The Pacer Wire

March Madness is Happening Now

By Steve O'Dea - Pacer Solutions Expert

I would love to talk about college basketball and how the brackets are going to shake out and then subsequently be dismantled by Cinderella State University, the fighting Glass Slippers, but I will leave that to the experts. What I am going to talk about is the scramble to find parts to fix our warm weather equipment in order to be ready for when the warmer weather actually hits. Cabin fever has reached full pandemic in the winter of 2010 and the overwhelming desire to see some good weather and get out and enjoy it is clearly evident from the voices and faces of most of the people we talk to. Now everyone is working to make sure that their toys and equipment are ready for the good times ahead.

As most of us are people who work 50 hours a week or more, the weekends are more and more cherished. The last thing anyone wants to do is waste that time fixing equipment, keeping you from your favorite past time. Use what few weekends you have left before the weather really kicks in to get all of your favorite tools of the trade back up to competition ready.Here's an idea...go online and save time AND money by ordering quick and easy!

Depending on where in the country, or in the world for that matter, you are located, the weather will get better sooner than you think. For some folks you have a few months, but for others, like us in Florida, the mercury is beginning to rise in our thermometers and getting out and enjoying our outdoor pursuits is at the top of our priority lists.

So get ready and do not wait for better temperatures. Instead, prepare now and be ready for the nicer weather. The weekend warriors only get 104 Saturdays and Sundays per year and not all of those days are chamber of commerce brochure days. If you get 25% of those days as good weather days that only means 26 days to "play" with. You know something always comes up on many of those that prevent you from spending your time doing your favorite activity.

Use your time now to get ready and hopefully your "honey-do" list does not grow too out-of-hand to take more precious days away. In the meantime, stay safe and be warm.

Can Competitors Be Customers?

This seems like a dumb question. Of course competitors cannot be customers because, they compete against us. We need to find people who can purchase our goods and services in order to help them and their business. Why would we help our competitor's business? After all they are trying to beat us, win our business and grow faster than we are. This is true but if you think about it no two businesses are exactly alike. Maybe there is room to help them and grow your business after all.

The cliché (and you know how I love clichés) says, "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer." This is great business advice. "Know your enemies as well or better than you know yourself," is another cliché that is also apropos. I feel the best way to analyze both your company and your competition is by doing a SWOT analysis. SWOT stands for "Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats." This form of analyzing forces you to be honest with yourself regarding your company. One cannot just say, "we are the best at making superior wire and cable," but you have to define why. Other characteristics that you need to look at are customer service, lead times, pricing, product breadth and financial stability. Hopefully these are in the Strengths category, but if they go in the Weaknesses category then you know what areas you need to improve upon. Doing a SWOT on your own company is difficult but it can be very revealing.

I would suggest using a team of employees to collaborate on the analysis as you will be able to get a better, more accurate perspective of your company and how your employees will be able to give their (hopefully) honest opinions of where your company strengths and weaknesses are. Doing this exercise can also give you a new respect for your competition. If one of their strengths is customer service, then you should respect that. After all, great service should be something we all strive for.

Once you feel you have detailed yours and your competitor's SWOT, find areas that they are lacking, specifically in a product or service you might be able to provide to them. In the current economic climate companies need to think of new and less traditional ways of growing our businesses. Who knows, maybe our competition will have something to help your business too. I don't recommend sharing customer information with one another but providing reciprocal services can create a win-win for both companies. So next time you curse that competitor of yours for stealing the business (being out-sold), then perhaps the next course of action should be to perform a SWOT on both your company and theirs. This could help give you reason as to why you were out-sold and give you the knowledge to make sure it does not happen again.

Give Us Your Tips, We’ll Give You A Free Tool

Wouldn't It Be Great to Have a Tips & Tricks Resource for Everything?

By: Steve O'Dea - Pacer Solutions Expert

During my weekend warrior battles with either that over grown invasive vine that has overtaken my fence or with that door in the garage that never closes properly I am often in the position to "figure it out" myself. Typically this is not a problem and the jobs I tackle are well within my limited expertise and require more grunt than grey matter. I will however, without fail, find the most inefficient ways to complete the job. This may mean making a few extra trips to the hardware store or several trips back and forth to the tool bench or my work shed. I am constantly reminded be either my own actions or my wife, that my efficiency is not the best. I will complete the job, but in the time it takes me I could have completed two.

