Aug 09 2011
Why didn’t WE look at Uteco!?!?
Sometimes a meeting can turn on a dime into a direction that leaves me puzzled.
I love what I do but sometimes find myself in situation where I am not sure how I should react.
In this particular situation, I happened to be speaking to a group consisting of a Plant Manager, Operations Head, Print Manager and Owner of a very reputable printed packaging company. It was a casual setting, as we were just wrapping up a discussion having to do with Ink Spec’s Viscosity Control System. I was mentioning that there were quite a few high end press manufacturers who offered the system as their recommended viscosity control, including Uteco.
This led to a discussion about my qualification use of the term “high end” and Uteco, a company I have represented for more than a year now. I was reiterating the fact of how impressive this equipment is and the recent boom of Uteco sales. The satisfaction and profitability of those who have chosen to align themselves with Uteco for their “high end” flexo work has proven Uteco to be deserving of the “high end” genre, time and time again.
As this discussion progressed, I found myself contemplating my own opinion as to why these companies chose Uteco over all other offerings. Perhaps it was price or maybe the fact that Uteco’s service department has been highlighted in various trade periodicals or the fact that Uteco has successfully engineered a product line with US components, rather than hold their spare parts as propitiatory ”only available from OEM”. Maybe it’s the consistent performance at high speed. Then it occurred to me, it’s all of it.
The owner of the company wanted to hear more about what I thought sets Uteco apart from the other offerings out there. He has always known that I was brought up with and around a very high end German press manufacturer since I was only 10 years old, so I think that he might have taken a little interest in challenging if I might squirm under an embarrassment of going against the grain of a “family allegiance”. After all, they had just recently had their latest German press installed and running. (Negotiated prior to my tenure with Uteco)
I suppose I should say that I had to take a moment to rub my hands together and think about what I was going to say. But the fact of the matter is that it doesn’t take anything more than common sense to point out why someone chooses Uteco. I began to outline a verbal list of factual information that very easily equates to one simple thing, a smart business decision!
After taking my moment with the many obvious “no brainer” advantages, the owner of the company looked at me with a very displeased expression on his face. I thought that I might have said something inappropriate…. but as he looked around the room at his Plant Manager, Print Manager and Head of Operations and said, in a rather angry voice,….
“Why the **** didn’t WE look at Uteco?!?!?!?”
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Derek, we have the same issue here in the UK, people immediately think German, like those that win the lottery and think “I know I’ll buy myself the best car and end up with an unreliable Merc or hard riding Beemer, when scratch the surface and its Jaguar that is top of the tree in terms of customer satisfaction and reliablitlity (JD Power Survey)” Its the same here with Uteco, a company with a range of machines that performs just as well if not better in several key areas. I blame the ill-informed press, immediately spewing out the german brands with little knowledge of what else is available. Perhaps historical purchasing trends are too blame too, I know this is the case in Gravure. This past month I have worked on several German gravure presses and 1 each from the other 2 italian “well known” brands and I was shocked how poor, ergonomically and dynmaically these machines are. Thin frames, poor cylinder location, difficult trolleys, ink splashing, light doctor blade holders, I could go on… They were inferiror to the old Schiavi CONCORDE presses I use to work on 20 years ago and miles behind the E – press and light years behind the Q-Press both from Uteco. I suppose they say ignorance is bliss, but in this case I think these machine buyers need to remove their blinkers and come and smell Uteco’s cofee. One client of mine has a new high speed F&K and was shocked when I told him Uteco can do the same, wider, slightly faster and over half a million Euros cheaper….