I worked for a small engineered polymer plastics manufacturer that also did some military aircraft parts contracting. I was in sales. Our company got bought by a multinational company that had another division that made the heat-deflecting tiles on the space shuttles. They billed themselves as a materials science company, but after the buy-out we were also making airplane parts for the C5A airplane and compressor parts for the domestic industrial and commercial markets.

One day I was looking for C5A parts contracts in the Commerce Business Daily, a report the feds used to show open opportunities for contractors. The same way I found all the other opportunities that added around $2 million net profit to the bottom line. Big boss walked by, saw me looking in the print version we got in the mail. He asked me “What are you doing reading the paper?” Told him it wasn't “the paper", it was where we got our contracts for airplane parts. He says “we don't sell airplane parts.” I was so shocked I just sat there for a second, then started to explain. The sales manager came rapidly out of his office, escorted the GM away and told me to go back to what I was doing. Few minutes later he comes back alone and says the GM has no idea what is going in the last shop bay, where we made the airplane parts. He told me he'd school the GM.

Couple weeks later got a pink slip. Laid off. Just got married, just signed on the dotted line for a house and a truck and my wife got pregnant. I was pissed. The sales manager helped me pack. He said GM got furious when he was told we were making airplane parts. Called the SM a liar when he told him how much they added to the bottom line. They fired all the workers in the back bay, sold all the equipment and told the Air Force we were no longer interested in their business. They gave back the molds we were using that belonged to the Feds. Had to pay for the wear and tear on them, too. So, they are out cash and chopped off a major revenue stream. I found another job pretty quick. Within a year Morris Compressor Supply was suffering in Houston. Within 2 they were gone. GM never had a clue he'd killed the golden egg-laying goose. Stupid hillbilly….