The Delaware County Chamber of Commerce and the Delaware County Workforce Investment Board invited Greg Olson, SEWN Southeast Manufacturing Director, to speak at their Impact Forum. The Delaware Valley Industrial Resource Center and the Mid-Atlantic Trade Adjustment Center also addressed the assembly. The forum addressed the indirect and induced impact on local businesses as a result of the closure of the Sunoco and Conoco/Phillips refineries. The adverse impact of these closures on the broader business community is significant and felt by so many of the small manufacturers doing business across the Southeastern region. SEWN's mission of saving Pennsylvania jobs in small- to medium-sized manufacturing firms dovetails nicely into the objectives of this community forum. Working with our Pennsylvania partners, SEWN provides financial, sales, and operations support for the small- to medium-sized suppliers who are losing a very large customer. 

 

A Northeastern Pennsylvania manufacturer of test and measurement equipment requested SEWN's assistance. In the last three years, the company has gone from being profitable to posting losses and then back to profitability. Due to a moderate shift in demand, the company is not meeting its projections and is evaluating its short-term opportunities to contain costs. The company remains focused on the longer-term, and is cautiously developing growth plans while avoiding placing the core business at risk. SEWN conducted an in-depth analysis of financial trends and completed a detailed review of the company's financial covenants. SEWN is assisting in a review of longer-term growth plan scenarios, providing analysis on the best, probable, and worst case outcomes. SEWN and the company are also reviewing the current sales mix and contracts to develop contingency plans that will address potential shifts in demand.

 

The Governor's Action Team engaged Central SEWN to intercede on behalf of a Central Pennsylvania manufacturer with its bank to restructure and reposition its financial base. SEWN engaged the company's owners and top management with strategies, cash flow management techniques, operational restructuring, and operational efficiencies in a multi-partner approach to stabilize and position the company for much-needed growth. As a result, the company is leveraging its position to triple its through-put over the previous four years. SEWN is working with area partners to strengthen the company's operational capabilities using applied "best practices" in manufacturing techniques. With the company's full engagement and the assistance of SEWN and our partners, the company is positioned for growth and expansion.

 

Bob Value, Deputy Director of the Steel Valley Authority, and Jack Bardol, SEWN Consultant, conducted a seminar on costing and pricing strategies for manufacturers in Northwestern Pennsylvania. The seminar focused on bridging the gap between Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (GAAP) financial statements and how manufacturing operating managers need to think about their business operations. The key issue is one of absorption. GAAP requires that labor and overhead costs be absorbed into the inventory value. SEWN often finds that smaller manufacturing firms struggle with this concept. The seminar provided attendees with simple and intuitive methods to establish costs and strategies to establish pricing in various situations.

The Shared Work program allows an employer to temporarily reduce the work hours of a group of employees as an alternative to a layoff. Employees covered by the plan receive a percentage of the Unemployment Compensation Weekly Benefit Amount while they work the reduced schedule, if they are otherwise eligible for Unemployment Compensation.

For additional information, visit the Shared Work page on the Department of Labor and Industry web site.

Since its inception in 1993, the Strategic Early Warning Network (SEWN) had contributed to the retention and revival of close to 700 industrial enterprises within Pennsylvania, impacting more than 18,000 jobs. SEWN assists manufacturers throughout the state who are struggling to grow or to improve the competitiveness of their business. SEWN provides professional and confidential turnaround, financial, and investment services to small- and middle-market firms employing 25-500 workers through the following core services: Financial Restructuring, Operational Restructuring and Cost Management, Ownership Transition, High Performance Workplace Strategies, and New Market Opportunities. All of SEWN's services are provided at no cost to the manufacturer, and all information provided is handled in strict confidence.