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<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080>Hi
all,</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080>It's only =
natural that
people will find angles to poke fun at (or argue against) =
competitive
manufacturer's business practices. I thought I would spell out =
what the
Shigeru Kawai service program actually is.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080>The Kawai =
concert
technicians (which we call MPAs) are the people who actually do all of =
the final
assembly, regulation, tuning and voicing of the Shigeru Kawai pianos in
Japan. Since Kawai was starting a whole new piano line with these =
models,
we felt that the condition of the piano when it got to the home was =
critical to
building a reputation, and for that reason we have sent the technicians =
around
checking the pianos in dealer </FONT></SPAN><SPAN =
class=241394617-15062005><FONT
color=#000080>showrooms. As most of you know, convicing dealers =
to hire
the best technicians in town to prep pianos in their stores is not an =
easy task,
so this way we see each piano at least occasionally and can make sure =
they
are presentable.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080>The =
purchaser also is
given a one day service appointment by one of these MPAs in the home, =
and this
has a number of functions:</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080>- =
First, we
strongly encourage the buyers to have their own technician come =
visit
during that service day, so that the tuner can pick up the specific =
regulation
and voicing tips that work well with these pianos. This is a =
chance for a
sort of "on the job training" session that can really help you all keep =
the SK
pianos in good shape over the years.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080>- =
</FONT></SPAN><SPAN
class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080>Second, we get =
very valuable
feedback to the factory from these visits, as the Japanese technicians =
get a
chance to see how the pianos are performing in the real world =
in much more
variable climates than they would otherwise ever =
see.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080>- Finally, =
the customer
also gets a chance to have the piano voiced to suit their home and =
useage type,
and has the security of knowing that the piano has been well set up =
properly
from the start, so their responsibility then becomes only to =
maintain the
piano. </FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080>Kawai does =
offer a one
week training seminar for technicians in California specifically geared =
towards
Shigeru Kawai service. Some on this list have already attended, =
and
others are already on my waiting list for this seminar. =
If you
want to get on the list feel free to write to me directly (not =
through
CAUT). The seminar is intended to equip the better =
technicians in
the US to do the same type of service and know the specific techniques =
as the
Kawai MPAs. We have already made use of some of these SK Academy
"graduates' for servicing the store pianos, although the one in-home =
service
will always be performed by one of the MPAs who builds the
pianos.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080>The MPAs are =
not
available for routine service, so there is no effort underway to =
"outsource"
service work. The whole concept is kind of silly, actually, when =
you
consider the costs involved. All any technician needs to do to =
perform the
same kind of work is equip themselves with the knowledge and skills, and =
then
offer it to their customers! So many US technicians prefer to just =
do
quick tunings - I have found a strong resistance by technicians
to doing full service appointments for quality =
pianos. 1/2 day
and full day appointments for customers with high quality grand pianos =
should be
a routine thing, yet they are rarely done. If the local =
technicians offer
it to their customers, and the whole mystique for using outside =
"experts"
dissapears, and the local technician becomes the special
one.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080><FONT
color=#000080></FONT></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=241394617-15062005><FONT color=#000080><FONT =
color=#000080>Don
Mannino RPT, Director<BR>Shigeru Kawai Field Services<BR></FONT><A
href="http://www.shigerukawai.com/"><U><FONT
color=#0000ff>www.shigerukawai.com</U></FONT></A><U><FONT
color=#000080><BR></U></FONT><A =
href="mailto:tech@shigerukawai.com"><U><FONT
color=#0000ff>tech@shigerukawai.com</U></FONT></A>
</DIV></FONT></SPAN></BODY></HTML>