I would probably not only get more completed both in volume and in degree of difficulty if I had a "Tips & Tricks" resource close at hand. I might be able to have the proper tools for the job readily available before I start the project. This would save me untold trips to the hardware store and take much of the guess work out. Look, I watch the DIY network and HGTV a lot around the house and many times those shows give me the inspiration and ideas for the next project. The tips they give are usually pretty good, but their 30 minute program cannot do justice the amount of time I need to complete such a project. The internet is filled with ideas, lessons and instruction on how to do just about everything. Most of the time, when I am knee deep into a "way over my head" project, I cannot just go search the internet. Google would come back with "call a professional" as my search results.

I know most of you are not like me but rather have the experience, smarts and skills to get the job done right the first time. We could really use your help. I don't mean for you to come over and fix that horrible noise my disposal makes, although if you are free...What we really need your help for is to submit tips and tricks you have learned that we might pass along to others who (like me) seem to find the most difficult and inefficient way to complete that item off their "honey do" list. Submit any ideas to sknott@pacergroup.net. If we use your ideas in our "Tips & Tricks" page we will give you a FREE Klein Crimp Tool with your next Pacer purchase! People need help and a resource (well at least I do) and hopefully Pacer Group's Tips & Tricks page can be another resource to aid in an unfamiliar project.

 

Welcome to Pacer's New Tips Page!

Would you like access to a free resource of answers, useful charts and interesting articles? Pacer Group, the premium providers of wire, cable and electrical components of all kinds, now has a page on its website that may be able to help.

Visit the Pacer Tips Page to view the ever-growing database of information specifically for anyone working on anything electrical! http://blog.pacergroup.net/pacer-tips-tricks

 Have you subscribed to our Pacer Blog yet? Why not? Stay current with what's going on in the industry and within Pacer Group! Go to: http://blog.pacergroup.net

 

Pacer Wire -- NOT Just a Marine Wire

By: Steve O'Dea - Pacer Solutions Expert

For many years the marine industry has been our bread and butter. We have been with boat builders, marine manufacturers, and aftermarket suppliers as our customer base. They love the fact that our tinned copper superior wire and cable is flexible, high quality and easy to work with. Being a wire and cable manufacturer means we also have a competitive price advantage over most distributors and retail centers. Marine repair professionals are used to seeing our name on boat wire, on the boats they work on to get back to seaworthiness. This has been good news and a little bad news for Pacer. The good news is that we are the company most people think of when they are considering wiring for a boat. The bad news is that sometimes people only think of us when they are considering wiring for a boat and not for appliances, automobiles or other industrial applications. Hopefully we can change that perception soon.

Underwriters Laboratories® (UL) classifies just about every product we use daily and wire is certainly no exception. The wire we manufacture, right here in Sarasota, Florida is UL1015. This is a great, all around type of electronics or appliance wire. This do-it-all (OK, not ALL but you get the point) wire is a stranded, flexible, hook up wire. While this wire is qualified for many wiring applications, the construction is very basic. It is primarily manufactured with stranded, solid, bare and tinned copper conductors with PVC insulation. This PVC insulation creates a chemical, flame and moisture resistant barrier. We manufacture our UL1015 using stranded tinned copper conductors.

UL1015 hook up wire is typically rated for use up to 600 volts and for temperatures up to 105° Celsius in a dry location. This rating lends itself to use in various types of equipment. The difference between bare copper and tinned copper typically comes down to application and preference of the installer. The tinning is to help defend against corrosion. This is why it is used so much in marine applications. In the harshest environments people use this wire, so for added value use this wire when the environment is not as harsh. Because we manufacture this wire, you may find it more cost effective and better than purchasing through a distribution chain. This makes the UL1015 wire we manufacture the perfect solution for so many applications that its uses are endless, even outside of the marine industry. Call or email us to discuss your latest project and how our high quality wire can help: 941-378-5774 / websales@pacergroup.net

Does My Computer Have the H1N1?

By: Steve O'Dea - Pacer Solutions Expert

I ask this question because, well it sure seems like there is something wrong with it. It is sluggish and lethargic and is also so warm that it must have a fever. It is not coughing or anything yet but it is definitely not operating at 100%. Perhaps the gerbils running on the wheel inside of there are not getting enough oxygen, food or water. I know everyone experiences computer problems and most of the time it is user error (except in my case). These appliances that have become such a crucial part of our everyday lives just happen to develop personalities over time. Mine seems mean and surly at the moment.

