Chapter 11

Steve

Thursday

Breakfast was fun. Wes was enjoying himself as both DeDe and Star were hovering over him bringing him juice, coffee, rolls, and a breakfast sandwich. Ruth was amused that the two girls were being so obvious. Wes was clueless, but did seem to enjoy the attention.

Ruth asked me, "Do you want to get some furniture for Wes' new office? How do you want to set it up out there?"

I suggested, "Let's use just the first floor right now and grow into the second floor. Put a reception desk toward the front and Wes' desk toward the rear. We can use the back room for drafting tables and blueprints along with a conference type table for meetings. I think in the beginning, everything is going to be hands on. As Wes adds people, we'll move the office around."

Ruth said, "I'll get some furniture out there this morning and try to decorate the place a little to make it comfortable and enjoyable to work in."

Wes had been listening and commented, "I've never had anything but a cubicle before. That would work now if that's what's available."

I said, "Nope, you've got a whole hangar and an office building. The first thing you'll want to do is begin your day with Abe and Dennis. They'll show you what we're doing with engines. After that, you can get with Kevin and have him get the parts from the fiberglass shop out to your hangar. You can check with Abe and the guys in the frame and sheet metal area to see if they possibly have any excess people. If they do, we'll give them to you to use."

Wes asked, "So what's the plan, other than putting the parts that you already have together?"

"I want you to begin thinking about the airplane we are going to build on our own," I said, trying to express what I saw in the future. "Think about whether our creation will be an air coupe or a high wing. If you have any ideas on how to make the aircraft more aerodynamic and easier to fly, we want to experiment with those ideas. I know we're not going to create a perfect airplane instantly. We'll have to experiment with some designs until we get that perfect balance of airworthiness, handling qualities, forgiveness, and keeping it inexpensive. Create what you want in your mind while you're playing with what we have, and then start putting it on paper, or in your case into your design software."

I turned to Ruth, "Get hold of our PC guru and get Wes the best PC and software we can get for mechanical design. Have our guy check with the auto manufacturers and the guys in the truck body plant. They may know best. Make sure you get two and network them so we have a head start on that."

Wes said, "You know there are a bunch of FAA rules having to do with building aircraft. One of the important ones is for us having a Designated Engineering Representative, what they call a DER. You have to have a DER for several classifications such as engine engineering, structural engineering, and you even have to have a DER as a flight test pilot. I can act as a DER for several classifications, and you probably have a couple of other folks that can qualify as the DER for some others, but we have to report who they are to the FAA for each classification. I'll get all the rules and get them printed out so we know what they are, and what or who we might need. There are tons of people who would want to be your DER so they can get paid for some work. Before this is over, we'll need some of them as consultants."

"See, Wes," I said smiling, "that's why you're here. We have someone who knows the rules and how to find out about them. I want this project to be smooth, so don't hesitate to show us all the hurdles early on so we can get a running start."

When Abe came over to meet Wes, I said, "Abe, you can show Wes the engines you've built and introduce him to Kevin so he can get the airplane parts from fiberglass over to him in the hangar. Check around to make sure that we find anyone that might become excess so we can have them become part of our LSA project. Wes probably needs two people now and perhaps more later. We'll see how fast we can ramp up."

Abe offered, "We're not overpopulated right now in either of the rebuild areas. The motor shop is still running behind, as is the frame shop. Sheet metal may have an extra man, but the utility body plant is heavy right now. Their orders are way down except for the most and least expensive of our products. Let me see if there are some decent builder/mechanic types there that Wes can steal. Kevin may have a mechanic excess right now too. Even the truck body shop is slow right now. We just moved a man from there over to Sue's maintenance group."

"Good deal, Abe, it's great you guys are keeping everyone working. As long as we can continue to do this, and train new people to take the place of those retiring, we'll be in good shape. We're going to have to begin building military vehicles or something like that so we can keep men working. As a matter of fact, let's look into creating a decent replacement for the Humvee. I know they have a fairly new vehicle coming on line now, but I'll bet we can do it as well."

Abe was sitting back on one of the tall chairs at the bar, when he said, "You know, some of that new composite material Jeff has been working on has some unusual characteristics. I had him make up five sheets of the composites he has created. So far only one of them shows stress after beating on it with a four pound hammer. I'd like to do some ballistic tests on the sheets to see whether there is opportunity to use these sheets as protective sheeting."

