Chapter 23

“I get the drift, Jimmy. I’ll have a think about it, and ask the Chairman as well. Now get on with that task of testing deliveries.”

“Right away, sir. I’ll get back to Warehouse One to talk it over with our staff. They should be good on technicalities.”

“Whatever. Get to it; goodbye, Jimmy.”

Dismissed, I made my way back to Reception, collecting my overcoat on the way. Marjory was at the desk, imparting some wisdom to a new member of her team. She looked up in suprise as I arrived.

“Where are you off to, Mr Hargreaves?” she enquired, being formal in her speech in the business context. She would need a record of my whereabouts.

“I have to return to Warehouse One, to set up a testing regime of our current and possible new long-distance delivery system. I don’t know if I will get back here today, but if I don’t, I will arrange a ride home for you.”

As I walked to the outer door, I could sense the puzzled query from the new girl for it was indistinct, but Marjory’s voice was firm.

“My husband. If you are married to another member of staff, you must always be formal while at work, Dierdre; and no flirting with men at work here. Leave that for outside of the workday. And choose your friends carefully, for if you...”

If there was any more, I lost it as the door closed behind me.

By the time I got to Warehouse One, Jim Orkney had been at work with his men for the last hour or so. When I mentioned what I was here for, he replied, “Yes, we had a message about that this morning, saying you would be responsible for it. None of it seems difficult. It is more a matter of selecting what deliveries want monitoring, and how many to which places, and how long we keep it up before you and the higher-ups have enough data to come to a definitive conclusion. That is where you come in, Jimmy. You get to decide the parameters, and it is on your head if we screw up!”

I told him, “Mr Emerson said about a hundred parcels to run a reasonable test, but regard that as the lower level of consideration. The more we run checks on, the more reliable and consistent our results.”

We spent the next couple of hours either coming up with ideas about today’s distant orders, or deciding the parameters for inclusion in the survey, and working out how we collect the data and make sense of it all. Jim was fully aware of the vagaries of the local road networks affecting the work of the national carriers once you get off the Interstates.

Jim explained, “We allow our own drivers to make changes to their route to avoid blockages caused by traffic accidents or police or fire incidents, but that often adds time to the route.

The national carriers probably do the same, as close control from an office hundreds of miles away makes no sense. The best the office personnel can do is phone the driver in his cab to tell him if a route has a known major problem ahead, such as severe weather, but their data may be many hours out of date. Local radio stations could be more helpful to the driver for traffic information and even local weather events. Even if warned by head office, the planned route may be clear again by the time a driver has to decide whether to alter his delivery schedule.”

“Okay, Jim. You can ask both national carriers – our current one and the proposed new one, that we want to hear of any unexpected events that affected their delivery of any parcel over the next seven days.

Now, I need to hear of current orders, to see if these fit into our plans for testing the carriers. If all today’s orders come from in-state, that knocks out our plans for testing distant deliveries.”

Jim chortled, “Do you want the good news or the bad news, Jimmy?”

“Oh, the good news first, to put me in a good mood to hear the bad news.”

“Well, the good news is that our orders are running at about five times the usual we had before your Group took us over and the database was set up. Enough are out-of-state that we can proceed with our testing plans for the carriers.”

“And the bad news?”

“The bad news is that orders are running at five times the old system had to cope with, so our existing staff are under pressure as never before. We will either have to pay our staff for many hours of overtime at enhanced rates, until they get too exhausted to cope, or we hire at least two more warehouse staff. The new guys can be put to stepping and fetching until we get them trained up in all our procedures, and so we can take on teenagers just out of school. We can pay them at a reduced rate for six months until they show themselves as trained and capable. Alternatively, we can look for trained warehouse operatives and pay them full rate from the start, as they won’t need much training to adapt to our procedures.”

I nodded as I thought about this, then suggested, “How about you ask the Yeats Group admin staff if any of our Group personnel have warehouse experience? If we can move a couple of experienced men here temporarily, that would give you time to look for good permanent warehousemen. We can offer the transfer guys their normal pay rate while here, so that they don’t lose out if the pay rate here is lower. If the pay here is higher, they get that while they are here. Hey, they might even want to switch to this job permanently, if you are happy with their work. The alternative is more overtime for existing staff.”

Jim beamed at this idea.

“I’ll go with that, to see if we can get the men we need, and give them a chance to prove themselves with us. My team will be quick to let me know if the new guys are worth keeping on. Can I go ahead with asking Yeats Group admin, or do you have to authorise it first?”

