Forward Thinking Electrical Supplier Sees The Right Path To Create A More Successful Businesses
With the changing yet consistent face of electricity, there are always new aspects facing the RV industry. One of the people at the forefront of this discussion is Wade Elliott, President and Founder of Utility Supply Group in Washington State, which has made breakthroughs in practical applications of electrical power boxes and pedestals. Elliott, who also is part of the NFPA Code Panel 19 as well as a chair of the KOA Care Camp Trust, sat down with The Buzz at the 2016 FASPC Conference in Orlando to talk about best practices, the importance of community in the industry and how the business is evolving.
The Buzz: Tim Deputy, the chairman of the both the National and Florida ASPC chapters, mentioned that your approach to grounding rods has been a game changer recently. Can you elaborate on your thought process?
Wade Elliott: The big thing about the grounding rods was the inconsistency across the country. It really was all about how the inspector interpreted the code. That is one of the things we look at when we are looking at what we want to do with the code [during a given] cycle. The problem was that [during that cycle] nobody could say with any definitiveness that “this is the way it should be done”. What happened was the National Fire Protection Agency got [a group] of about 10 people together. I was surprised to be added to that list. There were people that were experts in grounding…experts in lightning, inspectors, insurance people, electrical industry people. We [all] went through and said “OK…is there a safety requirement that says ‘It has to be ground rods there [at each campsite]?’” No. It is not a lightning problem. It is not a step-and-touch problem. [Thereby] the RV pedestal is being [incorrectly] defined as a structure. [It] was all about making sure that… number one…it’s safe…and number two…everybody has the same starting point that [indicates] that the interpretation is not “this” but “this”. The point is that “ABC Campground” here on the one side of Florida and “DEF Campground” [on the other side of Florida] can build and have the same [starting point] because the inspectors are looking at it the same way.
The Buzz: Another issue you addressed at the conference interrelated to a standards issue with people trying to customize pedestals. One example someone tried, I believe, was setting up a 50A circuit on one where it is only carrying 20 to 40A. One would think that this would cause differentials simply because different motorhomes draw different amounts of power.
WE: In that particular situation, it was one of our partners that proposed it. You don’t just sit there and dismiss [the possibility] out of hand because you are looking for their support on other things. It was one of those things [though]. As I mentioned, I didn’t agree with it because, in my mind, it wasn’t a safety issue...it was a business decision. Somebody in Florida or Texas would probably be at 100% of 50Amp but then in Maine or Wisconsin might be at 0%. I wanted to be able to say “I support you on that” but do it in such a way that it would minimize the impact on the people that send me to represent them. So [for example] I would represent ARVC and its members on that panel. [In that instance] I don’t think a standard should be dictating a business decision. A standard should be dictating a safety issue.
The Buzz: Can you talk from your perspective about the importance of “community” within ARVC at state level and beyond.
WE: An important reason, although maybe not the most important one, [relates to] camaraderie. When, as Jeff [Sims] just said in his talk [at the conference], there are 49 parks within 25 miles [of Orlando], [they would] probably all say “Good Morning” to each other [if] they saw each other on the street. [You can be a] competitor, that’s fine [but] you can share some ideas of what works. Beyond the camaraderie, [the purpose of the conference] is the gathering together to support things like Jeff [Sims] and his monitoring of state laws and proposed policies and proposals that are coming down from the state level. One of the important things that I worked on in this last national electric code was really preventing things from happening rather than making things happen. It’s only when you have a group of people together [like ARVC] that can have somebody [like Jeff] dedicated [to watching the issues while] you are doing those other things. [We have seen that teamwork] quite a bit [across the country]. In the State Of Wisconsin we saw their association really help the state legislature bring together and define a new RV code in terms of what defines an RV and what defines a mobile home. That would never have happened if there was no camaraderie or no group of people getting together with like minds. I think in this country we are seeing a lot less of that than we used to. [Even with all the new technology], you get so many emails that the impact of each email becomes noise. It really makes a difference to actually be [at a conference] so you are paying attention and it is not “noise”. That is very important.
The Buzz: What do best practices dictate, at this point, as the industry continues to change and what part does an association like ARVC play in that?
WE: I think it all comes down to business decisions. You have a room full of entrepreneurs who want to make money. I would pose to you that the people who come to conferences and belong to associations are more successful than the ones that don’t. I am not saying that there aren’t successful business people who don’t belong. I am just saying that the chances are more likely that every person in that room is a little more successful because they may be open [to certain conversations]. They choose to be involved. They choose to listen to other ideas. They choose to have camaraderie with other people in their industry. I think best practices are really dictated by good business decisions. [But, ultimately, it is] all about the customer experience. In a hospitality industry, someone has to feel like when they come into your sphere, they’re getting the best service and getting the best value from what you’re doing. Even in my business…and my business is selling to the hospitality industry…we teach our people from the accounts receivable person to the sales people to me, [that it] is all about making sure that that customer gets what they need and that we’re not just taking an order. People [of course] don’t stay with me thankfully. [If so], they’d have to sleep out in the warehouse…and it’s not heated. (chuckling).