me, they’ve been working hard to save their equipment and preserve this particular access point by trying small-scale, piecemeal fixes. (Here’s a nice article about some of the methods they’ve tried.)

Note that I don’t fault them for their statements to the press or misunderstanding the magnitude of the problem. Long ago I learned from one of my commanders that in the first hours of any major crisis, nothing is correct. Nothing you know, and usually nothing you do, will be correct until the situation begins to sort itself out.

So I understand that the first thing for BP to do was to try to activate the so-called “blowout preventer” — the device that was supposed to keep a disaster like this from ever happening. But once that failed, and especially once the amount of oil emerging from the well was known to be far greater than anticipated, it seems it was time to stop pussyfooting around and squash the thing like an undersea bug.

The nearest metaphor I can come up with is that the Deepwater Horizon wellhead is like a coffee straw sticking out of a Dixie cup at the bottom of a really deep swimming pool, and we’ve been trying to plug that straw by dropping grains of sand into it. The objective should have been to leave the thing sunk and bury it forever.

I understand that forced-in drilling mud (which is a special mineral slurry used in oil extraction) could overcome the well pressure and stop the flow, and I understand that now they’re drilling relief wells (see this article) in order to pump in mud and eventually concrete, but those are delicate operations at a time when brute force seems necessary.

Maybe we — BP and all of us — should’ve been indelicate. It seems to me that we have seen too much footage of smart bombs going through windows, and have forgotten (or no longer believe) that sometimes overwhelming force is required to solve an intractable problem.

Why not drop something big and cylindrical like a farm silo down over the thing, right over the blowout preventer, stand it up on the ocean floor and dump concrete in it until the concrete spills over the top. If that doesn’t stop the oil from coming out — if the oil bubbles up through the concrete as it’s setting — build a bigger cylinder and drop that over the first one and fill it up, and so on until the thing is encased in as many cubic yards of concrete as it takes to stop it from leaking into the ocean. If we have to build a five-hundred-foot-tall mountain of concrete on the ocean floor to seal the thing up, it seems a lot better than hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil spreading across the water.

They could’ve cut their losses, learned a big lesson, and moved on to the next project. Instead, we’re all learning some much more difficult lessons ….

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Economic Recovery Blues

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Introducing my second foray into songwriting: “The Economic Recovery Blues,” the 2009 Industrial Extension Service (IES) Song, now available on YouTube.

And now, the story behind the song …

Friends from the Titan System Program Office at Vandenberg AFB may remember that I penned quite a few Titan-related lyrics to Beatles tunes, but “The Economic Recovery Blues” was only the second time I’ve tried to write lyrics and something of an original tune. Back in late 2008, my first attempt was “The I-E-S Song” — I wrote the lyrics and had the basic tune in mind, and Mark Minervino (my Pastor at North Cary Baptist Church) fleshed out the music. He also did all the instruments and the background vocals — his versatility is boundless — and I just sang the main lyrics. Then I put together a video montage and showed it off at our annual Christmas luncheon.

The original “I-E-S Song” was a big hit with the folks at work. Several of us wanted it to go on YouTube, but the humor was a little too sharp — mostly self-deprecating, but it got in digs at some other North Carolina institutions of higher learning. Maybe the powers-that-be will change their minds one of these days.

I had so much fun doing the first “I-E-S Song” that I figured, why not do another one? So in December 2009 the process repeated. I had the lyrics and the beginning of a tune, and Mark figured out (and performed!) the rest. Because I didn’t get started as early as the first one, we didn’t get this song done in time for the IES Christmas luncheon, so at that I sang another song — this one a work-related lyric sung to “Oh, How I Love Jesus” — and then finished up “The Economic Recovery Blues” over the holiday break. The video montage is rougher than the first one,* but the office folks decided to post it “as is.” So this is the first song I’ve done to be posted online. Hope you enjoy it, if you go in for that sort of office-related-silliness thing.

Meanwhile, if you know of anyone who needs some business consulting in lean manufacturing, “Six Sigma” statistical process control, ISO quality management standards, safety and health, or growth services, point them at the Industrial Extension Service — and at “The Economic Recovery Blues.”

Ah-one, and ah-two ….

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*A note on the video montage. For the first one, we purchased some nifty graphics off the web; for the new song, I used Creative Commons images and put attributions in the credits at the end of the song.

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