1. SAMMY MUNUSWAMY. MANITOWOC
SOMETIMES END USERS ARE SO ACCUSTOMED TO DEALING
WITH DIFFICULTIES THEY NO LONGER RECOGNIZE THEM
AS SUCH. EXPERIENCE DEVELOPMENT - THE LATEST BUZZ
PHRASE IN INDUSTRIAL DESIGN - SEEKS TO OFFER HOPE,
AS WELL AS INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS
RIGHT: Manitowoc's
KZ100 synthetic rope,
as shown here on a Grove
rough-terraincrane, is
80°/o lighter than wire rope
C>
There's a common theme
running throughout 21"
century design. Whether it's service,
software, tangible goods, or in our
case, cranes, you'll find that designers
and innovators have one endgame in
mind: 'experience development' that
dernonstrates true differentiation.
Most breakthroughs in this
century, such as Apple's computing
dominance, Virgin's airlines, Google's
maps and self-driven cars, Facebook's
social netvorking platform, or even
Arnazon Prime's logistical excellence,
are successful because they directly
tune into customers. They providea
platform where people can create
their own experience.
1n past centuries, the e1notional
cornponent of a job was frequently
neglected. The notion was that
simply designing toolsor equipment
with features and benefits that led
to the completion of a project was
innovative in itself. The rnain themes
were new product development, lean
design, design for manufacturing,
or design for manufacturing and
assembly.
With cranes, we saw this type of
design in the proliferation of to;ver
cranes, crawler cranes, mobile cranes,
boom trucks and industrial cranes.
But the goalposts have moved and
a ne>v design ethic has taken hold,
Vith its own unique set of goals.
In the 21" century, experience
providers and experience empathizers
drive the global economy. Innovative
products and services emotionally
engage with customers - they don't
iVTlnternotional.com Sept/Oct 2015

2. just buy the product, they buy into
the reason behind the product, and
the experience it brings.
The winners in this new market
landscape will provide far superior
customer experiences - products
or services that change customer
behaviors or attitudes, rather than
those that simply fulfill a need.
Design for experience relies on
emotion- and empathy-based design
techniques. It seeks to understand a
customer's pain and their inherent
difficulties - even if that customer
doesn't realize there is a difficulty,
because dealing with it has become
second nature. The goal is to ease
those pains by providing a better
experience by blending technology
with hun1anity.
Enter the KZ100
It's with this concept in mind that I
helped lead a joint venture between
Manitowoc Cranes and Ferndale,
Washington-based synthetic rope
developer Samson. The company is
our partner in innovation, helping
to co-create a new lifting experience
with the KZlOO synthetic hoist rope
for crane application.
For our team, it's not just a rope,
it's an experience. Sure, the product
is as strong as conventional ropes
and does not require replacement
due to common damages such as
load spin, cabling, bird caging,
kinking and diving. And yes, it is
stronger than steel and lighter than
water! But we consider the KZlOO a
success mainly because of the
superior experience it provides.
For example, the KZlOO is much
lighter than traditional ropes, making
....___·-- -
LEFT & FAR LEFT: First
introduced on the Grove
RT770E at ConExpo 2014,
the KZ100 boasts torque-
neutral construction
that eliminates load
spin and cabling
~~IT'S JUST A MATTER OF THE
EXPERIENTIAL KNOWLEDGE
MAKING ITS WAY ACROSS THE
INNOVATION CURVE''
it easier to handle when rigging -
a better experience. Conventional
wire rope gets very dirty and greasy
when being dragged around a
jobsite. The KZlOO is aesthetically
pleasing; it's soft, smooth, gentle,
and nluch nlore pliable in handling
- again, a better experience.
Ultimately, by considering the
inherent difficulties that have now
become second nature to riggers and
operators, we hoped to design a
lifting experience with synthetic
rope that changes their attitude and
behavior. We sought to establish an
emotional connection between
operators and the KZlOO.
The synthetic rope makes people
happy and the jobsite a more fun
place to work. It rnakes a palpable
difference in day-to-day operations,
making projects easier and more
efficient.
The innovation curve
And as we design for experience, it
is irnportant to remember that these
experiences will be new to customers.
In his book Diffusion ofInnovations,
Everett Rogers described how
innovation in the marketplace
typically adheres to a bell-shaped
curve. On one side of the tail are
early innovators and early adopters;
on the other side are the laggards.
Throughout the middle of the curve
are the early majority and the late
ABOVE: A CAD drawing
of the KZ100 during its
design phase reflects
the flexible nature of
the synthetic rope
DESIGN VIEWPOINT
majority of the market. The laggards
won't adopt until they are forced to.
We are seeing the diffusion of
innovation play out now v.•ith the
KZlOO. Early adopters, such as the
US Navy, are on board and reporting
great results from the synthetic rope.
The laggards will see the benefits of
the KZlOO only when their current
method stops being useful.
Irecall speaking with a custo1ner
in Florida wary of e1nbracing the
fiber technology on a crane - but
had already been using a fiber sling
for more than 25 years. Iasked, "You
are already using a fiber sling under
the hook - so why would you be
hesitant to use similar, but better,
fiber technology above the hook?"
That customer quickly realized
the irony and embraced the KZlOO.
The cornpany is now a charnpion
of synthetic rope because of the
experience it provides. Surely we will
see the switch to synthetic ropes take
hold in the marketplace - it's just a
matter of the experiential knowledge
slowly making its way across the
innovation curve.
The land of lifting experience
Given that experience providers
don1inate the 21" century economy,
companies will have to compete on
customer experience with empathy.
They will have to become trusted
partners, not just the sellers or dealers
of goods, and that's why I like to call
Shady Grove, Pennsylvania 'The
land of lifting experience'. At Shady
Grove, rnore than building cranes,
we create a lifting experience for our
customers around the world.
My definition of innovation is:
"People creating experience through
connecting and developing, and the
implementation of ideas to disrupt
the status quo and stay ahead in
business." The great thing about
innovation is that it's not confined
to any one medium - although I
rnay be talking about products here,
the method is applicable in many
areas, such as the support you give
your own customers. It's well worth
thinking: "How might our company
design a better experience for our
own customers?" iVT
Sammy Munuswamy is senior manager of
global engineering and innovation at the
Manitowoc Company
iVTinternational.com Sepl/Oct 2015