Most manufacturers and industrial companies are familiar with the quality issues that can arise from importing products and parts from overseas facilities. But what about the challenges that come with exporting your industrial components to a developing country?
That’s exactly the dilemma a leading power generation company faced when they recently contacted Deufol. The company manufactured a variety of components used in large-scale generators and power stations. One such component is a bus lead, which is a long metal tube with electrical components inside. The tubes serve as a conduit to carry power from the generator.
The company in question had a reputation for producing reliable, high-quality products. That reputation was a key element in their success. However, they were facing significant quality issues as they shipped their bus leads to developing countries, which make up a substantial portion of their business. They turned to Deufol for a solution.
The Export Quality Challenge
The company’s bus leads were packed and transported around the world to developing nations, which is where many of the world’s new power stations are being built. However, many of the bus leads were arriving at their destination with defects. The tubes were dented or the internal electrical components were loose.
The power generation company had tried several iterations of packaging to resolve the issue, but hadn’t been successful. As a result, they were often forced to hire third parties in the destination country to fix defects after the bus leads arrived. Those repair costs were hurting the company’s margins and their reputation for quality and reliability.
Deufol’s Plug-and-Play Solution
Our process started with the same initial step we take with every new customer: listening. We consulted with the power company and asked questions so we could get a deep understanding of their objective and their challenges.
Our engineering team then got to work, brainstorming and developing potential packaging solutions that would protect the tubes’ quality through a long transport overseas. Out of our many design ideas, we narrowed the list to three options, all of which involved saddles that bundled four tubes together. In each option, the saddles were secured and protected in a different way.
While we were confident in our ideas, we also knew that a simple visual presentation may not accurately convey each option’s effectiveness. Our in-house engineers and design team opted to build scale models of each option, complete with miniature bus leads.
In our presentation to the power company, we brought physical models of all three solutions. All the models had interchangeable, plug-and-play parts. This turned out to be a critical design element because it allowed the company’s engineers to mix-and-match components from the various solutions.
The result was that we were able to work with the company to combine different elements from each packaging option to create a fourth solution that fully met their quality needs. They are currently evaluating their process and production in advance of implementing the new packaging system.
Deufol was able to deliver this innovative solution largely because our engineers, designers, and other packaging professionals all work together in one facility. We don’t have to send a blueprint to a modeling shop and then wait for them to send a product back to us. Our engineers and designers work together face-to-face. That reduces our timeline and helps us deliver moreeffective solutions.
At Deufol, we live by our motto of “Tough Packs Solved.” That means we are enthusiastic about tackling even the toughest packaging, shipping, and supply chain challenges. Let’s connect soon to talk about your goals, and what we can do to help you reach them. 
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