Simon Adlington - Synchro 32

Holiday Season

2010-08-10T03:37:00.000-07:00

It's that great time of year again. Only another 2 weeks till I kick back for 2 weeks and recharge my batteries. This is always a good time of year to catch up on things you have been putting off while things are relatively quiet.

It was also my wedding anniversary over the weekend (23 years, where has the time gone?) so we went out for the day and again in the evening for dinner (without the kids!).

Lee is really excited now his snake eggs are hatching!

Anyway, I hope everyone has a great holiday.

Hot Hot Hot & stormy

2010-06-26T14:09:00.000-07:00

I am posting from Newark Airport on my way to England following a 2 week visit to customers in Oklahoma, and it's been a visit of contrasting weather. When I arrived in Oklahoma City it was in the process of flooding from severe storms passing through the area and following that was a week of 100 degree plus weather. As a resident of England I can assure you that's something I am just not used to experiencing.

I'd like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the clients I visited on this trip for their kindness and Southern hospitality. However I would be greatful if the next time I come to Oklahoma we could arrange some slightly cooler weather.

Well thats all for now except to wish Lee good luck with his current batch of snake eggs.

Falling Ash and election madness

2010-05-03T06:43:00.000-07:00

Election madness has descended on the UK, all you can hear on television and radio is election hype and I am getting a least 2 letters or leaflets every day from one of the parties, it's driving me mad.

The volcanic ash is steadily descending from on high, every time it rains everything is covered in dark gray. Even I am having to wash my car every week, and I can tell you that's most unlike me but I do like to see where I am going.

I am just hoping that the eruption does not get worse as I am due to fly to Canada, USA and Mexico in 2 weeks and I would like my traveling to be as hassle free as possible.

Time waits for no Man

2010-03-07T08:21:00.000-08:00

Oh well another year fly's past as I pass another birthday this lat week, I have decided to stop counting now as last week when my mother was asking me what I was doing for my birthday I actually got my age wrong, I thought I was a year younger than I am. With age comes knowledge and experience, at least that's what I keep telling myself.

I'll be spending some time with two of my colleagues at the up and coming CastExpo 2010 in a couple of weeks which will be nice. I hopefully will have a chance to catchup with a number of our customers without having to do too much flying as well, another bonus.

The weather looks like it might actually be taking a turn for the better as the sun is blazing through my window and it is actually 7 degrees C outside. It's been a long and cold winter this year, the coldest for quite a few so spring will be extra special this year.

And finally I'd just like to wish Richy Raine good travels on his upcoming trip to Singapor, New Zealand, Tasmania and Australia, 7 long weeks on the road.

A heart felt thank you

2010-02-07T07:55:00.000-08:00

I would just like to thank all of the members of the Birmingham chapter of the AFS for inviting Shane and myself to their meeting last Monday (1st February 2010) to give a brief talk on estimating and costing.

Both Shane and I enjoyed ourselves immensely and were astounded at their generosity as we were presented with a commemorative cast bell. I hope that all present enjoyed them selves as Shane and I certainly did.

Thats all for now on a decidedly dull day in Clanton, Alabama

Another Decade

2010-01-29T02:11:00.000-08:00

Not only the start of another year but another decade as well. I just can not believe it has been over 10 years since everyone was worried that the world way going to stop at the start of the millennium.

No sooner is Christmas over with and its the end of January, oh where does the time go. Well time waits for no woman, so my wife tells me, and I always listen to my wife!

Here at Synchro central we have planed for a very busy year on the development front, with improvements in several areas which you will see coming up over the next few months.

On a personal note I am flying tomorrow to Birmingham Alabama where the kind people at the AFS Birmingham chapter have invited myself and one of my colleagues Shane Allen to give a brief talk on foundry costs. I will be staying on in the Birmingham area to visit some of out clients then back home just in time for Valentines day and my daughters 17th birthday the day after.

Well onward and upward.......

The end is nigh

2009-12-23T08:57:00.000-08:00

Almost the end of another busy year, it seems only moments ago that we were celebrating the start of 2009 and here we are entering a new decade.

I would like to wish all our customers and suppliers and especially all my colleagues a very merry Christmas and a fantastic (and profitable) New Year.

Your wife is always right!

2009-11-21T10:07:00.000-08:00

My wife always says things go wrong in 3's and boy was she right this month.

it started with the main hard disk in my office PC deciding that it no longer wanted to work, then proceding with my SatNav deciding the same thing while I was driving back to the airport in Birmingham Alabama and finishing with my portable hard disk that I use when traveling agreeing with the aformentioned items. Well according to my wife that should be the end if it, I do have my fingers crossed while typing this, so you will have to forgive any spelling mistakes.

