Wrapping Up Another Great Year!
Greetings!
The Year Really Flew By!
Now is a good time to start your planning for 2020, both personally and professionally.
Plan to lower your stress. At minimum, stress keeps you from working at your best. Plan more and build your resources so you have less stress.
Get informed. Read more. Engage more in your industry. Learn what others are doing to get a competitive edge. Get the facts, not just opinions.
Use your time wisely. Business owners know the value of a dollar, but also understand the value of a minute. Don't let others steal your minutes.
In the year ahead, we will continue to share advice, product ideas and special offers to help you prosper. We are very optimistic about the prospects for the coming year.
We appreciate your business.
Best wishes for a safe and relaxing holiday season!
The Team at MPR Supply
Save the Date: MPR Contractor Show
Mark your calendar and plan to attend. Get new ideas to make 2020 your best year ever.Our show is a not-to-be-missed day of smart seminars, vendor displays and a delicious lunch.
WHEN: Join us Thursday, January 30th starting at 7:30am
Need Last Minute Holiday Decor?
We're ready to serve your holiday decorating needs.From light sets in all sizes, types and colors to greenery and wreaths, we have it all.
We select our products to be of the highest quality for professionals. No "homeowner grade" fakes here. Choose wisely and avoid products that waste your time with call-backs.
Schedule free delivery to your job site or office too! Contact with your needs or for pricing.
King Wire Marking for Successful Controller Troubleshooting and Changeouts
When returning to a customer's site for repair, maintenance, or system upgrades, crews need to be able to diagnose a problem and complete the job quickly. There is a way to make troubleshooting and maintenance of outdoor electrical systems easier: wire marking.
King Innovation helps irrigation contractors by offering several wire marking products.
U Phase Wire Markers allow the user to simply slide the patented u-shape marker tip across the wire for quick-drying, highly-visible markings. These four colored markers have quick-drying paint and are perfect for coding up to #6 AWG irrigation and lighting wire. The paint resists abrasion, moisture, dirt, oil and UV light.
Wire Marking Booklets let the installer match the terminal marker with every wire marker, and include extra blank markers for special legends. These markers resist moisture, dirt, and oil and have a non-smear legend to assure high visibility and easy identification.
Colored Tapes are designed for marking and coding wires in outdoor electrical applications. These tapes are made from low-lead PVC material which is resistant to abrasion, UV rays, moisture, and many acids. For use with applications up to 600V, these UL listed, and CSA certified tapes permit long-lasting durability.
NDS Offers Video Series on How to Calculate Drainage
NDS provides contractors with the most informative tools in the drainage industryNDS has created a video series that has been designed to take the contractor through three crucial steps to fix drainage problems:
- Identify current or potential drainage problems
- Calculate how much runoff water you need to plan for
- How to identify and properly size a solution that will work for you.
In an upcoming six-part series, the NDS resident civil engineer, Dr. Drainage, walks you through how to calculate runoff, store runoff, size your catch basin and determine what drain pipe to use.Click here to see the full series on YouTube.
In addition to these videos, NDS has created a series of online calculators that make it easy for contractors to plug in information from their jobsite and it helps you calculate drainage for your dry well, French drain, and drain pipe.
For more information please visit the NDS YouTube channel for extensive installation videos and helpful product overviews.
LASCO Tip: How to Make Leak-Free Joints
How many times have you had to repair a broken or leaking PVC irrigation system only to have the repair itself leak?
The most frequent problem reported to PVC fitting manufacturers is linked to the failure of solvent cementing processes.When installing or repairing PVC joints, there are steps you can take to ensure good results time-after-time.
Click to download LASCO's article on how to make leak-free joints.
Protect Backflows from Unexpected Freezes
The Zurn Wilkins ZWFR Freeze Relief Valve is designed to prevent freeze damage for backflow devices, and requires no periodic maintenance. The ZWFR can protect pressure vacuum breakers, double-check and reduced pressure principle assemblies, as well as the detector assemblies on large backflow products.How does it work? The ZWFR operates on the principle of detecting the difference between outside air temperature and inside water temperature. The ZWFR senses when water temperature approaches near-freezing (35° F) and opens to draw warmer supply water into the system. As the system reaches equilibrium (40°F) the valve closes. This venting process protects the backflow from catastrophic freeze damage.
How is the ZWFR installed? The ZWFR is easy to install and maintain. Simply thread the ZWFR device into a standard test cock - no shutdown or system draining required. Its compact design is compatible with most backflow preventers. The corrosion resistant bronze body requires no periodic maintenance.Where do I install the ZWFR? The ZWFR device is ideal for regions where occasional (and unexpected) freeze/thaw cycles occur, yet winterization (e.g., draining the system) is not common or required. Regions such as the south and west, where backflow preventers and equipment are typically installed outdoors, are particularly susceptible to system damage from a freeze.
Watch our ZWFR video on our OneZurn Youtube Channel, and click here for additional information on the ZWFR.
Don't wait - install today before it's too late!
What to Do About BAD Online Reviews of Your Company!
Business leaders know that great reviews make their company instantly more credible and appealing.Great reviews automatically increase your ranking in Google's Local Business search results (the map-based search listings), allowing you better opportunities to capture more potential new clients.
Higher ratings increase your chances of getting customers.Studies by reputation-management firm BrightLocal point out that moving from a 3-star rating to a 5-star rating generates a 25% increase in click-through activity.What to do about BAD reviews on Google or other sites?
1) Control your feelings Get over being angry or embarrassed fast. See the review as a wake up call to improve - and to never be in this situation again.
2) If responding online, be professional. Thank the client for bringing the concerns to your attention. Explain that you always strive to do good work. Show how you're being proactive to make changes to prevent future situations. Invite the client to reconnect with you to try you again. Get some help from a professional marketer in writing your response, if you're at all tempted to be sarcastic or judgemental. Your marketer will help you prepare a polished, professional response.
3) Be proactive. Implement a program in your company to gather more positive reviews of your business. When companies have many positive reviews, any potential surprise bad one can do much less damage to your reputation and your livelihood. Need help with that process? Ask us for options and resources.