It all begins with one idea.
That’s what Madison Electric Products believes because that’s how the Bedford Heights company got its start. Its first product, the Madison Strap, was invented by company founder Earl Atkinson 82 years ago, and the mount for electrical boxes is still listed in the company’s product portfolio.
Today, Madison Electric’s spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation has been revitalized thanks to its new, crowd-sourced development project, the Sparks Innovation Center.
When current owner Dick Ames took the reins six years ago, he immediately looked to expand Madison Electric’s product offerings. “He wanted to change the way we sourced, obtained and manufactured products while complementing the depth of our portfolio,” says Brad Wiandt, (pictured at left) president of Madison Electric. It wasn’t easy.
“We struggled with developing new products because we didn’t have the resources to go out and figure out what was needed,” Wiandt says. “We had plenty of manufacturing partners and expertise. We had a distribution channel set up. We maintained marketing capabilities. But we didn’t have the idea.”
So in 2009, Wiandt and his team decided to solicit ideas from people who know the electrical industry better than anyone else. They set up the Sparks Innovation Center, aptly named to spark innovation in the field.
“We wanted to reach out directly to electrical contractors and electricians, the people who are actually on the job site every day facing any challenge that may arise, and find out what ideas they had,” Wiandt says.
The Sparks Innovation Center has garnered 50 idea submissions and launched four successful product lines. Some ideas come scribbled on scrap paper while others arrive from inventors who’ve already obtained patents and are simply seeking distribution. Before investing, Wiandt and his team test whether the suggested product fits Madison’s portfolio and the market standard. They ask Madison Electric’s contractors forum, a group of local electricians, inspectors and inventors: Would you use this? What would you change about it? How much would you pay?
“Once we do invest, we’re all in,” says Wiandt. “It might require significant redesign or marketing and distribution efforts, but from there it’s ready
to go.”
Just ask Doug Hill, inventor of the Clip-it, one of the product lines the center helped launch.
Hill, an electrician for 40 years, is president of BCI Inc., which specializes in dental office building and design. A popular product among electricians in Hill’s field is the MC cable, a metal-clad cable used to branch circuits. It’s cost-effective and reduces labor, but it isn’t the most attractive piece of equipment.
“It looks very shabby,” Hill says. “I wasn’t happy with the way it looked.”
But seven years ago, he had an epiphany: “I noticed that the rifling on a bottle cap matched the rifling of the cable and from there developed a clip support for the cable.” The clip support keeps the cable taut instead of saggy.
Hill’s product didn’t take off until he approached Madison Electric two years ago. He was in negotiations with a larger company but wanted to see what made Madison different.
“I really truly liked how they approached things,” he says. “It wasn’t high pressure. I could talk to them. They understood what I was trying to do.”
The center has helped Hill attract a bigger market share despite the economic downtown. His sales have increased significantly. “It’s been two years now, and I’ve been so thrilled with it.”
Sparks has also produced the Power Pull-it, a portable wire pulling tool, and the Smart Box, an electrical outlet box that slides in and out of a wall. The Ladder Horse, a device that attaches to a stepladder and allows electricians to cut pipes and pull wire without endangering their stability or safety, will be released in the next few weeks.
Wiandt’s goal is for Madison Electric to introduce four new products or product families each year and for new products to generate 10 percent of the company’s overall sales. “We aren’t quite there yet, but we’re committed to achieving it,”
he says.
Sparks receives an average of one to two prospective ideas a week. Wiandt says it’s changing the way people think about product development and proving the power behind the innovative imagination.
“It’s starting to snowball,” Hill says. “I think over the next two years, this style of development will prove to be a game-changer in our industry.” And to think it all began because of one idea.