Shopping cart closed for a while as we rebuild the workshop

We've now closed the shopping cart to new orders for three weeks.   The reason?   Well, after a decade or so of organic growth, adding bits of kit  and cobbling storage together, the workshop layout is buckling under the strain of an extra casting machine, extra staff and lots and lots of extra moulds.   The time has come for a complete reorganisation of how we do things here at Baccus central.

We have taken more rooms immediately above the current workshop and will be moving most of the admin and support functions upstairs.  As this has meant knocking a hole in a concrete ceiling and sorting a flight of stairs out, this has not exactly been a straightforward option.   

With the non-manufacturing bits and bobs out of the way, the current layout is going to be completely gutted and rebuilt with a planned and far more efficient arrangement of casting machines and mould racks.   The racks themselves will be increased in number to effectively double our current capacity.  This will allow for our planned expansion of ranges over the next few years.

This is a massive job, and we cannot continue to receive and despatch orders as normal, hence the need to close the shopping cart.   Please put up with this for a short while while we undertake this much-needed work.  Any outstanding orders will be cast and sent out as quickly as is possible - we are trying to keep one machine working throughout the period to enable us to do this, but there will be a delay as a sole  caster can only work so  quickly.

I've put in some pictures of the current pretty chaotic layout that we have now.   I hope in about three weeks or so to post some fresh pictures of a new pretty chaotic layout...