Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/63069
42 • MAY 2012 • WORLD FENCE NEWS This month, I have been asked to talk about the importance of on-going education and the role it can play in as- sisting your business to not only stay current, but to grow. This particular column will focus on the great strides being made by our industry regarding technical education on gate operators and access controls. Over the years, many fence deal- ers have told me that they will sell gate operators pretty much only when re- quested. I inquire as to what the rea- son is for this fear or trepidation, and the usual response has been either "I haven't got anyone who knows how to service them properly," or "I lost my shirt once when I sold a customer a THE HUMAN LINK by Jim Lucci Management Motivational Associates The importance of continuing education maintenance agreement, and I'll never do that again." How many of you have had either of those reactions over the years, or worse yet, refused to even objectively consider adding gate operators to your product line because you know noth- ing about them or because of the so- called "war stories" you have heard from others in the business? Well, of course you are not alone. But, in this day and age, I would en- courage those of you who haven't con- sidered gate operators as a viable product for your business in recent years to reconsider. I think many of you are missing an opportunity to grow your businesses. More impor- Dynasty Profiles PVC Profiles Pre-Fabricated Fence Panels Post & Picket Caps Aluminum Fences We are Extruders and Manufacturers of PVC and Aluminum ornamental products for the Fence Industry. Buy Direct from the source and save. You can mix any product in a single load. Now offering the full line of Caps and Accessories from our warehouse in Tennessee. PVC Profiles and Pre-Fabricated Panels are manufactured in Mono-Extruded 100% virgin material. All products meet ASTM standards. Ornamental Aluminum Panels Residential, Commercial and Industrial grades. Powder coated with DuPont paint and pre-assembled. Panels available with standard assembly or "Hidden-Screws". Email: info@dynastyfence.net For catalogs and prices contact us @: Tel. 877-846-0640 tant, there is a tremendous amount of help available to assist you in this ef- fort, help that might not have been available to you in the past. All you have to do is look through the past year's worth of World Fence News editions and you'll see dozens of technical seminars and workshops mentioned. They are sponsored by leading industry trade organizations, as well as by access control distribu- tors and manufacturers. They cover a wide range of topics from the opera- tors themselves to all accessories. Critically, many also address very important safety standards that have been developed for the access control industry over the past several years, notably UL 325 (of which one of the most important sections addresses pro- tection from entrapment and pinch points) and ASTM F2200-11b, Stan- dard Specification for Automated Ve- hicular Gate Construction. Distributors of gate operators and access controls with multiple locations can pick a location and make it local so as to bring more contractors in. This particular method can be very effec- tive, not only for the distributor but to the contractors as well, particularly on a regional basis. At a gathering of this type, ques- tions can be raised that affect many contractors in the session, and answers can help clear up any issues that might be keeping the contractor from com- fortably pursuing the sale and installa- tion of gate operators in their particular markets. Another area that causes much consternation among contractors is the maintenance agreement. As I alluded to earlier, many contractors over the years cited the problem that they have encountered in administering a main- tenance program on a cost-effective basis. What an opportunity a gathering such as we have mentioned is for learning how to troubleshoot problems connected with the gate operator itself and also how to effectively deal with whatever problems arise in connection with the maintenance agreement, ei- ther in an administrative level or on a fundamental level of repairs and main- tenance. These kinds of programs exist for you to take advantage of. Why would you not? I am not being judgmental or snide in my thought process. But those who take advantage of educational oppor- tunities when they present themselves can see the benefit that this can pro- vide to help grow their businesses and will therefore avail themselves of just such an opportunity, and as such gen- erally will reap the benefits associated with the effort. Perhaps this would be a good continued on page 46