"Way to think, Abe. That would be great if we could come up with some bullet resistant body material. Jeff said he had discovered some materials to use that were tough. We'll test to see how tough. Set it up, maybe we can use Chuck and his people to test the material."

Abe said, "We might have to wait until Jeff gets back from Italy. We'll need more samples of the different types. As soon as we do some tests, he's going to want to modify the product one way or another. He also needs to guide us as to which product is least expensive to cast."

"Okay, Abe, we'll wait, but do plan on doing those tests and make sure you walk Wes through everywhere again and introduce him around."

Abe was smiling, "Dennis and I will have a good time showing him around. That is if we can pry him away from DeDe and Star."

Star heard Abe and turned and around and punched him in the shoulder. "You just mind your own business, Abe. I'm just showing Wes how friendly we are out here. DeDe's the one hung up already. She couldn't shut up last night and kept talking all night. Just look at her, hovering over the man like a mother hen."

Abe went to get Dennis and Kevin so he could get started with Wes. Ruth was busy on the phone, getting furniture for Wes' office.

That's when I noticed that the kids were still on the patio, but gathered at the meal tables and all facing in one direction. Kathy and Susan were standing in front of them talking. She wasn't loud enough for me to hear from where I was, so I got up and edged closer.

Susan was saying, "So we're going to teach you the same material you were learning at school, but perhaps at a faster pace. We'll teach you as fast as you learn and move on to new material each at your own pace. You have to be honest with us when you say that you understand, and always ask when you don't. We'll have tests, and the state and local boards of education also have tests to make sure you are being taught everything you should be. We're going to learn regular school work and we're going to learn how to use tools as well. We're also going to have more physical education than you have in school. Okay, you older kids will help the younger ones sometimes, so all of you are teachers too."

The kids giggled and laughed at the thought of them being teachers. I wondered what kind of tools Susan wanted to teach the kids to use. As I looked around, I saw Sue, Mercy, Hanna, Shawna, and Debbie looking on. Beth and Missy were there too, but were in chairs in front of the group. Mercy saw me watching and came over to me, "Kathy was so angry, she found out what she had to do to begin home schooling, bought all of the supplies, and as you can see, class has begun. Sue is having the rec center remodeled as a large classroom with work centers. She's also having skylights put in so there will be more light. It looks like your kids will be around more now."

"Wow, Mercy, teaching all these kids is a lot of responsibility."

Mercy smiled, "Kathy doesn't think it will be a problem, and if you note, Susan is part of the plan, with Beth and Mom right there to help. The other moms are watching right now and will probably help out a morning or an afternoon each week too. Kathy is going to have a longer school day than the kids at public school. She's starting earlier, but will have a half hour recess in the morning and afternoon, along with an hour for lunch. She said the kids can go to the ball fields for recess and lunch if they want. We'll serve them lunch here with everyone else and then let them play a little. We'll see how it works."

I said, "This is probably a great idea, but it is a big responsibility."

Mercy said, "Kathy and Sue have interviewed a few ladies who live out here that were teachers before. We'll come up with at least two good teachers to make sure all of the children progress at a good pace. I really think it will work. Our kids are excited about it and the others will follow ours. The next thing to worry about is how to handle high school."

The kids all stood up and put their right hand over their hearts. Susan had a small boom box that began playing the national anthem. When that was done, Susan led the kids saying the Pledge of Allegiance. They all clapped when they were done. Mercy said, "And they don't get that at school. See, there are advantages."

When I looked around, I realized everyone else had left for work. Martin and Glenda were enjoying a cup of coffee together while watching the spectacle going on in front of them. Glenda said to Mercy and me, "Isn't it exciting? I'm going to have all of the kids here every day. I'll get to feed them lunch and Martin and I will watch them over at the ball fields during recess."

Martin was smiling, "You know these kids are all like our grandkids. Every one of them is special to us. We are really lucky to have them all around us like we do. I'm going to teach them to use some tools. Kathy wants me to teach them to use woodworking tools to build birdhouses and feeders. She also wants me to show them how to safely use some tools to fix things. I'll have to think about that for a while, but I'll think of something."

