The goal of most businesses is to make money. Doing so is simple if you sell your offerings for more than it costs you to acquire, make or provide them.

As a business owner, you have limited options when seeking capital to start or grow your company. Essentially, there are three sources of cash: your own cash investment or that of other investors, your bank and cash from the daily operations of the company.

Welcome to the inaugural installment of this new column in FORGE. It will be dedicated to the financial issues facing manufacturing businesses, providing guidance on financial matters to those who may not have a dedicated CFO on staff and providing additional financial insight to those who do.