Triangle Tube opens training, customer support and engineering facility

BY JOHN MESENBRINK

Triangle Tube recently invested in a new 20,000-sq.-ft. training, customer support and engineering facility. Phc news recently caught up with Gerry Clisham, vice president of marketing for Triangle Tube to talk about this exciting news.

PHC: Can you please describe a little bit about the facility and for what it will be used?

Clisham: The facility has been built around Triangle Tube’s philosophy of not only providing a high performing product, but doing so with a unique ingenuity.

Our new Training and Customer Support Center follows the same path. The facility provides a unique environment that enables attendees to learn not only about the products but also exchange ideas and trends in hydronics with their classmates and the Triangle Tube team.

The training area includes two 825-square-foot classrooms that can hold up to 32 people. Our desire is to keep the training class size at 24 people or fewer to encourage better interaction. One training room is equipped with a SMART board that has been proven in schools to improve knowledge retention and interaction. Once we have developed our knowledge of the system we will bring it to the second classroom.

For hands-on experience we have created more than 1,100 square feet of lab space where up to 12 functioning boilers can be used at a time. The lab has been designed to accept both the Prestige and the Challenger boilers depending on the class. In addition the lab contains the functioning Prestige Cascade Boiler and Smart Indirect Fired Water Heater that provides heat and hot water to the facility.

When not in class or the lab, there is a dedicated lounge where attendees can get a break from the classroom and make phone calls, check email, or check the weather and news on the flat screen TV. For refreshments there is a dedicated dining area where attendees can enjoy doughnuts and coffee and their lunch.

The 7,000-sq.-ft. of office space has allowed our engineering and technical support team to move closer to our sales, operations, and customer service team. This enables more interaction and productivity throughout Triangle Tube and we are already seeing improved results.

The facility officially opened on Tuesday, March 29 when our sales representatives will attend the first courses in the new Challenger boilers.

PHC: In a “down” economy, it seems that Triangle Tube is making a significant investment in the company. Why now?

Clisham: Triangle Tube has experienced rapid growth over the last decade. We have had tremendous success with both our training program and our product line. In fact the two are closely related.

While the economy has been down, at Triangle Tube we have experienced continued growth and have a 10-year record of uninterrupted growth. But we know that this cannot be taken for granted and we need to continue to go from strength to strength.

In order to sustain our growth in the decade ahead we see no higher priority than training. We believe the best investment opportunity is in the ongoing education of our customer base, in terms of application knowledge, proper installation practices, trouble shooting methods, and service programs. Our customers can be assured of learning the latest trends and technologies of Hydronics from Europe and how it best fits in the North American market.

PHC: Can you describe Triangle Tube’s commitment to contractor education and training?

Clisham: Triangle Tube’s growth has been fueled by our relationship with our customers. We have built our product line and our company on supplying them efficient, reliable products backed by knowledgeable and friendly technical support.

We know that for our training program to be successful, the contractor must leave feeling confident not only in the product itself, but in their ability to install and service it. After all, Triangle Tube’s products are really a reflection on them. So we have invested in a facility and a program that ensures that they leave with this confidence. This pays off for everyone. Homeowners get a reliable product that was properly installed. The contractors receive fewer call-backs and increased business due to improved efficiency, better product knowledge and confidence. And Triangle Tube experiences fewer technical service calls and higher sales. We know that the faith and knowledge of the product by our certified contractors makes an impression on our ultimate customer, the homeowner.

Our commitment to training goes beyond our Corporate Headquarters. We have training facilities in Denver, Colorado and Toronto, Ontario with functioning boilers where we conduct monthly training sessions. Greg Manna heads our training efforts in Blackwood and Toronto while Rick Mayo leads the training in Denver. Both have more than 20 years of experience in hydronics and bring much more to the classes than your basic product information.

PHC: How many contractors do you expect to train in a month; year?

Clisham: Training sessions are busiest in the winter months where it is not unusual for us to train more than 100 people in a month. Overall we trained over 750 people in 2010 and our goal for 2011 is to exceed 1,100.

PHC: Any new products featured in the training?

Clisham: We have completely remodeled our training program with the new facility. Contractors can now sign up for a certification course in either the Prestige Boiler or the Challenger Combination Boiler. The first day of the course is completely dedicated to the primary boiler. The second day of training begins with an overview of the other Triangle Tube products and then moves quickly to the “electives” that the attendee selects. These topics include Hydronic System Design, Advanced Hydronic System Design, Prestige Cascade Boilers, and Hydronic Controls.

The Challenger is new for 2011 featuring a unique heat exchanger that provides both heat and hot water from the primary heat exchanger. This results in fewer components and a more compact, lightweight and easy to install product.

PHC: Do you have a schedule or is it an open training? How long is the training?

Clisham: The other unique feature of our training is that attendees can manage their training online. Our website provides a calendar of training dates and course topics. Once the course and date are selected they can select their hotel needs and “Elective” choices. If they are bringing others they can register them as well. Finally they can pay for the course securely online to complete the registration. This guarantees them a spot immediately and they receive a confirmation email.

The training is 1½ days with the first day beginning at 8:30 a.m.

PHC: What does the contractor glean from this training?

Clisham: The benefits of the training are:

• Better knowledge of the complete hydronic system which results in higher efficiency, less rework and call-backs, and quicker installations.
• Better knowledge of the products with benefits as above.
• Opportunity to gain from the experiences of classmates.
• Opportunity to work through difficult installations with instructors, technicians, and engineers.
• Opportunity to get “elbows deep” in the complete product range and better understand the internal workings of the product.
• Opportunity to learn the advantages and disadvantages of products that enable them to specify the right product for the installation.
• Better confidence in the product and their ability which will drive sales. After all, if the homeowners sees that you know the product, and have been to the facility for training they know that you are a committed professional that will do a better job and stand behind your work.

PHC: Hands-on training is important. Does the new training facility offer more of that?

Clisham: Yes, the new facility goes from six working boilers to 24 working boilers, with 12 available for use at a time. Something else new are “tear down” models that will be used to give attendees the chance to get deep into the boiler.