In prior articles (December 2021 FORGE and February 2022 Industrial Heating), we discussed the reasons behind the importance of understanding margins (price minus cost) for the seller of any product or service. Your Cost Model is the framework for calculating costs.

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.

Customers in the forging community often treat the procurement of forgings as they would a commodity product. This article discusses the pitfalls of selling forgings as a commodity and promotes the reasons to sell forgings on their value, not their price.

A strategic plan is a roadmap for the managed growth of a company. This process can be managed by an experienced CFO or other outside facilitator.

The business model is the foundation of a successful business, and the CFO plays a critical role in building the optimal model for a 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.