In the last 15 years our society's dependence on the computer might have surpassed the refrigerator. Think about it. Many of us pay bills, correspond and social network via the computer. We share and print photos using our computer. These are life related tasks that are taken for granted until something happens and our computer decides it is not feeling well. What happened to the encyclopedia? Google is what happened to it. Many people watch TV shows on their computer, play games and listen to music as well replacing a host of other electronic devices that at one time we could not live without. These are examples that have nothing to do with actual work or employment. Many people work remotely from home or the road. We have become so reliant on these magical machines that when something goes wrong, and it does, it is truly a tragedy.

Growing up, my mother had boxes of photos, photo albums and loose photos in a drawer in the living room (the room that no one ever used). I always thought that seemed risky because what if there was a fire or a water pipe burst and ruined them all. Although with the way I was dressed in the 70's perhaps loosing a few images would not be such a bad thing. Now it is commonplace to have all of our photos on a computer. I think you will agree that the chances of your computer crashing are much more likely to happen than the above mentioned disasters. Who is living the risky life now?

Pacer while manufacturing superior wire and cable can continue with this wire making process without our computer, until Underwriters Laboratory shows up to do an audit on our compliances. At that point we need a system to show them our compliance checks and calibrations. Also this website that you are currently visiting would cease to function if our computers go down. That means that even this blog will not be read by the dozens of people who enjoy my tales of useless information. You get the picture. I am sure most of you have experienced this feeling of helplessness while your computer decided to call in sick.

I encourage you to back up your information. My wife keeps all of our important and irreplaceable pictures and files on an external hard drive so in the event of a hurricane evacuation we can just unplug the little box and take it with us. Don't worry, if something like that happens we will forget to take it with us, but I'll have my favorite cooler and my wife will have her hair products secure on our way to safety. This entry is simply a reminder to take some safeguarding action now with your computer and your most important files. Don't wait until it's too late, because most people don't think about it until there is a crash. Hopefully by the time this is posted I will have my computer back up and running and not working from an unfamiliar desk with limited access. Happy computing!

Punxsutawney Phil Has Declared Six More Weeks of Winter

By Steve O'Dea - Pacer Solutions Expert

Well the Prognosticator of Prognostications, Punxsutawney Phil has seen his shadow which means six more weeks of winter. He emerged from his tree stump on Gobbler's Knob and proclaimed his weather forecast. Don't worry though that we have to deal with more winter, but instead look to spring. Just because it is still chilly and gloomy outside doesn't mean you can't prepare for when the sun comes back and the temperatures rise. For major league, and minor league baseball players, spring starts in three weeks when first pitchers and catchers report and then the position players a few days later. So, let's get ready!

Why wait until it is warm to get your boats and toys ready? Get them ready now so when the first signs of spring hit you can be enjoying the weather and not spending your time doing repairs that winterizing inevitably requires. As a weekend warrior boater myself, I know how precious and few the times are when we can get out on the water; approximately 52 times a year if the weather doesn't blow us out on the only days we are not in the office or shop. Make the most of your time during the stretch run of this cold season.

If your boat, racecar or other toy(s) needs a fuse gear of some sort or replacement of that faulty meter, then take care of it now. Are some terminals a little loose? Perhaps an upgrade is in order. How are those battery cables holding up? I think you get the picture. You should use the extra cold time now so when the weather is nice you are enjoying it with your properly working toys. Pacer manufactures superior wire and cable that is used in so many industrial and recreational applications that our customers discover new applications and uses every day. We would love to hear your comments on some uses or applications you have found beyond copper wire and cable. If you don't see something on our website, contact us and we will work to find the part you need so you can be ready when the flowers and trees begin to bloom and the weather turns in our favor. Maybe the extra six weeks of winter won't be so bad and give you more time to look forward to the nice days ahead.

Save $100 on a Rhino 6000 Pro Labeler!!

Pacer is offering the Rhino 6000 Pro Labeler for $100 off! CLICK HERE to see the details and to purchase this superior labeler. The offer expires March 31st so act fast!

Crimping Properly is a Numbers Game

By Steve O'Dea - Pacer Solutions Expert

 Would you trust sitting on a chair with only 2 legs? We can all agree that is a stupid question. Save for some episode of "America's Funniest Home Video's" or a YouTube sensation, no one would sit on a chair with just 2 legs. Now chairs with 3 legs properly spaced are a safer bet to rest your rump on, and 4 legs is an optimal choice. What does this purely hypothetical and frankly silly scenario have to do with our business? Well, it will all make sense just follow me.

