How’s your work or business doing thread

[Seinfeld]

I’m in a weird situation where my particular group(global hydraulics) is in the process of being sold to a competitor, and the deal that was originally supposed to be done by September is now being pushed to Q1 ‘21. In the meantime, there’s daily talk over who can make what calls because their are obviously conflicting interests during a time like this.

Up to this point, still no permanent layoffs, but most of our roughly 14k personnel have taken 4-5 weeks off without pay, and things like merit increases and certain incentives have obviously been delayed. As I work for the team specifically responsible for creating and monitoring sales/ops forecasts, I’m glad to know that things are trending in the right direction for us. However, stories are starting to come out about businesses that have basically put off permanent layoffs as long as they could, and some are now occurring.

Anyway, best of luck to all of you, and how’s the mood at your work?

 

[FISHDAWG]

I'm a construction estimator / project manager in large scale commercial work and we haven't slowed one bit .... I turn down several bid invites each day. During the crash of 08 I saw immediate impact in our industry and had contracts canceled and saw many projects get shelved or out-right abandoned ..... Was expecting the same thing (maybe even worse) with this economic slow down but so far it's been rather minimal and surprisingly still robust in my industry

 

[Jeffreauxdawg]

I'm a construction estimator / project manager in large scale commercial work and we haven't slowed one bit .... I turn down several bid invites each day. During the crash of 08 I saw immediate impact in our industry and had contracts canceled and saw many projects get shelved or out-right abandoned ..... Was expecting the same thing (maybe even worse) with this economic slow down but so far it's been rather minimal and surprisingly still robust in my industry

Commercial is a big range... What kind of projects? My world came to a hault and has not picked up. Funded projects are still going, but nothing new getting funded. I work at the design/spec level getting cmu's and mortars specified... My world is heavy mass retail centers and hotels, which are obviously hard hit. My friends in tilt up are going full tilt though.

Need an apprentice?

 

[mcdawg22]

Great. As a lot of you know, I finally became a productive member of society in June. I work in the payments industry so while transactions overall are down, a bigger percentage have shifted to cards, digital wallets, P2P (Zelle, Cash App), and a2a (transferring between your own acccounts). Working from home has put a little bottleneck in interdepartmental support so we are backlogged with several requests, but overall our service level has remained high and we still are reporting really good numbers. The anticipation is when spend gets back to normal, card transactions are going to be significantly higher than pre-COVID levels.

 

[LTblows]

Industrial is still going strong. I’m in a niche industrial submarket and it’s continuing to grow.

 

[Shmuley]

Professional service. The segment of our business that provides service to essential operations (government, medical, construction, insurance) has actually increased. The segment of our business that provides service to individual clientele has been cut in half to one third.

 

[turkish]

Petrochem. It’s generationally bad.

 

[Dawg_4_lifes]

It has been weird. I sale automotive supplies and parts wholesale. Most of all my clients specialize in an area and have weathered the storm fairly well. My numbers for June and July surpassed last year. However, my department overall is down. We also let a guy go / early retire back in April and we just split up his accts between the 4 of us. The company is down in every category except for one and they have gotten a huge increase by selling cleaning supplies, sanitizer, and masks.
I started this job in March and have been working from since week two. So its very weird for me because i have basically learned the job on my own. I have gotten used to working from home and actually kinda like it now. I do miss having coworkers, but i talk to so many ppl each day that it kinda equals out. The downside is that we have now seen some mental health issues pop up with some of our workers. This job can be stressful because i am basically the salesperson, customer svc, accounts receivable, dispatcher, and just overall problem solver for customers. We have had logistical nightmares with shipping, receiving, inventory, supply chains etc. The company still keeps our feet to the fire on sales numbers even though inventory stock is very bad and shipping right now is just a crap shoot. I spend at least an hour each day on the phone trying to find our freight. Some of our workers have turned to some self medication for their worries and that is sad and we have a few out right now getting the help that they need.

With all that being said. I am blessed to have a job that pays well enough for me to live comfortably and i enjoy it. I have got to spend a lot of time with my son since April due to me working at home and I have learned so much from seeing the world thru his eyes. So be safe everyone! Tell someone everyday you love them and Go Dogs!