Boy what a couple of weeks.

I am hoping that my luck is now on the turn for the better!

Around the World

2009-10-02T17:34:00.001-07:00

Since my last visit I have been very busy both in my business and my personal life, my son is now learning to drive and my nerves and my finger nails are getting rather frayed!

I have been to the USA, New Zealand and Australia in the past 6 weeks, I am writing this from a hotel just outside of Geelong in Australia.

Here are some pictures taken just outside of Boston in the USA.

Here are some Pictures taken at the Australian Foundry Instutute annual trade show in Melbourne, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (what a venue) and some taken in Melbourne it's self.

Here is one taken from the Hotel i was staying in in Christchurch in New Zealand. Unfortunately I was unwell while in New Zealand so I was unable to do any exploring in either Christchurch or Auckland.

Are well back to my travels......

Next destination Tasmania.

The 'African' Continent

2009-08-05T05:12:00.000-07:00

Last month was my first trip to South Africa in over a decade and things there have changed quite a bit since then, you could easily be mistaken into believing that you were in any city anywhere in the world. With the coming of the Football World Cup next year there is construction going on everywhere in preparation and the new football grounds they are building look world class (see picture of the one being built in Durban). Though from the experience I had while there Rugby is still the number one sport in South Africa and most of the people I met were obsessed by the sport (in the nicest of ways).

The customers that I went to see took extra time to show me the local country and some of the culture and I would like to thank them for their hospitality, it went above and beyond what was expected and I thoroughly enjoyed my time there.

This month I will be visiting North America and will post an update following my return.

Another Year Rolls On....

2009-06-25T01:43:00.000-07:00

I’d like to be one of the first to welcome our newest employee Richard Raine to the Synchro family. Richy comes to us with both extensive foundry knowledge and general IT experience and quite a talent in the Crystal Report writing area of our business. From my point of view Richy is especially welcome as he will be helping to relieve my workload, hopefully allowing me to get home to my own bed once in a while.

I have no doubt that many of you have already had dealings with him and found him highly professional and very helpful. Richy has already been out on the road with me and visited customers both in the UK and the USA helping to broaden his knowledge of the foundry industry. I would like to extend thank you the customers we have visited and who have taken the time to give him a tour of your facilities.

On a personal note my baby daughter is no longer a baby and she has her Prom this Friday, a very frightening thought for a father seeing his baby taking her first steps into adulthood. I was however hoping, vainly as it turns out, to no longer be hearing those dreaded words “Dad can you just....” quite so often.

I write this sat in yet another Hotel, this time in the north east of the UK, my travel plans for the next 3 months do however take me to South Africa, USA and Australia so I will no doubt be seeing many more hotels in the immediate future.
I hope this note finds many of you at the end of the downturn or the start of the upturn.

2009-02-12T05:52:00.000-08:00

I was about to begin this entry with it’s the start of another year but we are already 6 weeks into it and time is flying so fast I can not believe it. Everyone at Synchro is still very busy despite the economic slowdown which is effecting many of our customers, lets all hope that it will be short lived.

I can not believe that my baby (my daughter Emma, our youngest) will be 16 on Sunday it seems only days since we bought her back from the hospital as a 6 lb bundle of joy. OK I am really starting to feel old now, this is not helped when people (you know who you are) start saying things like we want someone with lots of experience. I am sure this is just polite speak for an old guy!

I am just back from my first visit to North America (mostly Canada on this trip) for 2009 where I saw more snow in 1 week that we have had in the UK in the last 5 years. We also do not get icicles in the UK either, see the pictures from my hotel in Canada below…

I also have 2 more trips planned between now and the start of April to North America and 1 later in the year to Australia and I am sure there will be many more new installations from all the trade shows that we are attending this year.

Hopefully the first signs of people saying they are seeing signs of more orders coming in which I have been hearing lately, means that customers have now burned their stock castings and are now ordering for production. Lets all hope for an upturn in 2009.

2008-10-27T06:07:00.000-07:00

Hello and welcome to by Blog.

Most of our clients will already know me and most of you will have met me at some point as I have been installing foundry software since computers were invented.......

In my spare time (with all the travelling I do that's not much) i play both Badminton & Squash, though not at the moment as I have some injuries (the joys of getting older!!!). I am married to my wonderfull wife Susan and we have 2 children (hence the receeding hairline) Richard (17) & Emma (15).

While spending countless hours in airports and on airplanes I read 3 to 4 books a week, mostly Scifi and thrillers to help the time to pass.

Well, thats my first post done, on with the work day......