Powrmatic Triumph At National Motorcycle Museum

Powrmatic hosted a Key Customer meeting at the National Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham, on Wednesday 14th September.

All in attendance agreed that the event was a great success.

The mornings session opened with a welcome address by Phil Brompton (M.D.)  In his opening remarks, Phil discussed the positive developments that have taken place within Powrmatic over the previous eighteen months, the company having grown its domestic and export market share quite considerably over this time.  Continuous improvement at the design and manufacturing facility in Ilminster has led to new products coming to market later this year.

Products on display included the new CPx cabinet heater, to be launched in October.  This pre-production model well illustrated Powrmatic’s commitment to improve quality, design and performance. With improved footprint, lower emissions and higher efficiencies, this new model (with 10 choices of output in the range) was well received.  Also on display was the latest version of the NVx suspended gas unit heater, which has demonstrated its reliability since its introduction at the beginning of the year.  Since the launch some five months ago sales have exceeded expectations, the heater proving to be a popular choice with contractors and end users alike.

Many present were also interested in a new range of gas unit heaters that have been developed for the export market.  Based around familiar NVx tubular heat exchanger technology the new NVrb is destined to be marketed throughout Europe, however it could be made available to the United Kingdom market if customers wish. 

This range is optimised to five sizes ranges ranging from 20 - 50kW and is available in freeblowing axial fan configuration. This new heater will be competitively priced but without compromise on quality.  For instance Honeywell gas valve and controls will remain as standard.
Contractors asked about the warranty available on this product range, and all were pleased to learn that the NVrb would be provided with a two year parts and one year labour warranty.

Brett Smith (National Product Manager) joined Phil Brompton in discussing future developments within the Powrmatic portfolio of products.  Some of these developments include an update to the popular VPC range of gas fired cabinet heaters.  Labelled VPx the updated range will be greater than the current VPC offering and will benefit from compact dimensions and an increased emphasis on commercial application acceptability.  

A further addition will be the introduction of a condensing version of the VP cabinet heater, the VPs.  As government legislation moves forward it is possible that by 2015 it will be mandatory for all industrial and commercial gas fired appliances to be fully condensing.  Powrmatic prove yet again that they are setting the lead in developing products that will meet this challenge.

Controls proved to be an interesting topic, with many in the audience discussing various products they use which are on the market.  Powrmatic continue to make improvements to our established optimised start control – the MC200.  Currently in development, and in consultation with the trade, the MC300 is expected to launch early next year.  Boasting a simplified, more intuitive interface, enhanced functionality, and a choice of module options, this will definitely be one to watch for in 2012.

The audience were happy to hear about the efforts Powrmatic are going to in working with their trade partners.  All were in agreement that we share a common customer – the end user.  Powrmatic’s vision of the supply chain means we are keenly focused on meeting the needs and expectations of the final customer. 

The trade audience were happy to learn of further details of Powrmatic on-going strategy to generate end user interest for them.  The ‘Find an Installer’ section of the Powrmatic website has received over 5,000 ‘hits over the past season, each of the enquiries received have been passed directly to the selected contractor.

The Powrmatic team also explained a number of other initiatives and improvements coming soon to the their website (www.powrmatic.co.uk) which would enhance both trade and end user experience.

Turning our attention to service engineers on site, Powrmatic was pleased to announce that they will shortly be introducing the inclusion of a QR barcode label on each of their standard units.  The 2D barcode will include such details as Model Reference, Heater Serial Number, key data plate information, a list of common spares (with part numbers), and links to the Sales Brochure, O&M Manual and Wiring diagram for the unit.  All in attendance were keen to learn that this should be introduced shortly on standard units, and rolled out throughout the range of heating equipment by the end of January 2012.

Powrmatic has placed a priority on Customer Service and Quality and have appointed Jon Layzell, a long time member of the Senior Management Team, to head up this challenging role.  Jon was keen to elicit as much feedback as possible from the audience regarding our products and services, and how we could improve our offering to them.  Where practicable, the suggestions received on the day will be implemented, and any further issues involving quality matters will be managed by Jon and his team.

The day concluded with an open forum where the audience were able to feedback on the days events.  All in attendance were in full agreement that the day was a great success, and that not only were Powrmatic endeavouring to provide a comprehensive service to their customers, that they were in fact meeting and exceeding expectations.  The future developments discussed during the day will consolidate Powrmatic’s position within the HVAC marketplace.