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Truth. I can't remember a time it was this bad. Maybe the mid-late 80s domestically?

 

[mstateglfr]

I am on a transortstion/logistics team that works with seed, feed, and field chem companies of varying sizes.

Even during a pandemic corn, beans, sunflowers, etc need to be planted and animals need to be supplemented with vitamins and premixes, so my team has been quite busy.


The domestic over the road transportation market is an imbalanced **** show right now. Trucking capacity was super loose early on in covid and what trucks were paid was historically low. Right now the pendulum seems to have swung the other way and there is a relative tightness to the market and what trucks are paid significantly higher.
The imbalance makes for tough planning, on our end and for our customers.

 

[SheltonChoked]

I’m in a weird situation where my particular group(global hydraulics) is in the process of being sold to a competitor, and the deal that was originally supposed to be done by September is now being pushed to Q1 ‘21. In the meantime, there’s daily talk over who can make what calls because their are obviously conflicting interests during a time like this.

Up to this point, still no permanent layoffs, but most of our roughly 14k personnel have taken 4-5 weeks off without pay, and things like merit increases and certain incentives have obviously been delayed. As I work for the team specifically responsible for creating and monitoring sales/ops forecasts, I’m glad to know that things are trending in the right direction for us. However, stories are starting to come out about businesses that have basically put off permanent layoffs as long as they could, and some are now occurring.

Anyway, best of luck to all of you, and how’s the mood at your work?

Offshore Oil, gas and LNG. It's the same sh**show it has been since 2015. Just with everyone working remotely.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Higher ed. There are jittery folks but we're doing what we can.

Some are older & there are those with immune deficiency issues. And then there are the reports about students at other colleges and universities contracting covid-19 at parties and gatherings.

 

[goodknight]

Haven’t missed a day yet and have been open the entire time but working from home mostly.

 

[FISHDAWG]

Commercial is a big range... What kind of projects? My world came to a hault and has not picked up. Funded projects are still going, but nothing new getting funded. I work at the design/spec level getting cmu's and mortars specified... My world is heavy mass retail centers and hotels, which are obviously hard hit. My friends in tilt up are going full tilt though.

Need an apprentice?

I'm in Atlanta ... I have two hotels on the books trying to close the deal on another one ... backlog includes private school work, public school work, church additions, and several other related projects on the backlog ... Tenant work is going strong ... I'm also turning down bid invites to out-lying areas of Alabama, Florida, and Tennessee .... work is going on everywhere around here.
One Hotel I was chasing lost funding and another apartment complex did but is back on the move now with new funding ..... as far as mortar / CMU there is school work everywhere around here - Hotel as well ..... Tilt up construction is slower but that usually correlates with the manufacturing which is down somewhat .... If you're looking for work get a linked in account - I get about 2-3 inquiries per week from headhunters

 

[Leeshouldveflanked]

Worldwide Filtration Manufacture... 20K employees....pretty diverse markets . Transportation, Aerospace and Defense, Mining, construction, Food Production, Printing and Healthcare... sales are down, but with travel budgets slashed and reduced commissions, financials look decent...no layoffs but a hiring freeze.

 

[PBRME]

Working on my resume as I’m typing this.

 

[mcdawg22]

I guess someone doesn’t like the payments industry

 

[Mobile Bay]

Higher ed. There are jittery folks but we're doing what we can.

Some are older & there are those with immune deficiency issues. And then there are the reports about students at other colleges and universities contracting covid-19 at parties and gatherings.

They are. I have a cousin who just got it recently. He came down just after attending a bunch of unofficial rush parties off campus of Alabama.

 

[Leeshouldveflanked]

I am on a transortstion/logistics team that works with seed, feed, and field chem companies of varying sizes.

Even during a pandemic corn, beans, sunflowers, etc need to be planted and animals need to be supplemented with vitamins and premixes, so my team has been quite busy.


The domestic over the road transportation market is an imbalanced **** show right now. Trucking capacity was super loose early on in covid and what trucks were paid was historically low. Right now the pendulum seems to have swung the other way and there is a relative tightness to the market and what trucks are paid significantly higher.
The imbalance makes for tough planning, on our end and for our customers.