I cursed, “Damn bureaucratic practices! I suppose I should phone them and tell them to expect a call from you, for you to give them the details of what ‘I’ want. Give me a minute, Jim, and I’ll do that right away.”

That bit of officialese performed, I passed my phone to Jim for him to discuss his personnel needs and why he wanted to use existing staff.

“Hi. Jim Orkney here. This staff requirement is a result of vast increases in orders, and we need to keep our standards up for our reputation to be maintained. I am looking to transferring a couple of guys with warehouse experince, to cover the gap for a while until we can get a permanent solution.”

I tuned out the rest as I already knew it. I wanted a coffee after all that talking, so I sought out the staff cabin in the warehouse. After asking one of the staff, I found it and poured myself a mug of hot coffee from the percolator. I took a sip and grimaced. This was not the quality of coffee I was used to getting at Yeats Group; it was pathetic. As soon as another member of staff entered, I asked him, “Is this the quality of coffee you always get here?”

“Yes. We have had this coffee for years. You get used to it.”

“Well, I don’t intend to get used to it. When we move Yeats Group to their hangar, I’ll get them to swap their style of coffee for this shit. You deserve better, for you work hard.”

I thought about what I was saying, and went on, “In fact, we have better coffee at my house. I can improve things right away.”

I phoned my home and the call was taken by Lily.

“Lily, my love, would you dig out a new pack of our morning coffee, and ask someone to bring it over to Warehouse One? The stuff they have here is not fit for human consumption, in my opinion.”

“Okay, Jimmy. I’ll bring it across myself. I didn’t know you were working there today.”

“Neither did I, Lily, but things change. I’ll be at the door for you.”

She was there in the car five minutes later. She bounded out of the driver’s door, coffee pack in hand. She released the pack to me in exchange for a passionate kiss, then ran back to the car and was off home in less than a minute.

I carried the pack triumphantly into the staff rest cabin. Jim had arrived to take his break, so I ordered him to dump the coffee that remained in the percolator and replace it with the ground coffee in this pack. He brightened immediately, and as he followed my instructions for a good brew, he told me, “I never thought we could ask for a better brand of coffee. I think this was the standard used throughout Copies. The scuttlebutt was that the board drank tea from teacups in the boardroom, so they were not interested in what coffee the rest of the staff were drinking. Price was what mattered to them.”

I told him, “Try this blend. My family are believers in good quality coffee for our drinks. If you like it, I’ll speak with the staff restaurant manager and see what he recommends, and what range is offered at the restaurant. I’ve tasted some of what they have there, and it was quite good; perhaps not as good as this blend for me, but not everyone has the same taste preference. Find out what you and your staff like best, and I’ll try to get that brand of coffee for your warehouse staff. A good coffee at your break leaves you feeling happy about your work afterwards.”

I made a note for him of the brand I was giving them now, and told Jim to give me his opinion of the taste and quality once all his men had tried it today.

I left him to his coffee break while I took myself out to view the speed at which our stocks were being depleted in certain categories. As I perused the shelves, I noted how many of the cheaper items were going out in smallish quantities, and guessed that these were test orders to see how good our stock was. If it satisfied the purchasers, they would be back with orders for larger amounts next time. The more specialised and expensive items were already flying off the shelves by the look of things. By my estimation, the rarity factor was encouraging sales, and I hoped our buyer Fred Corelli was managing to source more of the products, to replace what was vanishing fast.

I noticed that the small boat parts and equipment section was selling well, so that would probably be Marco Ferrari recommending us as a reliable source for purchases: another supply problem for our buyer.

I took a look at the computer printout of the deliveries scheduled for later today. About half were in-state, the rest were spread all over the country, so essentially national carrier jobs. There looked to be enough to offer a good spread of tasks for both carriers to deliver over the next couple days.

Jim reappeared after his break, and he had a happy look on his face.

“Man, that is great coffee!” he exclaimed. “You think we could have something like that for our coffee breaks in future?”

“Jim, what is the best way to encourage your staff to work well for us? Make them feel happy in their work. That means providing coffee that they will enjoy at their breaks, as long as they don’t linger over their coffee. I wonder whether you were originally given poor coffee to make you cut your breaks short. That is the opposite of my approach. You as their supervisor will make certain they don’t linger over their breaks; that is your job, not theirs to police. Make them happy to look forward to lunchtime and more good coffee to drink with their meal, whether it be sandwiches or a packed meal.”

Jim Orkney replied, “Why didn’t we get bosses that thought your way before, Mr Hargreaves? Life would have been so much better for us.”

“You didn’t look for another job, Jim?”

