Last week we attended the NTEA Work Truck Show in Indianapolis. Let me share some of the feedback we got from industry about the RazerLift.

The first thing I have to say is that we had a LOT of visitors, despite the fact that our booth was in the far recesses of the show. Most of the visitors just wandered by our booth, but many of them deliberately made the trip to see the RazerLift in action. Some of the visitors made the trip specifically because their colleagues had previously visited our booth and told them, “you have to go see the RazerLift!” That was encouraging. Whether they happened upon our booth, or planned to see it, many people stopped and stared for a very long time. And many asked some great questions.

The single most common piece of feedback we received was the obvious safety advantage that the RazerLift offered over existing technology. Safety has been our primary focus for a long time, and safety was front and center in the minds of the most passionate observers. Pushing a button and letting the motor do all the work – and eliminating any overhead reaching in any part of the process – is always ergonomically superior. And, interestingly, the larger the fleet size, the greater the perceived safety advantage the RazerLift offered. One customer told us that, just the week before the show, they had been instructed by their safety officer to find a better solution for accessing ladders, because the safety officer received yet another injury claim associated with loading and unloading ladders from the vehicle roof. Gotta love that timing!

But safety wasn’t the only positive feedback we received:

  • The unit is obviously solidly engineered. The perception seems to be that existing products are not of particularly high quality; prone to failure. I’m not sure which products they have in mind because I know of some drop-down ladder racks that are currently on the market that look very well constructed and have a great reputation. Nonetheless, the quality of the RazerLift was widely affirmed; it is a robust product designed to handle the abuse of the real world.
  • The price is right. One attendee commented, regarding the price, “so it’s 1/3 the cost of an injury claim!” I don’t think the ratio is quite right, but his point was well made. Pay less for the RazerLift now, or pay more for the injury claim later. Very few people objected to the price, and a few people even commented that they were surprised it was so low!
  • Everyone is going to want one! It was widely observed that if a fleet were to pilot the RazerLift on some of their vehicles, pretty soon everyone in that fleet is going to want one. This speaks not only to the safety improvement, but the overall employee satisfaction the RazerLift provides. Even if your workers are not injuring themselves, wouldn’t it be better if they knew they were working with the right tools for the job? The RazerLift should help with employee retention by improving employee satisfaction.
  • Cargo efficiency. The fact that the RazerLift can accommodate multiple ladders – or ladders and conduit tube containers (or just about any other combo) – was a real hit. And various combinations can be switched out with just a few basic tools, at that. One customer (from California) strongly suggested an accessory to accommodate two ladders and two surf boards. We have begun design work already! We came to realize that we have fundamentally created a new category of cargo management tool.
  • Installation is straightforward. We described the installation process to many people – especially the numerous upfitters who visited us – and they were very pleased with the simplicity of the installation, and how little time it took. All the mechanical pre-assembly is done with a single allen key in about an hour!
  • Reduced damage. There were two advantages to having a powered and automated unit with respect to damage. First, all the safeguards in the system make it virtually impossible for the unit to strike the side or roof of the vehicle. We were told that some workers – particularly if they’ve had a bad day – can be somewhat rough with the equipment; not a problem with the RazerLift. Second, the fact that it is push-button operated makes it harder for workers to inadvertently misuse the unit itself.
  • Warranty. Many people loved our warranty. Combined with the fact that the unit could, theoretically, be transferred between vehicles and you’ve got yourself a long-term cargo management system.

There was a lot of interest, and the interest was overwhelmingly positive. We did get some negative feedback – you cannot please everyone – but it was so infrequent that there weren’t any specific issues that repeatedly came up. Our sales team is busy issuing quotes this week and we look forward to delivering our first units shortly thereafter. And we continue to grow our network of installers so if you are in the commercial vehicle upfitting world, and would like to offer the RazerLift to your customers, drop us a line.

We’re looking forward to the NAFA show in about a month. Hopefully we get a similarly positive reception!