Research and Development at Delta Faucets Headquarters in Indianapolis
27 August 2010
“Moving Forward”
One of the most difficult questions any of us is ever obliged to answer is, “What’s next?” Finish school-at whatever level-finish a project, finish anything and everything, and that’s the question. You may be dripping with sweat (I’m a woodworker) or exhausted or totally drained with having done the best writing/painting/sculpting of your life, but if you share it with others-and you know you will!-at some point in the festivities, as surely as any sunrise, the question will come. What’s next?
It’s a question that was really brought home to me a few weeks ago when Joe Dusel and I made our trip to Delta Faucets Headquarters. Last week I wrote a rather lengthy blog on the design process, which would lead one to believe that with Delta what’s next is whatever Judd Lord and his design team are going to come up with, and that is certainly true, but only partially so. The other thing that’s next with Delta Faucets is pretty much a constant, namely research and development, but with this stipulation. What they have already developed is just as important to them as what is yet to be.
One of life’s great difficulties is writing instructions, which is something we normally do not think about, until the fateful day when we bring home something that calls for “some assembly.” I’m telling you, I have read that little blurb on things for a good share of my life now, and one of the things that I have noticed is that there is a rather appalling elasticity to the word “some.” In the beginning it really was some, but it now often calls for nothing short of a box of parts and a sack of bolts and an instruction sheet that may or not may not make any kind of sense to the designated “putter togetherer,” which in our household is always me.
I bring that up, though, because while I was at Delta Headquarters, I got a chance to see what they do to make sure they’re on top of things “post sale wise.” In the afternoon we were taken to a room where we learned more about how their faucets are engineered. I remember thinking that this must be a room that was pressed in
to use, because unlike the other rooms that were clearly designed only for the lectures that made up so much of that Media Day, this room had six different sink cabinets, three on either end of the room. Half were for kitchen installations, and half were for bathroom installations. Foolish me, I thought they were really there for class instruction of Delta employees, but as it turned out, we were in that room to do the installations!
They broke us into six groups of three, then broke out brand new faucets, packaged just as they would be, had we gone to a hardware store and purchased them for our own use. We then had to open the boxed faucets and set to work installing them in the mockup sink cabinets. To my further surprise, they actually plumbed these sink cabinets, so at the end of the installation, we could open a few valves and find out whether the installation leaked water or not! Well, my first thought was that this particular installation would be easier than the home-spun variety simply because we could go to the open back of the sink cabinet. That’s when I found out that there’s actually a piece of Plexiglas at the back of the cabinet. It’s there to make sure no one takes short cuts, but also to help the attendant Delta people help people over any unexpected bumps in the road. So, in a sense, we did have our hands held, but they carefully kept us at arms-length for reasons that soon became apparent. To the extent that was possible (they didn’t want anyone just spinning his wheels), they wanted us to work our way through an installation, just as it would be, had we made that trip to the hardware store.
After the installation session and a break, we gathered in an adjacent conference room with the attendees seated at tables around the perimeter of the room. Inside were the Senior Product Development Manager, Paul Patton, an assistant to take notes, and two large flip charts on which to take those notes. Paul then walked us through the process we had just gone through. “Let’s talk about everything you liked.” And the assistant took notes. Then after a bit, he turned that around and wanted to know, “What are the things you did not like? What could we have done differently with those installation instructions? What surprised you, dismayed you, pleased you?” And from the way in which Paul ran the discussion it was clear to me that he had done so many times as part of the follow-up work Delta does with all of their faucets.
The two things visiting groups to Delta are pretty much assured of is a standing ovation at the door (because “valued guests” is not something they put in quotes at Delta) and a faucet installation session. They also do this with every one of their new employees. Lifelong accountant hired on to work in the Accounting Department and don’t know a wrench from a screwdriver? Doesn’t matter. At some point in the New Hire Orientation, you’re going to be under that sink counter.
It’s because Delta wants the feedback, thrives on the feedback, can’t really do their jobs without the feedback. And the other part is just as important as the feedback sessions themselves. They listen to all that is said, analyze it, and implement all that is valid. Throughout that session, the one thing that most impressed me was how Paul managed it. All of his statements and questions were ones of clarification for him, to make sure he understood what people were saying.
And with that I have revealed the secret for a large part of Delta’s success. They research their products, design their products, manufacture them, and send them out into the world. And then they listen to what people think of them, and make the necessary adjustments.
If you go to Delta’s website, one of the quotes you will see is, “We exist to discover a smarter way to live with water.” With Delta that’s not just words; it’s a way of life. They honestly believe they’re pioneers; and they are constantly looking for ways to do things differently and better, from the products they create, to the ways in which they instruct end customers in the use and installation of those products. With Delta the answer to “what’s next” is another question. “How can Delta move this forward?”
Joseph
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One Response to “Research and Development at Delta Faucets Headquarters in Indianapolis”
August 27th, 2010 at 2:13 PM
I must say that this was highly educational. It was really nice to see what goes into not just their designs, but also their customer experience.