AFM Steno Brief History of How Doc Stewart Got Into the Steno Repair Business

Another Fine Mess (AFM)

A History

“Doctor Bill” or “Doc Stewart” was teaching in the Court Reporting Program of the State University of New York (SUNY) at Alfred. Everything was fine when the Stenograph machines were working, but when they broke down it all “ground to a stop.” There was no one around to fix the machines.

Mr. Robert Wright, President of the Stenograph Company, agreed to teach Doc Stewart how to repair Steno machines in order to keep the SUNY Alfred reporting program on track.

The Stenograph training program went like this:

The trainee disassembled a machine and put it back together again so that it met factory requirements.

Then, the instructor “bent, broke and eliminated” parts and gave it back to the trainee, saying, “Here's a machine that came in like this -- fix it.”

The trainee then put the machine back together so that it met factory specifications.

The machine was then returned to the trainee with more bent, broken, and missing parts.

This procedure was repeated time and time again. Each time the condition was worse.

Finally, the machine was so badly broken that Doc said, “This is another fine mess you've gotten me into. This machine can not be fixed; we will have to send it back to the factory.”

The instructors, Mr. Smolak and Mr. Tiffin, said, “We are the factory -- fix it!”

Doctor Bill said, “When I finish this program, I am going to call my business 'Another Fine Mess'.”

The rest is history.

Since that original training program, Doc Stewart has completed all the training programs that Stenograph company has offered: Smartwriter Training, Stentura Training, Fusion and Élan Mira Training as well as the refresher programs. In addition, he has completed all the Baron Data, X-scribe, and ProCAT Flash Writer training courses.

As the Alfred Reporting Students went to work, they started sending their machines to A.F.M. for maintenance and repair. The business kept growing until Doc retired from SUNY Alfred and devoted his time entirely to A.F.M...

In June 2007 Doc retired from A.F.M. Steno Repair closing its doors. Doc sold its assets to David and Amy Morris; Who had also acquired Roy Nyhus’s inventory. David had worked at A.F.M. for six years, and managed it for five of those years. Amy is a Court Reporter and understands the wild side of the profession. With these skills we figured AFM was made for us, and AFM Steno Repair, Inc. was opened for business July 2007.

David Morris is a graduate with an Associate Degree in Computers and Electronics Systems Technology from Alfred State College. This knowledge assists him in the understanding and repair of your writer. It also gives him an integral knowledge of how your machine works with your computer and software. David has completed Authorized Service Provider Training at Stenograph and he is certified in their older machines as well as the Fusion and Élan series writers. David has also completed Authorized Service Provider training at ProCAT and is certified in their Flash and Stylus Writers.

Gene Goehner is the newest addition to our Team. He has quickly picked up the skills necessary to service your Steno machines. Gene has a strong mechanical background and a good base knowledge in electronics. These skills assist him in providing for your maintenance needs.

Amy Morris completes the team. Amy is a past graduate of Alfred State College Court and Realtime Reporting Curriculum. Amy's experience as a seasoned reporter enhances AFM's ability to serve the reporting community. Amy now performs managerial duties as well as answering the phone, scheduling the machines for service, and trying to keep the Technicians in line. She also tests in the machines as they come through the door letting the technicians know what is needed. Amy takes care of the packaging and billing of every machine we receive. She is the first to see your machine and the last as it departs AFM Steno Repair, Inc.