USTER, Switzerland — February 18, 2021 — It starts with a handshake, or a signature on a sales contract. That’s when the USTER After-Sales Service team springs into action to support the customer. Its expert staff will make sure every piece of equipment is installed perfectly and running smoothly. But that’s only the beginning of a relationship that lasts the full lifespan of the new equipment, guaranteeing rapid technical backup whenever and wherever it’s needed – even in the remotest of market regions.

Today’s customers rightly demand the highest standards when they invest in quality equipment, and After-Sales Service is an essential element in that, as feedback from customers in emerging markets confirms. Their expectations can be summarized under two categories: hard facts and soft skills…

The hard facts – technical support

Customers from Bangladesh, Vietnam and Uzbekistan always acknowledge that the reputation of Uster technical support has had some degree of influence on their purchasing decisions. And that makes them even more demanding. “Our customers expect yarn deliveries in the required quality — every time, all packages, no exceptions. Therefore, we must assure reliably running processes in every aspect, as well as efficiency in our production. That’s where After-Sales Service must come in,” said Phan Duc Le Hoang, director at Viet Tri Spinning JSC in Vietnam.

Majibur Rahman, senior general manager at Envoy Textiles Ltd. in Bangladesh, agreed: “We understand that we need excellent machinery, knowledgeable staff and a trusted partner who combines expert consultant and troubleshooter in one person. After-Sales Services help us for continuous and sustainable improvement.”

Fast-response, accurate service, suggestions for problem-solving and improvements … the list of customer requirements is almost endless. It all needs to be delivered urgently and to a high-quality standard.

Customer surveys praise the technical qualification of Uster service engineers and the effective solutions they propose. “The suggestions are beneficial and add value to our process in maintaining final yarn quality,” said Suresh Chander Pal, head of Quality Assurance at FE Indorama Kokand Textile JSC in Uzbekistan.

Another respondent, Ulugbek Kadirov, chief mechanic at Global Textile Solutions in Uzbekistan, puts loyalty to customers at the top of his requirement list. “We absolutely trust the loyalty of the Uster team,” he says. Comparisons of Uster service teams with those of other suppliers also produce a positive result, rating them “very good” for their prompt and professional work. “We judge based on results and we are satisfied,” Kadirov said.

Soft skills – the relationships

Customers are naturally committed to maximizing the value of their investments, and their comments show that many recognize the value of good relationships with service teams in this respect. “Staff appreciate equipment from Uster and its timely upgrades with innovative ideas,” said Shamimul Haque, chief production officer at Matin Spinning Mills Ltd., Bangladesh. When describing the contacts of Uster After-Sales Service, each customer response included “friendly” — seen as a pathway to reliable and open knowledge sharing.

Knowledge transfer is said to be another Uster benefit much appreciated by customers. “Uster provides know-how enriched by important technical experiments and data, which is of course valuable to us,” Rahman said. Sharing quality information is also viewed as extremely beneficial by Viet Tri Spinning JSC’s Le Hoang: “Knowledge transfer is very helpful. Uster service engineers take time to transfer knowledge. We would definitely like more time invested in this,” he said.

Customers clearly place great importance on many aspects of the After-Sales Service – but would they go as far as recommending Uster as a partner? Yes, was the verdict from those questioned, based on various reasons: reliability and global acceptance of test results (by FE Indorama Kokand Textile JSC, Uzbekistan), quality assurance guidance (by Envoy Textiles Limited, Bangladesh; by Matin Spinning Mills Ltd., Bangladesh; and by Global Textile Solutions, Uzbekistan) and proven excellent reputation (by Viet Tri Spinning JSC, Vietnam).

Raising the bar

The positive responses from Uster customers proves they are satisfied with their service packages — but also still demanding. “Service packages may incorporate options like automatic software upgrades, as well as customized parts exchanging,” says Haque, of Matin Spinning.

After-Sales Service is as important to Uster as to its customers. The four regional and 29 local service centers are manned by some 225 qualified engineers and technologists, many of whom have been with the company for ten years or more. This underlines the quality of Uster’s After-Sales Service and is acknowledged by customers recognized. “Based on this stability, we develop strong bonds which help both parties,” says Indorama Kokand’s Pal.

Suresh Kris, the Uster Technologies vice president for Global After Sales & Service, affirms that dialogue with spinning mills worldwide is vital in helping to raise the bar continually towards even higher levels of service provision and customer satisfaction: “We value practical suggestions from customers. It helps to elevate the level of our services and to define them according to needs,” he said. “Strong bonds such as these create a win-win situation. What more could we want?”

Posted February 18, 2021

Source: Uster Technologies AG