They did it again.

Well one person did.

Another "home-shopper" sort where I work got busted for taking bits and cutters from the crib. Naturally being the "other" homeshopper they came down on me as well, searched my locker and toolbox AGAIN looking for all the missing bits and cutters.

Happens again I'll start looking for another job but that's beside the point.

How do ya'll handle tool-crib security? I'm thinking the simplest solution would be to put all the tools in 4 or 5 large vending machines and issue each operator pass-cards. You punch in your job code, you swipe your card and you get your bit.

This is a serious inquiry, I'll be presenting some of the less outrageous ideas to the Leadership. Any other solutions?

Well as I see it. the people you work for are pretty lame.....for them to search your locker! ! ! ! ! ! that takes balls.....and as far as someone taking tools......why are they looking at you? someone may be pointing a finger at you....MAKE them tell you who is pointing the finger.....obviously someone is jealous of you....did you piss anyone off? lets check every locker if you check mine would be what I was saying LOUDLY.

Yes, they do make the dispensers for the inserts, good idea .

I can't tell you what to do, but I think someone is jacking you around unless you have a guilty way about you.

We put in a vending machine, best thing we ever did. Not for theft but more for inventory control. We kept running out of inserts when somebody would take the last box out and not say anything.

Our vendor charges us $100/month for the machine-that is peanuts considering all the time our cage personnel spent in recieving, stocking and distributing tooling. Not to say having a machine down since we did not have the tooling for it.

Now our vendor comes and stocks the machine.

The company can make it so you have to put in what job the tooling is for and it is recorded who takes out what.

Only downside is you really have to buy most of your tooling from 1 vendor, which we were pretty much doing anyways.

We are a smaller shop, 50 people or so.

We have had the machine going on 2 years and we have never looked back.

First, why does having a home shop make you more likely to steal stuff? Do they think people don't steal stuff and then sell it on ebay? If they think that show them ebay...

Second, I've seen the vending machines at various demos/shows, and it seems they are available stand alone - so you don't have to buy all of your stuff from one place, but it will be more work.

Third - to stop some levels of theft, you'll need everything packaged in units. That is, not a box of 10 inserts, some pkg with 1 insert. Otherwise the 9 extras are exposed to loss, theft, and falling to the bottom of a toolbox.

We used to have an attendant for each shift (2 actually, but they pre-set all tooling too). Now that the majority of our tooling has switched to inserts, we changed to vending machines. Pre-set tooling is done by other personnel now.
The vending machines are not "single source" since we buy from most all of the major vendors, and many others that most folks haven't even heard of, and we also make PCD tooling in-house. All of it goes in the vending machines.
The machines are stocked by a very reduced staff over what we used to have.
Reporting is much improved, inventories are much more accurate.
It's up to you as to how you stock it, in some instances, ours is a 10 pack, in others it's a single tool. Depends on the application.
I would recommend the vending machines based on what I've seen.

Homeshopper, LOL. The first thing that came to mind when I saw that was someone shopping at work for home supplies, but then I realized you meant a person who has a home shop. Hehe, kinda like the Home Chepot of tooling and stuff, a drill here, some material there, etc.

No secret that I run "bullshit" jobs on my machines at home... things like control knobs, restoration parts for several markets and model parts. Hell I even did a "favor" for The Company, I ran several hundred parts at home over shutdown.

Over the time I've been here I've taken bits of bar stock and used the our "massive" discount with the suppliers to order tooling for my shop at home. Key here is I have documentation for everything I've taken home with me. Scrap tickets for the bar-stock, sales documents and CC numbers for tooling i've ordered.

Naturally this makes me a thief. Clearly I must be stocking my workshop with huge-ass endmills and tool holders that are bigger than my bloody mill. Yeah that's the ticket.



What's happening is in order to keep costs down we're hiring folks of less then sterling character... because they work for less.



First time, Right around the time they figured out that someone was stealing I had taken home two boxes of inserts that I ordered and a bunch of really nice aluminum bar ends. They came after me and tore my locker and toolbox apart looking for the boxes of inserts, they "found" them but also found my receipts and the buyer up front backed me up. They found the missing goods in a different locker along with Idiot's wallet, shoes and jacket.

This time, we hired someone who "fabricates race-cars" on the side, for some reason he was stocking up on corn-cob rougher and plunge cutters. I'm primarily a lathe-man, my mills at home are both "toy" class these rougher mills are BIGGER that the table on one of them.

"They" suspected me right off the bat because I haven't ordered anything in awhile (hooray tool-grinder!) so obviously I must be stealing.

Like I said this is twice now they assumed it was me and twice I've had all my shit strewn about only to have the missing stuff turn up in someone else's locker or box.

Happens again paycheck or no I'm leaving.




That's my rant. Now I'm looking for a permanent solution that doesn't involve walking out. Can't tell management "Sod off and stop hiring inexpensive idiots."

Sander,

You posted the above while I was writing the below. I would check with the ACLU, your employers need their balls busted.

About helping them out by running stuff at home, remember: "NO FAVOR GOES UNPUNISHED"
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If they did not search everyone's tool box, locker, lunchbox, desk, purse, etc., and do not have a stated policy that they can search you at any time, I think they are on shaky ground.

