A FAMILY’S COMMITMENT TO ‘DOING A THOUSAND LITTLE THINGS RIGHT’
Over four generations later, manufacturing wastewater pump solutions has meant plenty of research, development, and ingenuity for Zoeller. This is a company constantly pushing to find how to improve next, from products to processes. Part of Zoeller's resilient success hearkens back to its roots: never losing sight of the old-fashioned, authentic values that inspired its humble beginnings.
The old adages that “a job worth doing is worth doing well” along with “doing a thousand little things right” are gifts from the company’s original founders; principled sayings that Zoeller has earnestly turned into guiding actions, replicating across generations past and generations to come. It takes a lot of conscientious precision to make moving wastewater and effluent this easy for customers.
Zoeller takes into account the specific needs of every industry. Whereas the HVAC industry’s water removal conditions may look like line build-up in tankless water heating units, no two industry’s essential must-haves are alike. While Zoeller uses its Scale Removal System in the HVAC industry, since the early 90s, the company has also offered submersible grinder pumps for tough sewage applications. Today, Zoeller has perfected its ability to adapt designs, from thermally-protected condensate pumps to commercial and residential sump pits; all complete with 100% factory testing for absolute dependability.
BUILDING A SUMP PUMP THAT OUTLIVES INDUSTRY EXPECTATIONS
C.S. Lewis said, “Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.” When it comes to the wastewater arena, look no further than customer satisfaction. After all, customers know when a product and service feel like they’ve been done right. Zoeller has come to look forward to surprising customers — with how long Zoeller sump pumps actually last them.
“How long?” That’s one of the most asked questions Zoeller hears from customers. There’s a difference between ‘should last’ and Zoeller: a difference of integrity. Zoeller pumps exceed industry standards for life expectancy, with one customer finding that a residential septic system from Zoeller installed in 1987 ran for 31 years of service. This system pumped all of the customer’s wastewater and sewage — needing only routine maintenance and the occasional part upgrade.
Zoeller has invested years of family-led integrity to take such pride in delivering consistent, incomparable quality. When you hear sayings like, “They don’t make them like they used to anymore;” well, Zoeller still does.
Take a CPC Gas Station in Taipei, Taiwan, where ordinarily, gasoline around the filling stations might drip. One slosh of rainfall takes that hazardous gas leaked onto the ground right into the pump pits, seeping into the foundation of the building. Yet, with three key installations of Zoeller’s hazardous duty, submersible effluent pumps — the only hazardous duty pumps of this kind available on today’s market — a gas station owner can feel at ease, knowing stray murky rainwater will now be collected and pumped to Taipei’s sewer system.
Headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, Zoeller has not only taken care to expand on its innovative research; this company likewise has devoted time to build out its facilities. Zoeller understands that by opening up its manufacturing area, office space, and creating a cutting-edge training center called the Center for Excellence, this wastewater industry leader can continue to rise to the occasion, providing a lifetime of value for customers.
LIVE EVENT VIDEO PRODUCTIONS ARE IMPORTANT NOW MORE THAN EVER BEFORE
A drive for state-of-the-art development has inspired Zoeller Pump to turn to Hatfield Media for creative video production services. According to Chuck Rogers, Director of Video Production at Hatfield Media, “Hatfield Media has worked Zoeller Pump Company's three-day biannual sales conference for at least the last 8 years.” For the company’s 2020 All IN conference, Zoeller and Hatfield would need to tackle brand new challenges in face of COVID-19.
Hatfield Media’s Director of R&D Ray Tri didn’t shy away from thinking outside-the-box, noting, “Working on the Zoeller conference was really fun. We were able to build them a custom, state of the art live conferencing site even amid all of this turmoil.” The turnaround required ultimate speed and efficiency to pull off this complex endeavor, one Tri highlights Hatfield’s team navigated “in less than 30 days while maintaining an extremely professional quality of work — and without sacrificing our enterprise level hosting infrastructure.”
Rogers acknowledges that “this year needed to be different due to the virus;” and so Hatfield’s team worked intently “with the Zoeller team to create some pre-recorded content and to produce a multi-camera live stream conference.” This meant that every day, Hatfield’s team navigated “around 400 of Zoeller’s sales partners viewing the program across the nation,” including a live-chat feature to enable “questions from the audience to be addressed in real-time,” adds Rogers.
Consider this Zoeller’s “typical hotel ballroom type event with a live audience” factor thrown into the mix, explains Rogers. Hatfield’s team was able to roll with the punches; so much so that Tri is convinced, “We could have supported over 40,000 more viewers without breaking a sweat!”
DELIVERING PRODUCTION TO MAKE A VIRTUAL EVENT FEEL PERSONAL
Producing a virtual event for 2020 set forth higher stakes: the format for live chat and the quality of videos would need to fill the gap. After all, this conference had become a staple of Zoeller tradition. Filming when done with empathy and immaculate precision can invite viewers into a singular experience. Robbie Myers, a video producer at Hatfield understood the importance of ensuring that all content "produced would clearly showcase Zoeller’s presentations.”
“My goal was to highlight in such detail that any viewer could learn meaningful information — as effectively as if they were watching an event in-person,” explains Myers, who felt satisfied with how each video he produced beforehand elevated the sales conference. “It felt really rewarding that I was able to help Zoeller overcome new obstacles in a challenging COVID-19 era.”
While Rogers ran the live streaming of Zoeller’s conference, where for three days a total of 9 hours of streaming were vibrantly recorded, Myers took on the role of producing several enlightening videos. “These videos empowered the company to disperse valuable information without placing any salespeople at risk.”
It was a true team effort to place all the parts and pieces in motion, seamlessly pulling together a conference just as successful for Zoeller as in years past. Nathan Klein, Hatfield Media’s Lead Back-End Developer, collaborated with Tri on creating a web page for streaming. “It was a fascinating opportunity to produce and stage a site for an event,” says Klein, who experimented with registration and implemented live chat software.
The development model Hatfield utilized was clear and simple, as another round of experimentation conjured impeccable results: “almost no revisions with just a couple of key blocks to use and reuse throughout.” Klein takes pride in continuing to “offer clients advice on the best live chat services,” especially to support “a great team and great brand at Zoeller.”
ADVANCING A TECHNOLOGICAL VISION (EVEN WHEN TRADITION IS HELD AT BAY)
BJ Hentrup, Marketing Manager at Zoeller Pump Company, knew that “this past year” would be different, when “Zoeller Company was not able to have our traditional, in-person National Sales Meeting.” That’s when Zoeller called in Hatfield Media’s video team to adapt the conference.
“We turned to Hatfield Media to step in and help us provide the best virtual National Sales Meeting our Manufacturer’s Representatives have ever seen. And they did that!” asserts Hentrup. “With Hatfield Media leading the way, we were able to provide our Reps with a just as good, if not better, experience which included LIVE video and also pre-recorded videos. As usual, Hatfield Media delivered and we appreciate all they have done for us!”
Whether facing a global pandemic or new curveballs on the horizon, Hatfield Media feels proud to help Zoeller navigate any twists and turns. Because even when tradition needs some modifications, a virtual experience can still showcase the core of what Zoeller has to offer: exceptional integrity.
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