When crimping battery lugs a four point crimp is much better than a two point crimp. What I mean by that is the more points you can crimp the better, especially when relying heavily on the mechanical crimp. Because we make superior wire and cable that has very fine stranding we do not recommend solder. Many proponents of solder say that it gives another level of protection to a mechanical crimp. The advantages to using a highly flexible, fine stranded copper wire and cable such as resistance to heavy vibration is diminished when soldered. Soldering turns all those little flexible strands into one solid piece and as such creates a brittle point. Resistance to heavy vibration is a major selling point in performance wire and cable and their applications.

Pacer recommends a nice heavy crimp and adhesive lined heat shrink to finish the assemblies. We sell 2 types of battery lug crimpers: First is the AMP Rota-Crimp (VT600850) which can crimp lugs from 8 AWG to 4/0 AWG. We have used one in our battery department that must be 20 years old and it still works great. This tool is heavy duty and features unique spring loaded rotating crimp dies to allow the user to crimp a full range of cables without switching out loose die pieces. This crimper offers a four point crimp on the lug too. I would not recommend this for a hobbyist but for a serious professional (who doesn't mind investing in better tools) it is perfect. We also sell a version of the AMP Rota-Crimp (VT601075) that will crimp lugs up to 1/0 AWG. The second is the Crimp Master Crimp tool. For larger gauge lugs from 6 AWG to 4/0 AWG (VT0280) the Crimp Master is a less expensive alternative. This tool features a dial to adjust for the correct crimp gauge and a three point crimp. The version of the Crimp Master that crimps gauges 6 AWG to 1/0 AWG is the (VT0280C).

We understand that dropping that kind of dough on a tool is not in everyone's budget, especially when you don't need this feature that often. The important lesson to take from this post is that putting the lug in a crimping jig and hitting it with a hammer is not the recommended method for high performance crimps. A two point crimp is not sufficient.

Pacer engineers battery cables for many of the marine manufacturers here in the US. We utilize a pneumatic crimper that creates a repeatable, consistent mechanical crimp that tests way beyond industry standard. We can make these for you too. Because we have our own wire and cable manufacturing plant, we have an advantage on the materials. Even with our labor factored in, many companies utilize our service because we can build these cables custom for less than investing in all the tools and materials. Let us invest in the inventory and processes to supply you with a top notch cable assembly. You will know that the assembly has been tested.

So as you can see the crimping battery lugs does not take a rocket scientist (but if you are one and you are looking for an assembly - call us). It does, however take an understanding of the many numbers that you need to consider before you take on the job.

The Word Blog is a Misspelled Word?

By: Steve O'Dea - Pacer Solutions Expert

According to many spell checking vocabulary programs, the word Blog or Blogs is a word to be flagged and checked again. I find that kind of telling. When the programmers at the largest computer software firms in the world (you can guess who they are) were inputting the vocabulary in their databanks a decade or so ago, the word Blog did not exist. In the last fifteen years, with the explosion of technology, the flood gates have opened for new words to enter our everyday lexicon. Social networking sites (heck, even the word site!) have joined the fun with examples such as Tweets, and turning the word "friend" into a verb on Facebook.

These new words have brought opportunity to connect with more people and new ways to promote our businesses. For a company like Pacer Group, who manufactures superior wire and cable, it can help find new customers and industries. We set up customers for wholesale wire and cable prices, and someone blogs about it. We help a customer with finding a gauge for his Mainship 39 boat and he blogs about us on Yahoo Groups. We tweet about a racing team on Twitter and they begin following us. This is really a fortunate turn of technology for all of us if we embrace it and use it. At this point human skill must come into play. In order to utilize these methods to our best advantage we must be willing to change and grow. We must monitor how this instant information is working or not working for us. This is no easy task nor can the questions be answered quickly.

While we are introduced to new words, finding meaning and how we can make them work for us does take some planning. This is a challenging task for a wire and cable website finding its way on the internet. At the very least we need to be open to new ideas and ways of doing business in this age. We would love to hear about some of your success stories (or horror stories) in our comments section. Unfortunately, I still need spell check, but no amount of technology will change that fact.