“Oh, I did, but pay rates in this city are much the same, and jobs are fairly scarce. Add to that, that my wife is a local girl and wants to stay around here, and sticking with the present job was the best option for me. It is not that bad, and now the conditions are better, and even the coffee has improved.”

“Good. I’d hate to lose you, Jim. You are an asset to the business. If your workload continues to be heavy, I’ll suggest that you get a pay rise, or a bonus, or something to recognise your efforts.”

“That would be nice, if it happens, sir.”

“Let’s hope so. Meantime, we need to get the test deliveries sorted. Do you really need my help on this, or do you feel you can manage it by yourself?”

“I’d like to have a go at it by myself, sir. It would show my capabilities at dealing with something unexpected.”

“Excellent idea, Jim. I’ll use it as one of my Arguments for a boost to your income. In that case, can we do a walk round to Warehouse Two and make sure that the men there are in tune with those in Warehouse One?”

We took that trip, giving me a chance to see the stock levels in this warehouse. Jim explained that starting levels here were not so high as in Warehouse One, so depletion of stock was not a simple discovery. The database was the real answer.

“You need to use the database to show you sales, or today’s orders, to compare present levels with yesterday’s. This section is mostly aircraft-centred, with an emphasis on smaller and older models that can make us a decent profit because we are not competing against firms selling current equipment.”

“What apart from aircraft parts?”

“A lot of construction items needed for renovating old buildings, including timber working tools like billhooks and adzes that are little-used today but are collectibles. A small selection of carved stone bases for pillars, but no pillars; too heavy for our storage facilities. Some folk seem to buy these bases as decorative art works for their garden, like the remains of an ancient ruin that were all the rage in old England a couple centuries ago.”

I nodded. “I can appreciate that concept. To us, all that matters is that they sell. Do they?”

“They do; if not direct to a private client, then to a antique dealer who has customers for that sort of thing. Last time we sold six to the one client, and I expect he will be looking for more, now that he can see the details on our website database.”

“What about industrial equipment? Any market for that?”

“Very restricted.You can guarantee that parts for a steam traction engine will sell. Steam locos, not so much, but there is a market of sorts. Loco restorers prefer to go to a breaker’s yard where they can take off the part they want from a rusting relic. If we can offer a part in almost perfect condition, that will sell to the professional restorers who prepare a loco for exhibition in a museum.”

“That will be US locos alone, I presume?”

“Yep. They are very different from the European locos. Ours were designed as wood burners, cheaply built and easy to repair. That was because wood was more easy to find than coal at the time they were in daily use. The European steam loco engines were all coal burners built to a high mechanical standard such that some are still running sixty or seventy years later. Practically nothing can be swapped between old European and US locos. That’s why we stick to the US machines.”

Soon it was time for my lunch break, and I was going home for that treat. I phoned home to make that date, and Charlotte answered.

“Hi, Charlotte. Can I come home for lunch? I am working at our warehouses on the base.”

“When? If it is soon, then we can toss a frozen pizza in the cooker. Sharl is out for now; doesn’t know when she will be back.”

“Has she gone shopping on her own?”

“Well, she will be doing shopping, then she has to call in at the city hospital before she comes home.”

I panicked.

“Is there something wrong with her twins? Is she going to be okay?”

“Nothing wrong with her or her twins, darling. The doctor asked her to call in to see him at the hospital, in hopes that she can help him out.”

“Weird! The doctor wants Sharl to help him? Sharl, of all people? What about?”

“No idea, Jimmy. She took a call from him, then announced she was going into town to sort out a problem for a doctor at the hospital. Forget it for now, dear. We’ll have a couple large pizzas ready in about twenty minutes for us all to share.”

Being only five minutes from the house by auto, I continued my discussions with Jim for a while longer, then drove home. I was greeted effusively by those girls present and not occupied by lunch preparations. Surprisingly, Elizabeth and Isabella greeted me side by side. I put an arm round the shoulder of each, and kissed them both in turn, giving Isabella the preference. I smooched with her for a minute, then switched to Elizabeth to give her the same. Both seemed easy with this, so I asked them, “Are you adjusted to your new circumstances, girls?”

Elizabeth, enjoying being called a girl, answered for them.

“We have had another frank talk, Jimmy, woman to woman, and we have settled on what we will do, if it is all right with you, Jimmy. Isabella will marry you in a church ceremony if it is possible. I will be a de facto wife, but without benefit of any ceremony. We will both have your babies, if we get pregnant, and treat each other more as sisters than mother and daughter. That way we can be together, and I can continue to love my now grown-up Isabella.”