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Actually the bricks I had available in the model shop had everything to do
with the inventory that Lego had. Where do you think we got our bricks
from? You think that they would be unwilling to send us the elements we
wanted if they had them? The production plans for the molds were laid out
months in advance. They worked hard not to produce more of an element than
was needed, especially elements that were not common to a lot of sets.
I'm not saying Lego is doing it right in terms of manufacturing, just
letting you know how they were doing it. There just *aren't* large
storerooms of elements sitting on the shelf waiting to be bagged unless they
are real common elements. That would be poor production planning. The
elements they are selling bulk are primarily elements that they use commonly.
I've come to believe belatedly that maybe they can pull off bulk sales. I
even believe you'll see more of the roof bricks that you are looking for.
The production planning will swing around to those types of elements again
and they will make enough to get into the bags for bulk. But I would be
real suprised if they start stopping other production runs to fullfill a
niche market's demand. These machines are expensive. They not only work
hard not to have large inventories of bricks, they work hard to work the
machines 2 and 3 shifts a day at normal production levels.
You're certainly welcome to your opinion, it's just in my experience, these
large inventory of bricks waiting to be bagged just don't exist.
In lugnet.trains, Lawrence Wilkes writes:
>
> "John Kelly 3" <jkelly3@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:H07sxL.5wA@lugnet.com...
> > I always find these types of comments fascinating. It could be that LEGO
> > has changed quite a bit since I was a Model Builder for them. (Well it's
> > changed a lot in that most of the shop I was part of was moved off shore.)
> >
> > One of the common misconceptions that occurred was that as a model shop we
> > had this fantastic inventory system and could get any brick we wanted in • any
> > color in any quantity. Fact of the matter was that we rarely had a • complete
> > selection of even the most current elements. I find that I have a more
> > complete assortment of bricks in Conan's basement then I did in the model
> > shop. What the model shop had in quantity was basic bricks and plates. • If
> > we needed a supply of roof bricks, we'd have to order them. If we were
> > lucky, they might be in inventory at the plant down the road. If they • were
> > not, we'd look overseas to their inventories. If it wasn't there, we'd
> > frequently redesign the model. That is how expensive it was for a Lego
> > department to order a molding run done. We'd do it occasionally. It
> > usually meant that we would have boxes and boxes and boxes of that
> > particular element for months since the minimum production runs were • always
> > greater then the number we needed.
>
> The inventory you had available to you in the model shop is nothing to do
> with the inventory of parts that Lego manufacture and that they use to put
> into sets.
> Clearly Lego's inventory of parts manufactured is immense, and their ability
> to sort them into bags to put into sets is demonstrated.
> So why they cannot sort them into bags to sell through bulk is a mystery,
> and sorry, nothing to do with what the model shop has or wants.
>
> >
> > If you consider it was tough for a model shop with 15-25 full time model
> > builders to justify a production run, imagine how difficult it is for a • Lego
> > Direct sales forecaster. My gut assumption of how the bulk ordering works
> > is that Lego Direct begs, borrows, and steals some extra time on a
> > production run of an element to place in their inventory. If Lego ran • the
> > gray roof bricks two years ago to handle supply for the next five years,
> > then Lego Direct would be out of luck until they ran those elements again.
> > No matter what your demand looked like for bulk ordering, I doubt you'd be
> > able to justify the run on the element. The cost on a special production
> > run to meet that demand would mean the cost would be higher than you would
> > be willing to pay.
>
> So at least sell the bricks they are currently producing.
> Not asking that they maintain an inventory or production line of bricks just
> for bulk.
> Just that they sell the bricks they are making now, and sorting now into
> some bulk packets as well.
>
> >
> > As Lego must have certainly increased their capacity in the eight years
> > since I left the model shop, I'm sure finding unusual elements for model
> > building is even more difficult. Frankly, based on my experience in the
> > Model Shop, I didn't think Lego would ever be able to pull off bulk
> > ordering. (Larry will vouch for me, when he was here back in 99,98? I
> > frequently told him I didn't think it would ever happen.) You may be
> > disappointed in Lego Direct's offerings, frankly I'm amazed they've been
> > able to do what they have considering the amount of work that would be
> > necessary to make their business work.
>
>
>
> I am not amazed at what they have been able to do at all
> I am amazed that they can't do it.
> There are countless other companies who manufacture bulk products and put
> them into small bags.
> The world is awash with such companies.
> Lego *are* such a company. It is just that they sort and then sell the bags
> differently than is needed for bulk.
> The fact that Lego will not sell them as bulk bags makes them the exception
> in my book, not the rule.
> It is just a matter of will.
> And as I said, they just dont seem to have any.
>
> Lawrence
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Message is in Reply To:
 | | Re: Now what?
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| "John Kelly 3" <jkelly3@yahoo.com> wrote in message news:H07sxL.5wA@lugnet.com... (...) any (...) complete (...) If (...) were (...) always (...) The inventory you had available to you in the model shop is nothing to do with the inventory of parts (...) (22 years ago, 2-Aug-02, to lugnet.trains, lugnet.lego.direct)
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