Three decades of experience in distributing more than 40 electronic and electromechanical product lines allows SOLERS-PI to suggest the right components for specific challenges. In the case of one HVAC manufacturer, SOLERS-PI spotted an opportunity for efficiency different from what it was asked to quote.
The HVAC manufacturer asked SOLERS-PI to offer a quote on cable harnesses. The company’s design used butt connectors to splice wire sections together. It was necessary to hand-crimp each wire end, a labor-intensive practice also prone to mistakes.
SOLERS-PI suggested a new series of specific WAGO products with clamp connectors. Assemblers could simply open the lever, pop the wire in and close the lever. No crimping was required and the connections were more secure. Costs for the new WAGO connectors were comparable to the old butt connectors, and labor savings and improved quality made the customer’s decision easy.
“We’re promoting a product based on the fact that they made an inquiry on harnesses, as opposed to me just running around trying to sell someone a connector,” said Brad Vogl, co-owner of Progressive Image. “It’s something we were able to apply, a new product from a distributor, to an old design they had.”
Such a simple-yet-effective solution resulted in a deeper relationship between SOLERS-PI and the customer, who now brings new design ideas to SOLERS-PI for feedback and suggestions. For instance, one of the HVAC company’s engineers presented SOLERS-PI with a schematic for an AC-to-DC power adapter he found in a magazine. Armed with only that direction, SOLERS-PI surmised which components would fit the project and assembled a printed circuit board that worked just as the customer hoped.
“It’s not that we’re into designing printed circuit boards,” Vogl said. “It was something above and beyond. … It’s not just the lines we distribute. We know components.”