Closing the factory?

I guess it all depends on how many employees there are, and no I dont think it would have any effect on the hobby.

Its the moment to finish the codes for all the pinballs !!

that same chances that any other business has to close
it will cause delays and a hit to the bottom line

Why would they close the factory? I assume factories/businesses just need to be mindful of cafeterias and break-rooms where large groups tend to congregate.

Possiblity government may force you to close

In my state, industrial manufacturing is exempt from the governor's lockdown order. Stern would be considered industrial manufacturing if Illinois goes the same route.

The line is everything in manufacturing. The line is life. If the line stops, you hemmorage money out every pore.

That said, if the economy kills sales, that could kill the line, with no orders to fill. Market could shut them down before the government decides to.

The pinball industry is cyclical. We were in the middle of the biggest boom in decades. Get ready for the down cycle.

Hopefully not the TP factory!!

Why would anyone down vote a seriously legitimate question? WTF is wrong with some of you?

Stern is 100% not industrial manufacturing.

What does industrial manufacturing mean?
The industrial manufacturing industry is responsible for the fabrication of products intended for industrial use from raw materials; it is the output of this industry which has made further mass manufacturing possible in most other industries.

Your scope is way too narrow. I'm living in the wide scope of the industrial manufacturing definition as we speak. We do not make anything remotely close to being a necessity, and its business as usual here. Even warehouses are exempt here. No qualifications on what you are warehousing.

Hasn't there been enough of these posts already??

Have you been following anything that's been going on lately?

This is Canada's capital's HWY 417 at peak hour this morning. Restaurants, Movie Theatres and non essential businesses are closed (or in the process of closing) thought out the entire province. People are asked to telework (work from home). The city has all but shutdown to try and contain the virus. The united states is in for a dose of reality. I see the infection numbers skyrocketing in the states in the upcoming days. Roughly had 500 cases at the beginning of last week. Now almost 6,000. Next week you'll fighting with other countries for top spot on the list of most infected citizens.. And since you have to pay to get tested in the states a lot will bypass that and keep infecting more people. My guess is anyone coming into work should get tested for fever. What's good a workforce when there is no one left to work. This virus doesn't pick and choose who it wants to infect. I wish people would see the severity of this instead of laughing it off. This virus most likely wont kill you but it will overcapacitate the medical workforce and kill the vulnerable.
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My Stern predictions:

-Temporarily shift all focus to digital pinball. Not sure if they’re still doing stuff with Farsight/Pinball Arcade...but if they were to get more games, including recent and even new ones on digital platforms (Switch, Steam, PS4), that would be a way to keep their creative teams working & bring in revenue. Launch TMNT digitally...then the real machine later when things “go back to normal”.

-If they do actually launch another physical game this year, I fully expect them to do something like 200-300 LEs...and maybe no Premiums in order to get the hardcore buyers to FOMO even in these crazy times.

Stern may cut back or close for awhile but my head would spin before they cut pricing.

Schooner Tuna did it!

My work is taking this virus real serious. We have 50 to 60 people grouping up to stretch and flex. The manager even said HR says we need to take this virus serious. I was just shaking my head.

In for a dose of reality? We're literally taking the same precautions. Indianapolis, IN is basically shutdown. If people can work from home they are. I just spoke with my mom and their business just purchased 200 laptops, headsets, etc so they can work from home.

Humans are spreading germs like wildfire right now. Grocery stores are virus #1. Isolate yourselves and be smart when you're out shopping, I cannot stress this enough. My family got hit (not with corona virus says the doctor), but we've been going from store to store trying to get our essentials the past few days, so it was just a matter of time before we picked up someone's sickness. My 2 yo has the flu as of last night and children's Tylenol is nowhere to be found. The doctor prescribed liquid Tamiflu and only we are only to communicate to Kaiser via phone; but all signs point to the common flu. Kaiser is doing most of their work via phone to weed out the serious vs the not so serious. But still, no tylenol prescriptions as its OTC - so again, I will be on the hunt for children's tylenol each day exposing myself to more germs, (we currently have just enough to last us the next 24 hours) so hopefully we won't need more.

It's not that my employer is not taking this serious, but for a 100+ billion dollar operation, they are being very politically correct about it and only doing what they are forced to do, not advised to do. Luckily my office is smaller than most around the nation and I oversee 11 team members and I haven't denied a single one to work from home. I don't want to be the guy that says 'no you can't work from home' and then they get sick and can't find medication. The past 12 hours of my daughter getting the flu have proven I made the right decision for my team members. As crazy as this pandemic is to be living through, we as humans absolutely need to take this serious - and I will be taking it much more serious. This is a wake up call in more ways than one.

