Monday, February 27, 2023
Every year for repair technicians, there comes a very stressful period from the beginning of June through around the middle of August. This period, called "Summer Repair Season", is when most repair shops in the country are packed to the gills with repair. Schools have let out and have sent all of their inventory in for service, there is a flood of hundreds of rental instruments to recondition in any given store, and our walk-in customers with students in school band also send in their instruments for service. Some stores whose repair staff I am acquainted with have serviced over 1500 (or even more) instruments in this twelve-week window. This requires a store to service at least 25 instruments per day. This requires a staff of four technicians (what I would consider a "big" shop) to repair 6.25 instruments per technician per day.
Sounds reasonable, right? Well let's use the average cost of a repair in the summer to extrapolate some numbers. The industry average is to charge an hourly rate of approximately $60.00, and this is the standard we hold ourselves to in our pace of repair. Because of the amount of work required, the cost of a typical summer repair is around $125.00. This works out to 2 hours and 5 minutes per instrument. Multiply that by the required number of instruments per day, and you hit 13 hours required per day almost square on the nose.
Suddenly, this doesn't seem so reasonable anymore. Thirteen hours a day, five days a week, for twelve weeks. It takes a special person who is very committed to their craft to come out of the end of summer with any sanity left. And Palen Music Center is chock full of them. Regardless, every year there comes the question of "How can we reduce our summer workload?" This is where winter repair enters the picture.
Every year, there exists a cyclical slow-down of concert instruments coming in as a result of all-region, all-state, concert assessment, solo and ensemble, and spring concerts. This means that during the spring months for most repair shops, we spend time looking for work to do rather than being inundated with repairs like the fall months. This makes spring the PERFECT time to send in your marching instruments, or otherwise out-of-commission instruments. Your marching instruments take much more wear and tear than their concert counterparts, and often require far more work than said concert instruments. It simply takes longer to repair a sousaphone than it does a tuba. What many don't realize is that winter is also the perfect time to send in woodwind repads as well. All of those repads that take until September or October to return could be back in your student's hands before the start of school.
Winter repair is our best chance as technicians to alleviate some of the stress at the end of summer and set your program (and ourselves) up for success. Sending your instruments in during this winter window leads to fewer hours for the repairperson in the summer, followed by less stress, happier employees, and more time to conduct thorough repairs. In turn, you get a better quality product, more timely return of your instruments, and less frustration for you as a customer. This is a win for everyone, especially for who matters most--your students. Because at Palen Music Center, "It's about Kids."
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Corey Divine graduated from the University of Arkansas in 2015 with a double major in trumpet performance and music education. During his time at the University of Arkansas, Corey performed with numerous top University Ensembles, the Symphony of Northwest Arkansas, the Arkansas Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Fayetteville Jazz Collective. In addition to his studies at the University of Arkansas, Corey began repairing musical instruments in 2012. He specializes in brass instrument repair and restoration. Corey began fixing things around the house at a very young age and has always been a tinkerer with a curious mind. Most people have hobbies, but Corey enjoys instrument repair so thoroughly that he hasn't worked a day since beginning his career. Corey's interests include collecting Conn instruments, building Frankentubas, and spending time with his dear wife, two sons, and three dogs. |
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