Is Anything Ever Done Right the First Time Anymore?

[LoneRanger]

Is it just my luck or is just about everything you try to get repaired or some service performed by ALWAYS end up being at least a two step process because the job is not done right the first time?

I cannot count on one hand the number of times in just the past month I've had to call for a do-over on something I paid to have done. Recent examples:

- Rear Output Shaft Seal (manual trans) repair/replace on the Forester by dealership... didn't stop leaking and have to take back for a do-over (on their dime this time!)

- Charity donation of nice used furniture, their donation truck has stood me up twice now after I've taken day off work to be at the house for truck to fetch the items. No show no call, both appt's were confirmed by phone the day before the supposed pickup.

- Shower remodel by licensed master plumber... floor pan flexing underfoot like crazy, having the manufacturer send tech to make sure not defect in floor pan but may be due to improper installation by the contractor.

- New stainless steel kitchen appliance pkg (range, fridge, d/w, microwave) install by big box store into house we were selling (as upgrade to enhance curb appeal)... buyer's home inspector called out installation quality of the range-- no anti-tip bracket was installed = safety risk. Big box store considering whether to send installer back out on their dime to do it right this time.

I have more but I digress for sake of brevity.

 

[StevieC]

I hear you... Unless something is majorly wrong with something of mine I will fix things myself under warranty if it's a low cost to fix because I know it's done right and without breaking other things and without this sort of inconvenience of not getting it done right the first time or having to argue it's not fixed.

 

[LoneRanger]

Originally Posted by StevieC
I hear you... Unless something is majorly wrong with something of mine I will fix things myself under warranty if it's a low cost to fix because I know it's done right and without breaking other things and without this sort of inconvenience of not getting it done right the first time or having to argue it's not fixed.

Yep, that was my thing with the output shaft seal-- requires a special tool to do it and not damage the new seal going in, dealers have that tool, etc. Otherwise I'd have done it myself as there's a write-up for it on one of the Subaru enthusiast forums but it's tedious doing it w/o that one tool or whatever. Dealer charge was $90 so it was well worth that to save me from hours on my back under car. Age 35 woulda DIY'd, age 55 I hired it out !!

 

[GenesisGuy70]

No one does anything right anymore. I do everything myself. I rent and any time something needs repaired, I just do it myself. Even if it costs me money. If you want something done right, do it yourself. My grandpa always said, if you're going to do something then do it right or don't do it at all. I'd adhere strictly to that.

 

[jeepman3071]

There are absolutely people out in the world who do things right the first time. They aren't cheap though.

I battle this every day with my job (technology). Organizations want only the cheapest work possible no matter how much you try to tell them you get what you pay for, then in the end they pay twice as much repairing mistakes.

 

[Mr Nice]

Lots of people have no pride in the quality of their wotk.

 

[SZR48207]

The real challenge is finding someone who truly understands what they do, rather than someone who just repeats the same routine for each encounter.

 

[JeffKeryk]

Originally Posted by Mr Nice
Lots of people have no pride in the quality of their wotk.

It sure seems that way, or perhaps accountability is out the window. Maybe both?
As a business analytics programmer, I get data from different groups.
Sometimes 10's of millions of rows, sometimes only thousands.
Pretty much all of it is bad; I spend most of my time qualifying and fixing it in an endless loop.

I tell people I used to be a programmer; now I am a "Data Specialist".

 

[Trav]

Originally Posted by Mr Nice
Lots of people have no pride in the quality of their wotk.


That is a big problem as is poor training.

 

[jeepman3071]

Originally Posted by Trav
Originally Posted by Mr Nice
Lots of people have no pride in the quality of their wotk.


That is a big problem as is poor training.


It's all related to cost. My own company threw me out onto multiple client sites with zero training. I take pride in my work so I did my best to keep clients happy, but it all came down to training being an added cost the company simply didn't feel was worth paying for.

 

[PimTac]

Originally Posted by Mr Nice
Lots of people have no pride in the quality of their wotk.

I remember the Malaise era of the 70's and early 80's. The attitude and pride in one's work was severely diminished. I sense we are in a similar period of attitude.

 

[AZjeff]

Originally Posted by Throt
No one does anything right anymore. .


But me.


Of course there are people who do things right. You can tell, they're booked for weeks and aren't inexpensive. Unfortunately the competent/incompetent ratio is getting worse.

It looked like Greg24 got a well done hot water tank install recently and was satesfied.

 

[Mr Nice]

Originally Posted by Mr Nice
Lots of people have no pride in the quality of their wotk.

Rush, rush, rush.... and onto the next job.
Repeat over and over....

