Today global competitors are literally willing to work for food. U.S. workers want a car, a home, and a college education for their kids in addition to their meals. Reducing pay and eliminating benefits is not an answer for anything but a lower standard of living. The challenge is not reducing compensation but rather dramatically improving productivity. Making owners out of employees is the ticket to that productivity. Open Book Management is a philosophy—a value system.

2-D, or not 2-D; that is the question. Whether 'tis nobler to venture out into a brisk, bold, new world of 3-D or to stick with old, reliable methods in 2-D.

Years ago it was customary for coil processors to have dedicated slitting lines for specific materials and gauges. Today's larger, stronger, and thinner-gauge coils, however, require service centers to be able to process many materials and gauges on the same machine.