I wish you all best of luck and safe health.

I'm vary glad to hear that. It's a first step. In Canada, from what I am aware of...The entire province of Ontario and Quebec is shutdown. The province of Quebec and BC have now officially abolished the school year for all students....I'm guessing Ontario will follow suit. All kids from those provinces have officially graduated.

Do YOU have all the answers?

No, but to constantly ask about every business and the possibility of it shutting down just get old.

There's alot of dumb mother f***rs out there

I would think if demand slows down Stern might consider reduced hours at minimum, even if not forced to shutter for a while. I am not sure how the home buyer will fare, but I would think a lot of operators are putting new machine purchase on hold. As all arcades, bars, bowling alleys, etc. are closed. This has to impact the demand some amount.

According to the SIC code Stern is listed as Misc Manufacturing sector. They also have Far less employees then you state. Regardless while no outcome is certain Stern has weathered many major storms over 34 years so I suspect they are prepared for this one. As (my guess) 50% plus of the shop is temp based they could close down a production line and temporarily loose those laborers until this passes. Hard call but I would guess they will weather this storm.

My scope is way too narrow? Please, make me laugh some more. The definition I presented is a cut and paste from just about every manufacturing classifications guide there is. Doesn't matter how wide your personal scope is, STERN is a Misc Manufacturer, not an Industrial Manufacturer.

But.......at the same time, I get what you are saying. You are using industrial manufacturing as a generic description/term. Unfortunately, here in Illinois, if Gov. Prickster decides to shut it down, STERN will not be exempt because nothing they make is essential for further manufacturing needs.

Will it have any effect on the hobby? Nah, not at all. I believe most of Stern's designers and engineers can work remotely through home offices and/or lap tops. It will shut down production lines, but I cannot see any of the production line people being paid during the time off(if it were to happen).

I personally believe the biggest hit will be if the economy were to sour after the virus scare is coming to an end. That would be the biggest blow to Stern. I don't see that either. We as Americans love to spend, and once the all clear is given I see the economy booming again.

Stern could ramp up to make toilet paper. That would keep them open

We are close to a tipping point all right. The point of the government shut down thing doing far more damage than the disease itself.

Recessions, losing health insurance and poverty kill many people too.

Canada / US Border is now officially closed apart from essential transport (manufacturing, fuel, etc...) all tourism travel is now prohibited. Not sure if this will impact pinball transport across the border.

Is this a bad dream? Wake me up.

idk working from home is pretty nice.

It is. I’m lucky enough to be doing that right now. Not everyone has a job where that’s possible.

The reality is the government might force them to shut down. Similar things are happening in Colorado right now. I’m sure they have a significant amount of employees and this would be considered large gatherings. I’d give it a week or 2 until the government steps in.

I even got one to downvote me

And most of the rest of the world.

Come on Florida,Texas and Alabama spring break really? Beaches full of people. They have live cams to keep us updated on the party. Those kids are all going back to ghost towns. At which point they will see great plane ticket deals and decide the time is right. We need all to participate in this to win the war.

Unless you are driving in a vehicle designated as "commercial" for "commercial" reasons (your vehicle is registered as Commercial with Homeland Security and has a transponder, which costs $400 USD a year), you won't be able to get into the USA with the trucks. I'm sure it would be a similar situation entering Canada from the USA.

I sure hope Spooky does;nt shut down

right now just hope my left lung does not shut down

I was going to suggest they could divert some resources if needed for some medical equipment. I'm not sure what Stern receives pre assembled but they could help with things like wiring harnesses and assembling other sub assemblies for things that don't require much retooling.

why yes, yes there are
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I can see it now, single ply pro grade, double ply premium, triple ply limited edition, and a quad ply super limited edition upon your video application being approved.

If they've got a little time, maybe a IMDN code update?

I've worked in two facilities now that manufacture medical assemblies and electronics, and please don't take this as a dig against Stern (or any other pinball company), but they are not equipped to do that kind of manufacturing. It's mainly the company certifications, quality system requirements, and certified training requirements for the employee's that will hold them back. Getting a medical manufacturing certification such as ISO-13485 is a huge undertaking, especially if they don't have any of the ISO-9000/ISO-9001 framework in place.

-Hans

All this is true,but we are at war against a virus so some rules can and will be flexed.

Hans,
To meet demand, can't a certified medical equipment company (XYZ) subcontract work to a company such as Stern, provided that XYZ has Stern follow their certified quality work procedures & processes, and Stern employees receive necessary training, with monitored oversight by XYZ to ensure compliance? Seems like that could be done in a matter of weeks if necessary.