John Fluke said "the customer should always get more than they thought they paid for". One of those extras is diligence, or in dictionary-speak, "persevering application". Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at the care that goes into a new Fluke product.
Diligence in product definition begins with the "voice of the customer", or VOC. Fluke engineers research not only WHAT users do, but HOW they do it. They try to understand not just the measurement functions and ranges that a task requires, but also the work methods or processes that real people actually use. What should the user interface be? How could that user interface help the customer work faster or work smarter? What would delight this customer? Several iterations of VOC research and planning are necessary to ensure that new products meet customer expectations. Finally, beta testing confirms that the product definition matches original intent.
Diligence in design applies both art and science to resolve the tug-of-war between the constraints on a new instrument. The circuit design needs to deliver the specified measurement performance, but it must also protect against misconnected inputs and inputs above stated limits. The circuit must perform over a wide range of temperature, humidity, and altitude, while being subjected to electromagnetic interference and electrostatic discharge. Now add the constraints that the new meter is expected to be compact, handheld, easy to use, and rugged, and the problem becomes very difficult to solve. Each iteration of a design is tested for durability, safety, and measurement performance. Refinement continues until each test is passed with a substantial margin. Only then is a new design released to production.
Diligence in metrology has two aspects. First, a Fluke spec includes allowance for drift due to time, temperature, and humidity. You can be confident that your meter still performs within spec when it returns for its scheduled calibration. Second, each Fluke meter is adjusted and verified, traceable to recognized international standards, by a branch of the Fluke standards lab that resides within the production cell.
What does all this diligence mean to you? Care in definition, design, and metrology means you can count on your tools to safely deliver a professional result, and that your investment will continue to perform well over a long and useful life.
Bio: Rick Pirret recently retired from Fluke following 30 years in product design and marketing. Previously, he was with Bell Labs for 10 years in product and facility design. Rick studied mechanical engineering at Cornell and Stanford, and completed an MBA at Seattle University. Over the years, hobbies have included scuba diving, white water canoeing, flying, motorcycling, and bicycling. More recently, Rick likes to be outdoors in the Cascades Mountains or on-track in a BMW.
Blog One: Diligence; by Rick Pirret