Luckily I got paid NOT TO RUSH and do a [censored] job.

 

[pandus13]

Originally Posted by AZjeff
Originally Posted by Throt
No one does anything right anymore. .


But me.


Of course there are people who do things right. You can tell, they're booked for weeks months and aren't inexpensive. Unfortunately the competent/incompetent ratio is getting worse.

It looked like Greg24 got a well done hot water tank install recently and was satisfied.

^^^ Small correction...

 

[LoneRanger]

Originally Posted by AZjeff
But me.

I know that some jobs I need done I myself would not get it right, or it would take me too much time and hassle, which is why I hire such jobs out and have expectation that the specialist it's hired out to will do it correctly. Unfortunately, the doing it correctly part is becoming more and more of a situation where first time doesn't get it, and a do-over or other form of tweak requiring 2nd try is required of the specialist or technician I hired. Which then requires me to adjust my schedule a second time to accommodate their schedule.

 

[SubieRubyRoo]

Originally Posted by jeepman3071
There are absolutely people out in the world who do things right the first time. They aren't cheap though.


I agree... and will change the second part to "inexpensive"... it may cost more slightly initially, but if they save you headaches/rework/return trips, etc, I argue that you've still come out ahead vs. the "cheap" option.

There is a local machine shop that I ALWAYS send my work to. He's normally about 15-20% more expensive than any other given shop, and my boss usually balks at the up-front cost compared to the cheaper alternatives. But, if this guy says the part will be +.0000/-.0001 and delivered 14 days from now, when it comes in it's +.0000/-.0001 and delivered in 10 days. On the two occasions over the past 8 years there were corrections needed, he fixed everything at his cost AND still had the corrected parts back to me before the original delivery date! The other machine shop which I have been occasionally forced to use due to "budgets" frequently delivers parts that are outside the tolerances given and quoted, and sometimes DOUBLE the time quoted for delivery! So which supplier is more cost-effective when you're trying to run a $10 billion, 24/7 company?

My choice is always the guy who gets it right the first time, even if the initial cost is slightly less palatable. Time is money, and rework costs are exponential.

 

[02SE]

There are people that do things right the first time, but as noted they usually aren't the least expensive option. In my hobby, I am compensated well to oversee others and make absolutely sure things are done right the first time. If things are done wrong, the results can be serious injury or death, or if we're lucky, just very expensive. It's difficult to find people with a strong work ethic, and a commitment to excellence, who can also tolerate the sometimes grueling work and schedule. Those that can cut it are usually older.

 

[SatinSilver]

My mom was recently pulling into the church parking lot and hit a curb. It made such a loud noise that a dad who was waiting to pick up one of his children came over to offer help changing the tire. The curb put a gash in the sidewall. The tire in question was the right front and the tpms light was on.

Took it into Walmart TLE for a new tire first thing in the morning and had a GY Viva 3 installed for $81 out the door. TPMS light is off and the car drives perfect, just like it did before the incident. Will prob still take it in for an alignment somewhere since it's due along with balancing the other 3 RT43s since those are prone to need balancing. Plus it feels like they need it. But the whole thing turned out well for once.

 

[maxdustington]

Originally Posted by jeepman3071
There are absolutely people out in the world who do things right the first time. They aren't cheap though.

I battle this every day with my job (technology). Organizations want only the cheapest work possible no matter how much you try to tell them you get what you pay for, then in the end they pay twice as much repairing mistakes.
There's always someone who will do it cheaper. You pick the cheap guy, he screws up then you blame him. You look good for lowering costs temporarily and then you can blame any additional costs on them. There's nothing to lose.

 

[dakota99]

I see it all the time. When I install or fix network equipment I come across all kinds of ridiculous things. A lot of installers will cheap out and use low quality ethernet or connectors that are "gold plated" but they're really gold flash applied in a cheap manner. On outdoor installations I will only use mil spec rated gold connectors from a reputable company and even then I will pack them with dow #4 non hardening silicone compound to keep moisture out. Price wise they are not much more than what you would pay for cheap crap that will rust out or corrode. Same thing with routers and other equipment. Most installers or ISP's will provide bottom shelf equipment and then they will have to come back in a year because it quit working. As much as I love my customers I want to provide them with equipment that will be rock solid for years, I don't want call backs.

When I did construction there were plenty of guys I worked with that would choose the cheapest screws or hardware that was not rated for outdoor exposure or treated wood. They laughed at me when I researched different coatings and corrosion resistances. I don't feel they would be laughing when a patio came crashing down full of people after five years because of weakened joist hangers.