From the Pet Peeve Dept. ...
I'm driven to distraction when I purchase something, try to use it and discover an obvious design flaw that either renders it useless or much less functional than anticipated. Here's an example that happened just yesterday.
Bought a new PC two weeks ago and have been gradually getting it squared away since then. Last thing on the list was to buy a new desk lamp as the office is a little dim and I like task lighting anyway.
No problem. Off I went to the local store that sells EVERYTHING and is EVERYWHERE. They have a good selection of desk lamps so it was easy to find something functional that looks good. $40.00. More than I anticipated, but the lamp is attractive and it features a bright halogen lamp for good illumination.
Minutes after returning home the lamp was assembled and shining light on my desk. Great! Now to do some on line parts ordering ...
60 minutes later the lamp shade fell off the lamp onto the desk. Bang!
After having climbed down off the ceiling like the cat in the Bugs Bunny cartoon, I examined the lamp to find that it is entirely made of plastic. The plastic components had melted from the heat generated by the halogen lamp and the shade had fallen off. The lamp is now useless and must be returned for a REFUND (not an exchange thank you!).
CLEARLY, this lamp design made it all the way from design to manufacturing to distribution WITHOUT EVER HAVING BEEN TESTED FOR MORE THAN A FEW MINUTES AT A TIME. The designers never really tested their product!
How can a product in 2007 end up in hundreds of stores across North America (around the world?) in such a flawed state? Think of the resources that are being consumed as a result of this situation. Goodness knows how many lamps were manufactured. They're all destined for the junk pile now. Not to mention the time and money coming out of the economy to gather and dispose of all the lamps and to placate customers. Frightening.
What does this mean to Mack Music? It further reinforces why we spend so much time testing, tweaking, seeking feedback and improving our products. Commitment to quality means at least sticking with the basics: if you're going to design something, use it before you launch it!
How basic is that? Fundamental. How important is that? Critical.
BUY TONE NOT GLITZ
