Business View Magazine May 2023

97 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 10, ISSUE 5 SALEM FABRICAT ION TECHNOLOGI ES GROUP finding popular products that feature automation will be a “huge factor in our success in the coming years.” One option is the use of robotics to help with menial or repeatable tasks, allowing companies to repurpose their employees to focus on more projects and tasks that require critical thinking. Artificial intelligence plays a role in the automation trend as well. Salem installed internal software in 2022 that supports automated and AI-driven customer ordering processes. This allows Salem to more effectively predict future orders that will be needed, while alerting those customers of a forthcoming need, based on past order history. According to Willard, this has provided a significant amount of value to Salem because it can increase revenue and provide an added layer of convenient customer service. “The customer service aspect has been very useful for us,” Willard said. “It helps us with budgeting because many of our customers have reliable ordering patterns. We are finding that any technology that allows the customer to benefit from automation is extremely valuable.” This can include automation that is a part of distributed products, or automation used by Salem that helps solve a customer’s need or saves them time. This is especially important because Salem’s customers operate in a very competitive market where they compete with other fabricators and skilled professionals. For example, customers often work with architectural glazers to compete for projects needed by a large office building, commercial gym, warehouse, or retail store. Salem though is more than just a distributor. Its leaders understand that tooling made from inferior materials or processes does not last long and can lead to increased maintenance and longer production times. Fabrication tooling is selected by Salem’s product specialists after intense research, performance testing and durability. Whether customers use diamond or resin cup wheels, polishing compounds, core drills, routers, coolants, or flocculants, they will have the reassurance that it’s been thoroughly vetted for proper use. Recovering from COVID-era solutions The economic impact of COVID was somewhat significant for Salem but has been improving over the last year. Added tariffs from China, combined with outrageous shipping costs from Asia, hurt company margins for a bit, Willard said. The costs of shipping containers rose 10 times and by $4,000 to $5,000 on average in 2020, 2021, and parts of 2022. Fortunately, most of those costs have fallen back to near pre-COVID levels. The tariff that China had reinstated in the early days of COVID also has been suspended, helping to stabilize prices. Yet that experience helped Salem to more efficiently manage its costs, a trait it continues to improve upon today.