Installation Excellence

Road Map to Installation Excellence

The purpose of this article is to give retailers some new ideas, and some old ideas that will foster goodwill among installers, provide low cost instructional opportunities, and create a new paradigm for installer/retailer relations. These ideas are intended to bring installations back to a skilled craft level with installers that are proud to be installing floor covering, and have everyone working toward the same goal of customer satisfaction and reduced call backs.

One of the ways this can be accomplished is to have a presence of the installers on the showroom floor. Consider that if you mark up the installer’s labor costs (and you should) then one of your largest services is not represented, or under represented on the show room floor. Encourage your sales staff to engage the customer in conversations about your quality installers. A small section of the showroom could be set aside for any certificates, and training the installers have, and a brief bio on each installer with photos of recent work. You will be amazed at the loyalty of your crews if you show a little pride in their work.
This is a big selling point that is often under-utilized.

How do we structure a workroom that fosters cooperation between installers and sales staff, moving away from the strained relations between installers, store and sales staff? One way is to have the sales staff, go to a few jobs each year so that they can better understand what is involved in the installation process. This will make the sales staff more knowledgeable than most of your competition, and by today’s standards a very low cost educational opportunity. It also promotes better relations with the store staff and the independent contractors working for the store. It shows that you are interested in what they do. Most installers are proud of their ability and are willing to share that knowledge.

This leads me to installer training opportunities. The industry is now involved in training in more ways than before. We think that the best training information comes from the manufacturers such as Shaw, Mohawk University, Milliken and others.

It is not always financially feasible to pull all of your crews to go to a two or three day seminar. So we suggest a train-the-trainer program, where you send one crew to the seminar and they return to share that information with the other crews in regularly held installer meetings. For this to be successful, you must remember that pitting one installer against the other for more favorable pricing will destroy this plan because installers will not want to share their knowledge with someone who might undercut them and deprive them of work. This is the single most divisive element that has contributed to the current installer crisis in our industry.

A change of thinking on pay for services is also recommended. Higher priced goods should pay more than base grade goods. This applies to all floor covering. It creates an opportunity for increased profits, by selling extended warranties and greater income and satisfaction for the installer. This would separate you from your competition that is offering no more than a one year warranty.

The workroom should be structured in what we call a “first crew” system. In the first crew system, you pick, in each type of floor covering, one crew that attends the training—(we recommend that the installation manager attend the classes as well). The first crew would be a quasi employee in that he would assist the installation manager with job assignments–knowing which crew is capable of doing the job correctly. Part of his compensation for this could be getting the higher paying or easier jobs. It would also fall to the first crew to work periodically on large jobs with other crews to better know the other installers skill set and share his knowledge, as a result, lifting all the installers’ levels of ability. There would then be a “pecking order” so to speak, with incentives to improve quality. Second, third and fourth crews would want to learn more to move up in station.

Additionally, the first crew would work with any new installers to assess their ability to perform the work provided. Currently, crews are sent on a couple of jobs and if they don’t screw up too bad then they are given more work. This can be a disaster because no one at the store really knows their ability and they might draw a job that is above their skill level.

We also recommend, when possible, you have a process for promoting the apprentice to installer status. They are known to the store and have at least a proven record of being trustworthy. This will give additional incentives to those that are trying to better themselves by entering the installation trade. He will be rightfully able to tell his family and friends that he is more than a helper; he will be an apprentice in a respected trade.

I also want to speak with you about considering the addition of what I call “make ready” crews. Highly skilled installers should not be doing the grunt work. This would open a whole new segment in our industry. If your store is like most, the installers come to the store around 7: 00 am, and by the time they get loaded out, and head to the job, especially if they have to stop for some supplies, then it is 9:30 or 10:00 before any workmen show up to begin the job.

We all know that this is very frustrating to some customers. Timely work is an important factor in customer satisfaction. If they are still waiting at 10:00 a.m., you have already put forward a negative element.

Ideally this new segment of make ready crews would get their respective assignments the afternoon before. They could be at the customers house, moving furniture, removing all the existing floor covering and generally getting the job ready without the loss of two or three hours each day. A faster, quality installation equals a happy customer.

With this service available, it could make the installer more productive and more profitable to himself and the company. It would, however, require that the sales staff monitor the jobs more closely and verify the product shipped is the correct product, in the correct quantity, and ready for install. In keeping with the methodology of providing incentives, the best of these make ready crews could eventually work with the installers to learn the basics of floor prep, and could move as needed to apprentice status, and ultimately installer status.

This would be a great benefit to the store as the make ready people will be a known resource. It would also allow the store to be more productive without having to bring in crews to install. It would make the existing workroom more productive.

Consider that you might be able to achieve a thirty percent production increase with the skilled craftsmen you already have. Quality installers are becoming rare with time, and much knowledge is being lost due to attrition. The time to change is now. Flooring Warranty Services is willing to work with any group or individual interested in improving the installation segment of this industry.