By Vincent M. Kent, CWS-I, CI
As we conclude our 2009 business year, take time now to make plans to attend the 2010 WQA Aquatech USA Show at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida March 9 through 12. You will hear the right message at the right time!
Our industry, like many others, has been challenged during 2009. But with this challenge, a great many opportunities have presented themselves to dealers toward which we can set our future destiny.
I cannot imagine any dealer failing to attend this show each year, or to hesitate on being a WQA member for that matter. But it is especially important that you join, participate and attend in 2010, as the need to learn and transition is greater than at any other time in our profession.
A special focus is planned at WQA Aquatech USA 2010 to help educate dealers on ways to branch out and expand services and generate other income streams. Greater strides are planned to take this education directly to the show floor.
Money-saving tips on installations, truck fleet efficiency, new software and route delivery methods will help dealers enhance their opportunities within residential, commercial and industrial applications. Regardless of business size, these are applications that every dealer does have the opportunity to pursue.
The commercial-sizing design and application education module, scheduled for successful release in 2010, is another opportunity to expand this concept further. The ever-growing sales of module books and the release of the open-book, online certification program in 2010 will provide a blue print for dealers big and small to size and treat a system for any new construction.
Dealers will no longer be threatened about whether a job is too big or too much for them to handle. This program will provide top-to-bottom water treatment service capability for treatment, softening and water services to single homes or multi-story hotel operations.
Access to finance will be another topic focus for dealers at WQA Aquatech USA 2010. How to secure local institution financing, very different for many in our industry, will be a component. Concepts for self-financing will also be explored, as this can be very lucrative cash flow for any sized dealer to investigate for rentals or installs that can create a positive cash stream.
Most importantly, the focus for dealers will be that water softening is not a frill, but rather could be the greenest and most efficient technology utilized by homes and businesses. With the planned release and announcement of the Battelle study at the event, the many economic problems with water hardness will be fully highlighted.
We all preach silky-soft feeling, less soap, smooth skin, clean shaving and comfortable showers. But our focus needs to ecologically shift to savings in water resources, household plumbing and appliance damage and energy savings for consumers.
We have the chance to promote the strategic quality of ion exchange water science as the proven technology of hardness removal and that an ion exchange softener is the greenest appliance technology available today in a consumer’s home. We need to further prove that water and energy efficiency is best achieved by advocating such technology, not legislating or banning it.
Despite the current global economy, it is a great time to be a water dealer. And your future starts with education, which is at the forefront of WQA Aquatech USA 2010. Visit www.wqa-aquatech.com for more details.
It is the right message at the right time! I hope to see you there.
Vincent M. Kent, CWS-I, CI
2009-2010 WQA President
President, Abendroth Water Conditioning