I smiled at Martin and Glenda, gave Mercy a hug, and left for the shop.

Up in my office, several people were gathered waiting for me. Tiny was sitting with them and said, "Steve, these folks have all met Wes and understand that you're starting a new company to build light sport aircraft. If you think about it, everyone here right now is involved in our aero club. All of them have come to me and want to be a part of S&S LSA."

With a smile, I said, "Hang on a second; this is going to require some coffee. I'll be right back."

I walked to the lunchroom, poured a mug of coffee and went back to my office. On the way, I checked to see if Ruth was in yet. She wasn't, as she was probably involved in getting furniture for Wes.

Sitting at the big desk, I looked at everyone and said, "Each of you is in a position that is important for a person of your talents to be in. Before you can be a part of the LSA group, you would have to train someone capable of learning your position."

I took a deep breath. "That's first, or rather, that might be second. First is that the LSA group is just starting. Today is the first day for anything to happen. Wes is going to try to get organized and begin tinkering with some components we've already made. While he's doing that, he's going to be coming to mental terms with what type of aircraft we'll build. He'll need a couple of grunts in the beginning to help him put our parts together. In time, we'll have a crew putting together our airplane. I think our total production will be between twenty-five and fifty a year. That's depending on orders, of course, but I think the demand will be there."

"So, for the first month, I'm going to take two people who are excess in the utility body plant and let them work with Wes. You, as a group can interview them and figure out whether they are trainable for your positions. For you three ladies that want to be a part of the group, are you willing to get filthy, nick up your hands, scrape the skin off your arms and legs, and meticulously sand panels smooth? The work is going to be hands on. We are a long way from needing office personnel."

One of the ladies said, "We talked about that and we want to be a part of it. In the Aero club, we've been taking the maintenance classes every week. We get plenty dirty doing that. This past week we replaced the control cables in a 150, so you know how dirty we got. Jimmy is having us totally rebuild the little airplane to teach us."

The men were nodding and one said, "The women came in handy as they are small and can get their hands into those tiny access panels. They've all been doing everything the men have."

I thought about the situation for a minute then said, "Okay, this is what I'll do. I'm going to begin with the two guys I'm getting from the utility body group. You guys can work with them to see if they can be cross trained into other areas. You ladies will end up having to train your customer support replacements. As the new group needs to grow, I'll add from this group."

"Tiny, get everyone's name and give the list to Ruth's group so we know who to begin pulling. We'll have Ruth note your date of hire and build the group in that order. What I want from each of you is a brief written summary of your knowledge of airplanes, and then your background and mechanical knowledge. That will help Wes decide when he needs your skills. Thanks for coming to Tiny and me. This will work."

Everyone was smiling as they got up to go to their respective work areas. Tiny remained, and when we were alone, he said, "They ganged up on me as soon as I walked in this morning. Some eat with us and met Wes last night, and others were at breakfast this morning. You handled it perfectly. Glad you got here as they were not going to leave until they talked to you."

"Funny isn't it, Tiny. A few years ago, we had guys needing jobs welding or forming sheet metal, and today when we just begin working an idea, we're inundated with volunteers to work on a new product. I'm not sure having non-aircraft trained people doing the work is good, but I'll let Wes decide that."

Tiny said, "Your big problem is going to be getting your basic model out the door for fifty grand. Your brother and I worked the numbers several different ways and think it can be done, but you're really going to have to be perfect in production time. The biggest cost is going to be insurance. I have an idea."

I looked up quickly as I had been worried about how to purchase product liability insurance. "What's your idea, Tiny? Anything we can do for that expense is going to be important."

Tiny got up and waved for me to follow him, "Let's get some more coffee and I'll tell ya."

As we walked to the lunchroom at the other end of the original building, Tiny said, "I think we should start our own insurance company. Right now we have a lot of cash, and according to Ben, you and Sue both have a lot of cash."

I held up my hand, "Hold on there, Tiny, keep in mind I went whole hog over in Hawaii investing with Dewey."

Tiny chuckled and said, "You've still got the first dollar you put in this joint. You've used a lot of your excess cash, but not any of your business cash that needs to be distributed. Another source of money is all the money you inherited from Nelda and Ernie."