| Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems
Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems | March
| Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems KeepingWestern Australia Cool Since 1985
Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems | March If quality lies at the heart of efficiency, then Ford &Doonan Air Conditioning Systems is leaps and bounds ahead of the competition in Western Australia. The company – whose air conditioning systems are comprised of high-quality materials, and comprehensively designed and installed – prides itself on offering customers unparalleled service, while always looking for opportunities to improve. As a result of that drive for continuous improvement, Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems is on a robust growth trajectory. It is now directing its efforts into concentrated growth endeavours throughout the region for sustained, long-term success. The Perth-based company is entering into its 30th year thanks in no small part to fastidious attention to detail and shrewd entrepreneurial acumen. Perhaps most impressive, its eponymous founders, Andrew Ford and Kyle Doonan were 19 and 20 years old, respectively, when they founded the company. To what, then, does Ford & Doonan owe its longevity? “Of any organization, the culture is the
| Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems
Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems | March lifeblood and success or failure of that organization,” says Andrew, noting that exemplary service yields repeat customers and, ultimately, more business. “The decision myself and the other director Kyle Doonan make in relation to a customer is, do we humour them or do we fix the problem? We’ll wear it at our cost because you can win the battle, but you lose the war, so to speak.” Such an ethos, which wears more like a badge of honour, has propelled Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems to the acme of the Western Australian air conditioning industry, while also garnering the company accolades. Winners of the 2014 HIA Customer Service Award, the 2012 Trainer of the Year Award and runner-up for the 2015 Master Builder Association Customer Service Award, Andrew simply attributes the company’s success to a refusal to rest on its laurels. “We’ve grown to 175 people in the organization,” he says. “It’s nice recognition to know that they’re making a difference. Never keep doing what you’re doing; you always have to stay one step ahead and keep monitoring and improving.” “What can we do better by way of innovation? We have to continue improving our service. Simply winning an award isn’t good
| Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems EXPERTISE AND QUALITY PRODUCTS enough.” Ford & Doonan has an array of clients – making the maintenance of its myriad, indomitable relationships all the more impressive. Their work ranges from simple client jobs, like replacing decades-old Ford & Doonan systems, to upmarket installation projects in conjunction with industry-leading builders. The company works in both residential and commercial sectors. Ford & Doonan has 15 mobile service technicians and five service administrators – making it one of Perth’s largest service departments – that focus on residential and commercial maintenance contracts, breakdown work, performance reports and upgrades. The company is buoyed by a tablet system that abets the transmission of integral information in an expeditious manner. The company’s Builders Direct Department endows some of Perth’s largest builders with reverse cycle and evaporative cooling systems for new builds. The commercial division, on the other hand, deals in more lucrative service projects, typically apartment buildings and small commercial developments, whose value straddles the million-
Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems | March dollar mark. Ford & Doonan’s premium builder set is its most profitable, however, as its systems appear in the upscale market. Ford &Doonan is one of only three companies in W.A. that carry Samsung’s entire air conditioning catalogue, and one of the top-five Panasonic dealers in the same region. Additionally, Ford & Doonan remains W.A.’s largest dealer of Daikin products, as the latter is the company’s main supplier, and carries their VRV, ducted and split systems. Ford & Doonan and Daikin’s relationship is so successful, in fact, that the two companies have undertaken collaborative marketing campaigns. Ford & Doonan has, arguably, its industry’s largest marketing budget in Perth, and one of the largest in the Western Australian air conditioning market. It flies speakers in from all over Australia and frequently hosts the Builders’ Breakfast, which fosters existing relationships and cultivates new ones. Moreover, continued education is a cornerstone of the company, because betrothing itself to emerging technologies ensures its
| Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems relevancy. “We have new technology like WiFi control of air-conditioning and motion sensors,” says Andrew. “It upsells to clients and identifies client needs. The industry is developing quickly and we must adapt quickly to situations.” The company doesn’t callously manage its waste, either. While the industry is heavily regulated to protect the environment, waste disposal remains a wholly discretionary practice. Nevertheless, Ford & Doonan have stringent recycling provisions in place that separate cardboard, plastic and scrap metal – the latter of which goes to scrap yards. “Minimizing impact with waste is how we most make a difference,” says Andrew. Ford & Doonan has been growing at an astronomical rate of 25 to 30 per cent over the past three years, but it will spend 2015 consolidating that growth before setting its sights on expansion in 2016. With limited presence north of Perth, Ford & Doonan envision growing northwardly and along continental Australia’s eastern seaboard. The company also has plans to grow FDRefriger-
Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems | March ation, a subsidiary of Ford & Doonan, from one to five franchises within three years. “We have no presence north of Perth, and not growing is not an option,” says Andrew. “Things are still pretty positive over here. One of my mantras is, ‘Unless you’re growing, you’re going!’ We’ve never gone back within 30 years, but we’re going to go steady a bit and consolidate the existing market and look for growth again in 2016.”
| Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems
Ford & Doonan Air Conditioning Systems | March
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTYzNTg=