31.01.2023 / Reto Hofer

4 Reasons for Satisfied (Service) Customers

The vast majority of our customers are fundamentally satisfied with our services. On the one hand, this is due to the sound technical know-how of our service technicians and an often long-standing, partnership-based customer relationship. On the other hand, they score points with honest, open communication and reliable, individual assistance.
 
A high level of customer satisfaction with our services, as we have experienced time and again at Muller Martini, cannot be taken for granted in the current situation. This is because the initial situation in the service business is very demanding, just as it is in the new machine business. Our customers are under massive pressure: the still high paper and energy prices, worryingly high inflation, global uncertainty and the ongoing price war for customer orders are clouding the mood and the economic forecasts.
 
In this situation, it is particularly important for our customers that they can rely on our machines and the quality of our services. Very few of them are still in a position to cope with prolonged and therefore expensive production downtimes. The fact that we are struggling on our side with uncertain supply chains and thus difficulties in procuring spare and wear parts makes it even more difficult for us to meet the demands placed on us by our customers on a daily basis. That's why I'm all the more pleased that we still receive a lot of positive feedback from satisfied customers under these conditions. In this context, I see the following four points with which we convince our customers.
 
Point 1: We are professionally top
The first-class technical training of our service employees is an important pillar for high customer satisfaction. Of course, the service technicians at Muller Martini are always trained on the new machines or in the latest technical updates. This year, we are investing 14,000 hours globally in training for employees from the market organizations, of which around 2,100 hours are for service technicians in the factories.
 
In order to be able to respond even more specifically to service requests, we are focusing not only on targeted technical training but also on providing individual employees with broader technical training. For example, a former perfect binder specialist is now also acquiring additional know-how in the digital field in order to be able to respond even faster and more flexibly to inquiries with today's networked systems.
 
Point 2: We work out joint solutions
Today, you expect reliable and consistent service that goes hand in hand with open and honest communication. In a tense situation - when your machine is at a standstill, for example - such a telephone conversation is not always easy for both sides. Our service technicians are trained to communicate in a fact-oriented and, above all, solution-oriented manner. The aim here is to work out solution variants that enable you to get back into production as quickly as possible.
 
Active listening is particularly important here: we are not only concerned with the factual aspect of the enquiry, we want to understand you as a whole and try to put ourselves in your shoes. A change of perspective often brings completely new ideas to light and helps to find a constructive solution together.

Point 3: We reduce production losses as quickly as possible
Our customers are satisfied when we respond quickly and reliably to a service call. At Muller Martini, we are helped in this by the very well-developed IT infrastructure with which our service technicians work. More and more customers are using the central customer portal MPOWER, on which we are now gradually introducing the eCall function in addition to the existing functions (for example, documentation). At the touch of a button, you can open a service call that already contains the most important information.
 
The calls are organized via a central monitoring system, on which almost all local market organizations can further escalate the service calls to the plant specialists. High-priority cases in particular, where the customer's machine is at a standstill, can thus be dealt with as quickly as possible. The monitoring system helps us to solve all customer queries efficiently - and to ensure that you can start your production again with satisfaction.
 
Point 4: We look after you individually
Particularly in the case of modern, high-performance and highly networked manufacturing processes with a high level of investment, it is important that your systems have a high level of availability. When the warranty expires, very many of our customers therefore conclude a service agreement with us. Since every company is different, they can individually fall back on service packages tailored to their needs.
 
The question is: What do you need to ensure your productivity and keep service costs calculable and low? Clearly defined services and efficient life cycle management help you make the right decisions. You can choose from a wide range of services, from regular maintenance, inspections and repairs, telephone and remote support - around the clock if required - to production support.
 
In the first half of 2022, over 90 percent of customers who sent feedback on the service call rated our services positively. A great result! To keep it that way, we are igniting the next stage of MMServices with Smart Services. Because nowadays, our customers demand even faster, even better and even more proactive service, while we at Muller Martini want to meet customer needs with efficient use of resources. The linchpin here is the digitization of processes. This makes it possible to make information visible, create documentation, recognize service histories and generate and evaluate data. Read more about this in the blog about our Smart Services.
 
I hope that we can also count you (soon) among our satisfied service customers.
 
Your
Reto Hofer,
Head of Service Muller Martini AG
 
31.01.2023 Reto Hofer Program Manager Global Services