Your local ACLU or State Employment office could give you an idea of your rights in the workplace.

Other than my 3 years in the Army where one had no rights (1957 - 60), I was treated with respect at Northrop, and at the advertising photo studio where I worked. The next 35 years I was self employed and had the luxury of being too busy to work for a**holes.

I found this, from the employers point of view.

http://www.twc.state.tx.us/news/efte..._consider.html

Other points of view:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/in...8195225AArbXxc

http://labor-employment-law.lawyers....Workplace.html

http://www.smallbusinessadvocate.com...ot-dot-dot-485

Paul

The reason he wants corn cob end mills is they are used for cutting roll cage tubing. He probably was stealing 1-5/8" and 2" sizes.

You need to start by talking to your supervisor and explaining that you feel what they are doing is un-just. You have all the proper documentation to back up your purchases, so you should feel right about going on the offensive. You are either going to leave or go on the offensive and tell them you are tired of being accused/suspected of theft and at no time have they been able to substantiate those claims.

You act like jobs are a dime a dozen today, don't fool yourself into jumping on the first train out of there. Steer their eye to the right place.

Employment handbook says they have the right to search anything on the property at any time for any reason up to and including "no reason." Those who object will be excluded from current and future employment activities via the "at will employment" policy stated on page XXX.


This is not the issue. I have no problem with them searching lockers and boxes, I'm just tired of being accused of being the thief.... that's why I'm taking the offensive on tool-crib security.

I suspect what we will eventually find... the one who is jumping to accuse me is probably stealing or embezzling himself and is trying to make as much of a smoke screen as possible.

Really, the best thing you can do at this point is start stealing, just to spite them. Then, I would either throw away in the garbage whatever you steal, so God doesn't come after you with a vengeance, or give it to the poor children- but most of the poor children I see don't have a lot of use for a 5 degree Valenite TiN coated insert. I'd go with the garbage can.

In fact, I'd steal the stuff then throw it in their OWN garbage can. That way, they'd be doing it to themselves. You could laugh like a bastard all day long and no one would even know why. All's well that ends well.

Once they "know" you're a thief they will never let up.....stop looking for solutions and start looking for a job. I've been there......had all my tool receipts, was on a better volume discount than my boss(even got him on my discount)....still had one eye cocked....

Don't let the new guys know you have a shop.....

That's actually a good practice. I never let anyone I work with know much about my guns, shop, tools, etc. It's better they think you are some drone who watches football all thetime.

I worked in the tool & die dep't of a large co. Whenever anyone needed a tool, he filled out a tool ticket, signed it & also gave the crib attendant a brass token w/ his clock no. & company stamped logo on it to prevent counterfeiting. When the tool was returned, he got back his signed receipt along w/ the brass token to prove return of the tool. This seemed to work. If he ever left the company, he had to turn in all the brass tokens which were originally issued to him

"drone who watches football all thetime."

How about them knicks....



Jim

That's a bitch Sander, I hope it works out (or you can hang in there until you find a better shop to jump to).

I worked at a place where if you needed something most of the time the boss would just give it to you. For new stuff you could buy on the company's accounts.

One idiot skimmed a bunch of wheel and pinion cutters (watchmaking stuff) when he got the job to inventory them. Boss found them in his shop coat when he grabbed it off the rack by accident. This was thousands of dollars worth of tooling, all carefully wrapped in paper and not noted in the inventoried stock. SOB just got an ass chewing .

I left there several years ago but stop by often. Every few months the boss cocks an eyebrow at me and mentions how he can't find this or that tool, someone must have taken it. Each time I walk to the cabinet or drawer and pull it out, "you mean this one?". He's a weirdo but I still like him.

I've never worked in a place with an actual tool crib but if the tooling isn't tracked somehow it's always a disaster as what doesn't get swiped gets squirreled away. We had a proper Swiss German with a razor sharp memory who'd hunt down the offenders if he had to order tooling too soon. (where's the lederhosen smiley?)

That's the method that was used in most of the Southern California aerospace companies where I worked. (Rocketdyne, Lockheed, North American Aviation, etc. ) We were issued a set of ten brass tokens with our badge number and they were only returned when the tool came back to the tool crib. It seemed to work very well.

On the other hand, there was a lot of theft of nuts, bolts, washers and test equipment. One dummy was stealing a lunch bucket full of AN nuts and bolts one day when we were leaving for the day. As luck would have it, he dropped it right in front of the security guard at the gate and it broke open and spilled all of the goodies. He was gone the next day.

When I worked on the B1/Rockwell International at LAX, I had to sign for pencils and return the worn out stubs. LOL.

Wouldn't know how to do it without having either a tool crib attendant or a vending machine. I have a friend who worked where he had to sign out drill press vises and return them when done, even making fixtures and tooling - seems excessive, guess it was necessary there.

Also heard of a guy getting fired for stealing one roll of duct tape.

If I were in your shoes I would get the hell out of there soon! that thought in the back of your mind must suck. When you get your new job ya gotta keep your mouth shut about even having any kind of machine tools at home. Seriously not one word.when your coworkers ask you monday morning what ya did over the week end the standard answer must be " well saturday me and the wife were at basket weaving class pretty much all day and sunday after we got home late from church we vacuumed the house and cleaned the carport since I don't have a garage or shop".