In praise of SMA - again [RE-wrenches]

jberdner at sma-america.com jberdner at sma-america.com
Wed Jan 22 15:06:16 PST 2003


Peter/Wrenches:

Thank you for the feedback on our support and policies.
I wanted to clarify a couple of points raised in Peter's post.

Displays: 
The most common problem we are seeing is all black bars instead of
numbers.
The important thing in this case is to reassure the customer that the
inverter is working and they are not losing any power production.  This
can be verified with the LED's on the inverter, a clamp on current
measurement, a spare "service" display in your bag o tricks (remember to
keep it in a static safe bag), or a service cable and your laptop. 

We are perplexed on this one because, more often than not, the displays
are fine when we get them back and test them.  We do not really
understand why they are all black in the field and then work well here.
This is NOT a criticism or a question of anyone's credibility, only an
admission that we don't really know why some of the displays are not
working.  In some cases removing them and replacing them solves the
problem temporarily and in other cases permanently.  Any hints about
what going on before / during / after would be greatly appreciated in
our hunt for the cause, i.e. weather, temperature, voltages, etc. 

Replacement inverters:
We recognize the value / importance of getting the system back up and
running as soon as possible.  To help with this we developed our advance
replacement program to help you out get the system back up as soon as
possible while minimizing visits to the site.  This advance replacement
is optional and, if the customer prefers, we will gladly issue a call
tag for their new unit and give highest priority to the repair process
to minimize down time. In this way the customer gets their original
inverter back (or we will ship them a brand new one if we can't fix it).
We have found that after explaining the program in this way, the
customer appreciates having the choice and most elect to get the advance
replacement.

Many of the inverters we get back from the field for repair are tested
and they have nothing wrong with them - but they are no longer brand
new.  These go into the warranty pool for advance replacements.  They
are always low hour units and they have been fully checked out and
undergo all the factory tests again including a new burn in.  NOTE: We
always ship basic non-display units with funky covers and request that
you transfer the customer's existing cover, display, and any
communication modules.  This minimizes the change in appearance of the
installation, reduces stocking issues, and most importantly, almost
eliminates the chance we send you the wrong unit.  

Lastly one item not in Peter's post:  
If you are in the field with a problem PLEASE say that you are in the
field if you call and get voice mail. This helps us to give priority to
those who need it most.  Also please repeat your telephone number slowly
if you are on a cell phone.  Cell phones sometimes make it hard for us
to get the numbers right and repeating the number gives us a much better
chance of getting back to you promptly.  

If you have any questions, or if I can be of any further assistance,
please do not hesitate to contact me.

Best Regards,

John Berdner

SMA America, Inc.
12438 Loma Rica Drive, Unit C
Grass Valley, CA  95945
530.273.4595 (voice)
530.274.7271 (fax) 


-----Original Message-----
From: ASAP POWER! [mailto:asap at podnine.com] 
Sent: Wednesday, January 22, 2003 11:25 AM
To: RE-wrenches at topica.com
Subject: RE: In praise of SMA - again [RE-wrenches]

Also, a third display panel has been behaving properly on a dual SB2500
system recently reported on here.  The third display panel was sent with
a
backup inverter, which we were fully expecting to have to change out,
but
the third panel has managed to charm the inverter's info out of it so
far.
So I'll be shipping the second unit back soon from all indications.

As a fine-tuning customer service side: I was sort of worked into a spot
trying to explain to the customer that this was not a new inverter but a
non-display unit that we would use his original display inverter cover
with
and that it's guaranteed to have less than 100 hours on it.  Of course,
with
full warranty but I think most customers are going to expect a duplicate
new
replacement, or at least a new unit.  Refurbished is what it came off as
out
of my mouth I guess, and that just did not sound like what they bought.
So,
glad we didn't have to change it anyway...since he was developing that
short-changed feeling.

Customer service is such a simple thing.  It's all in that first
response
and if need be, a second.  SMA is good at not second-guessing what's
going
on in an effort to thwart your livelihood, rather, they'll listen to you
before getting busy formulating what is often otherwise a canned, CYA
type
of response.  The response is always what's best for you and your
customer.
As electronics go, often a replacement is the best answer.  Being quick
about it earns too many bonus points to bother counting.  In this they
value
your time and your work and your actual success with their product as
much
as they value their equipment itself.  That is a good balance and a good
approach to any service business.  In turn, we should all value our
customers' successful experience with their systems as well.  Matt T's
last
words were right on.  That support, whether hand-holding or a real
fix-it-now situation, is very valuable, it's golden.  Thanks to Jason at
SMA
as well.

Peter D
ASAP POWER!/1AU-PV

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