So are you the one sending the seed packs from China to random people?

 

[Jeffreauxdawg]

I guess someone doesn’t like the payments industry

Someone probably assumed you're working with one of the 47 spam callers they get everyday soliciting to see if we want to save up to 3% per transaction on our credit card processing.

 

[thatsbaseball]

If you own a hammer, screw driver and paint brush I believe you could find work in Madison in a day.

 

[J-Dawg]

Consulting for a large variety of industries, including electric utility providers, oil/gas, commercial/residential development, transportation, etc.

The energy sector, pre-2015 was our largest workload. Now it's a big deal if we get any projects across. I can probably count on less than 2 hands how many small gigs we've gotten this year, and none of those were really related to any new projects.

The development side has seemed to explode recently, as has alot of transportation-related construction projects.

As a whole, we are as busy as any time I can remember in the last few years, thankfully.

 

[jwbigcreek]

Gov't services. Some folks teleworking, but I haven't missed but one day I intended on working.

 

[Jeffreauxdawg]

I'm in Atlanta ... I have two hotels on the books trying to close the deal on another one ... backlog includes private school work, public school work, church additions, and several other related projects on the backlog ... Tenant work is going strong ... I'm also turning down bid invites to out-lying areas of Alabama, Florida, and Tennessee .... work is going on everywhere around here.
One Hotel I was chasing lost funding and another apartment complex did but is back on the move now with new funding ..... as far as mortar / CMU there is school work everywhere around here - Hotel as well ..... Tilt up construction is slower but that usually correlates with the manufacturing which is down somewhat .... If you're looking for work get a linked in account - I get about 2-3 inquiries per week from headhunters

Sounds like you are into all kinds of things.. The GC version of Paladin. Have Hard Hat, Will Travel.

I'm (was) a manufacturer rep for a company that does AAC blocks, which is still pretty niche in the US. I work with architects and developers to design/build using my products (great for thermal and accoustics... Which is why hotels love it.) I rarely get involved after precon.

I am not hurting... Yet. I don't get paid until delivery which can be 12-18 months out sometimes. I had a couple of surprise storage facility projects come through a few months ago after the lockdown which move a little quicker and will keep money flowing through the end of the year. The back end of 21-22 is looking dire though. So I am not going to piss into the wind, I am flipping over to the residential construction world next year.

I appreciate the tips and I am glad you are doing well. I guess a lot of folks are rushing to get stuff going with low rates.. Which makes sense. Stay diversified and you will be busy for a while. It sounds like you are doing tenant build out work which will be massive for a long time in every sector due to the long term idea of distancing and changes that need to be made.

Hospitality construction is going to be a real problem in 2022-24 is my guess since the Airlines are saying it will be 2024 before they recover. Hotels will probably do well in leisure areas more quickly, but business travel is going to be **** for years and may never fully recover. Retail was already going to die for all kinds of reasons, now it's been sped up by a decade.

 

[mcdawg22]

Someone probably assumed you're working with one of the 47 spam callers they get everyday soliciting to see if we want to save up to 3% per transaction on our credit card processing.

Oh god know. I work for a company that provides payment systems, mostly debit and credit to Credit Unions.

 

[Dawgbite]

I own a business that manufactures its products in China under contract. My importer who traveled to China and did quality inspections for me finally got out of China in May and has closed his business and isn’t going back. The manufacturing facility that I use is still closed from China’s initial shutdown. The Chinese government wants production guarantees and 100% of order cost up front before they will allow the manufacturer to open back up and produce. So it’s essentially putting me out of business. I do not trust them to post the money up front without a representative in China that I can trust to protect my money and interest and I’m not going over there personally. I had began setting things in motion to retire, it just looks like my plans may be accelerated a bit.

 

[Dawgpile]

Anyway, best of luck to all of you, and how’s the mood at your work?

Auto sales; I personally had a great month but overall was down personally month over year and the store as a whole was down month/year. Traffic was down but people in the dealerships were ready to buy. Almost 8% look to book. Quality inventory is hard to come by and when you find it, it's high as a cat's ***.

