Marra Forni has a firm commitment to our customers, and we promise to work diligently to ensure that Marraforni’s Brick Oven Service performs to our customer’s expectations. Two keys to our success are redundant backup operating systems that have been designed into our products, and the dedicated tech support resources.
To give you a glimpse of what happens behind the scenes, we interviewed our new Director of Technical Services, Eric Holder. Eric is a former US Navy Veteran and credits his military background with his extensive training in HVAC, electrical, and refrigeration. After retiring from the Navy, Eric worked with several well-known commercial food service organizations, including both service and manufacturing, and was responsible for managing service operations across North America, Canada, the Caribbean, and South America. Eric joined Marra Forni Commercial Brick Oven Cooking solutions with the focus of building a world-class service division to support Marra Forni’s growing sales and global market presence.
Eric’s vision for his team at Marra Forni is what he describes as a “First Time Fix” goal. This means that 90% of all service issues would be fixed the first time it is serviced (if it doesn’t need new parts). This is an ambitious goal since the industry standard is less than 70%.
Eric also believes that shortened response times are critical to a positive customer experience. He is a proponent of keeping Total Time of Event to a minimum – making sure it takes no longer than 2 days to repair an oven that requires parts “The ongoing pandemic continues to create challenges with shipping and supply chain, but Marra Forni continues to “but we work diligently to find solutions and shorten response times in the new environment.”
Continuous Improvement in brick oven service is what drives the Key Performance Indicators that Eric uses within the service and tech support team. are the metrics inside of the service team constantly improving. Specific to customer service, for example, every effort is being made to ensure that calls don’t go to voicemail. “Improved process, systems and tools, and communication are critical to achieving all of our service goals,” says Holder. In the parts department, he ensures that the fulfillment rate is consistently high, meaning that parts orders are processed and shipped within 2 days or less.
Our backup call system is a software system that allows anyone in technical support to access and dispatch from a global network of trained and factory-authorized service providers to support our customer’s needs, typically responding by phone call 2 hours and on-site within 12 hours for brick oven service. We like to ensure that the problem is fixed within 24 hours if parts don’t need to be ordered. The fewer customers wait, the sooner they can get back to profitably running their business which is what we are here for.
Preventative Maintenance, Eric says, is critical to all equipment. We are currently developing a new preventative maintenance schedule for our authorized service partners which will result in greater protection of our customer’s investment. Properly managed preventative maintenance will guarantee that the equipment performs at peak efficiency and significantly reduce equipment downtime and related operating and repair costs. Post-installation, service agencies will be able to make these “PM” programs available to operators throughout the life of the equipment.
Online manuals provide our customers with tremendous resources to identify and resolve any operational problems. The best way to maximize our digital support is through online manuals. They come with all products, but clients can go online and/or request an electronic manual as well. They illustrate all of the parts and wire schematics that include installation specs and troubleshooting keys. We also offer as a feature of our MarraSmart touchscreen control helpful videos (YouTube) which can be accessed through a QR “We are increasing the number of videos daily, so it’s a good idea to check back often”, says Eric.
Another key to our success will be in the creation of a digital knowledge base that will allow authorized service techs to access specific tools to help them with service diagnosis and resolution and even ongoing training. Continuously engaged with our service network ensures an ongoing connection between the factory and field for brick oven service resources.
With the uniqueness of our products, even the extensive masonry requires specialized partnerships with masons and bricklayers able to maintain and support the structure of our products. “We aren’t just depended on the refrigeration techs, but artisans as well.” We are opening up new markets and creating new work opportunities.
Marra Forni is truly at the crossroads of Artisan and Technology. One has to recognize the amount of workmanship and innovation that goes into each and every brick oven that Marra Forni manufactures that sets us apart from our competition. Others may look similar, but none are designed and built to our demanding standards. Through the use of MarraStone ®, our Marra proprietary refractory brick, our ovens function efficiently at high temperatures – they can get up to 950 degrees– and that is one point of differentiation that makes us unique
MarraSmart ® touchscreen controls have fully automated the oven curing process for the gas and electric ovens) which is required before the oven can be used for daily operation. The 5-day process is activated by a single start command on the control panel and gradually heats the oven up in increments (from 300 degrees F to 700 degrees F) over the 5-day curing process in order to eliminate any remaining moisture from the oven and ensure the ovens structural integrity.
For wood-fired equipment, there is a manual process using wood to achieve the same objectives in the process. As an option for customers, ovens can also be “pre-cured” at the factory prior to shipment so that they arrive plug & play ready.