 

[Dawgsnsaints]

My company manufactures SYP lumber and plywood and the market has exploded to prices we have never witnessed before. We thought we were going to tank for at least a year or more but due to supply cuts and incredible DIY demand we can't make it fast enough. Basically everyone staying at home is running to Lowe's, Home Depot, 84 Lumber and picking up wood and working on home projects. If you are building a deck or fence or any other project that requires treated wood prepare to pay out the whale eye. Next time you go to your neighborhood home center check out the treated material, you will find many bins empty or half full and the prices fully doubled from a year ago. It's crazy, our customers who treat the wood are taking every stick they can get.

 

[Nunya.sixpack]

We are doing great. However, the hourly workforce cannot seem to wrap their heads around "do not go to parties". At least 30 out right now because they came in contact with a positive.

 

[engie]

Service provider for big outdoor events. We were absolutely hammered on the front end. Pivoted to emergency/military service provider and have managed to get basically all of our in-house equipment to working that way, which was a pretty big accomplishment IMO. Now with events returning we are scrambling a little bit having to re-rent equipment. Personally, it's taken me off the road for 13 weeks so far this year. Yearly pay through this avenue has been halved, not counting the 91 days in per diem that I've lost. But I'm gonna be gone in about two weeks and likely not to be home for quite awhile.

Online sales business which I do independently of above has done well. About 10-15% ahead of last year at this point. Wish I could come up with another couple of ideas to double/triple up on it. The dumb idea persists, while the good one are constantly stolen and undercut. Cash/minute of time for this one as configured is pretty crazy. Generally gets slow in the winter however. Already seeing a slowing the last two weeks.

Small engine repair hustle has been doing well for most of the time I've been home. Make/made more from this route than my main gig, but it's much more difficult and time-consuming for me and gets to the point I have trouble balancing my life around it. Somehow always find myself knee deep in the stuff everyone else is too smart to tackle.

 

[HWY51dog]

I cover Northwest MS. Desoto County housing is booming. New construction is even spilling into Coldwater as the demand for lots is insane. Never seen it like this in 10 years of real estate.

 

[beachbumdawg]

Large Electric and Gas Utility - electric load demand has been down and the mild weather since last November hasn’t helped

Haven’t been allowed in the office but 2x since March 12 - likely won’t be phased back in to office work until some time in 2021

 

[Apoplectic_Objurgator]

My company manufactures SYP lumber and plywood and the market has exploded to prices we have never witnessed before. We thought we were going to tank for at least a year or more but due to supply cuts and incredible DIY demand we can't make it fast enough. Basically everyone staying at home is running to Lowe's, Home Depot, 84 Lumber and picking up wood and working on home projects. If you are building a deck or fence or any other project that requires treated wood prepare to pay out the whale eye. Next time you go to your neighborhood home center check out the treated material, you will find many bins empty or half full and the prices fully doubled from a year ago. It's crazy, our customers who treat the wood are taking every stick they can get.

This is me - spent 25k doing diy remodeling. To the hardware store 10x per week

 

[InTheIttaBenaHotSun]

I wholesale Ag fertilizer (liquid)....my business is down this year more due to commodity prices than anything else. For the most part, across the SE, cotton, corn, beans and peanuts look good - hoping they hang on through harvest. Farming needs a bumper fall to off set pricing.

 

[rustydawg2]

Bank consultant focused on electronic payments - debit/credit cards and internet/mobile banking. Also part owner of a financial advisory firm. Both will have biggest years in the histories of the companies. Feeling very fortunate. Smoke ‘em while you got ‘em cause it won’t last forever.

 

[blacklistedbully]

I own a business that manufactures its products in China under contract. My importer who traveled to China and did quality inspections for me finally got out of China in May and has closed his business and isn’t going back. The manufacturing facility that I use is still closed from China’s initial shutdown. The Chinese government wants production guarantees and 100% of order cost up front before they will allow the manufacturer to open back up and produce. So it’s essentially putting me out of business. I do not trust them to post the money up front without a representative in China that I can trust to protect my money and interest and I’m not going over there personally. I had began setting things in motion to retire, it just looks like my plans may be accelerated a bit.

Not a good time right now to be associated commercially with China, at least through the election.

 

[Xenomorph]

Echelon shill!! **