[TenTec] Ten-Tec service

mcelmer1 mcelmer1 at netecin.net
Thu Jan 15 19:08:48 EST 2015 

FWIW, about a year ago I sent my Orion in for a new screen. The lead time 
was about 6 weeks - there were 6 weeks of radios in front of me.  I also ran 
into the same problem when I returned a Centurion.

I question why the work area was down sized. Perhaps the workload has 
reduced or lease/rent is out of bounds.

Mike
W8TRN
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "art N4UC" <n4uc at hotmail.com>
To: "TenTec reflector" <tentec at contesting.com>
Sent: Thursday, January 15, 2015 15:49
Subject: Re: [TenTec] Ten-Tec service


>I called TT service dept today to check on the repair status of my Orion 
>that I had shipped to them just after Thanksgiving. I received an email 
>from them on December 3 acknowledging receipt of the radio. Since that time 
>I had not heard anything further, but considering the holidays and the move 
>to the new facility, I waited until today (6 weeks after they received the 
>radio) to bug them about my repair job. I was told that hopefully they 
>would  be able to get to it in a couple of more weeks. If this holds true, 
>it means that they will have had the radio for almost two months before 
>getting it out of the box and onto the bench.
>
> During the conversation I learned that the service bench work area
> available in the new facility was only about 1/3 of what they enjoyed in 
> the old building. All the techs were still there and working hard, but all 
> were operating with reduced resources.  He did say that the only thing 
> that hadn't been reduced was the repair workload!
>
> It's been several years since I have had occasion to use TT service, but I 
> seem to remember that at that time I had been contacted in a few days (a 
> week or less) with an estimate of repairs.  I have no doubt that they will 
> get to this repair as soon as they can, and I do appreciate the fact that 
> I can still call on the phone and talk to a live person about my repairs. 
> But at the end of the day the service/support situation will still be a 
> factor in the decision process for my next radio.
>
> FWIW, I fully agree that an RMA system is a necessary evil in today's
> world. That being said, the implementation of the system used by
> TenTec/RF Concepts LLC is a bit clumsy and ambiguous if you have any
> follow-up communications regarding an existing RMA. But I would much 
> rather know that my information and expectations have been documented
> so that there are no misunderstandings when the repair bill is
> received. Still, for complex problems or unusual circumstances there is
> no substitute for a 5 minute phone conversation with the tech to follow
> up the RMA, and I'm glad that I can still do that with TenTec..
>
> 73, Art N4UC
>
>
>> Date: Thu, 15 Jan 2015 13:02:45 -0800
>> To: tentec at contesting.com
>> Subject: Re: [TenTec] Ten-Tec service
>> From: tentec at contesting.com
>>
>> Hi John:
>>
>> I appreciate your willingness to exercise free speech, and I feel honored 
>> we have such a privilege in this great country.  However, I would like to 
>> provide some clarification around your unsubstantiated state of affairs 
>> report about Ten-Tec that you have decided to share with everyone.  I 
>> obtained my information by simply contacting Ten-Tec and asking, and 
>> below is my interpretation of what was said to me.  I share this out of 
>> respect to all Hams on this email reflector so they may understand the 
>> current state of business that I learned of, and in fairness to Ten-Tec 
>> who works hard to provide the radios we use.  I do not intend to imply in 
>> anyway that what you say is, or is not correct, but instead only share 
>> the information that I have learned.
>>
>>
>> RMA
>> Ten-Tec implemented the RMA system to improve repair services.  They did 
>> this because many times they would receive a radio with absolutely no 
>> information on it and what they need to fix.  Customer calls later 
>> complaining... you get the picture.  Nobody is happy because they spend 
>> hours trying to find out what needs done to the radio, and the customer 
>> spends unneeded time waiting on the radio.  Now - you get an RMA number 
>> to return the radio and you can refer to that RMA number for any 
>> discussions with Ten-Tec about the radio.
>>
>> Repair Dept.
>> Nobody has quit the repair department.  Of course nobody can confirm or 
>> deny that someone wasn't having a bad day, but I am told repair 
>> operations are working quite well now - post transition to being a 
>> division R.F. Concepts , and of course the physical move to another 
>> building.
>>
>> Leadership
>> Ten-Tec has a President/COO and a Senior Manager overseeing all 
>> operations at Sevierville location.  If you do not believe me, then you 
>> are welcome to contact the most senior manager at Ten-Tec at 
>> 865-453-7172, or his email is, jhenry at tentec.com if you prefer that 
>> method of communication.  That's right... John Henry is the most senior 
>> manager overseeing Ten-Tec.  There is no local CEO there except when the 
>> 'one' presiding CEO visits.  Why? One corporation doesn't need two CEO's. 
>> Instead, each division of R.F. Concepts has senior executives in charge. 
>> It sounds rather normal to me since I work for a corporation that has 
>> multiple business divisions and each division is assigned a senior 
>> executive accountable for that division.
>>
>> So here is my challenge to anyone questioning the viability of Ten-Tec. 
>> Please ask a senior leader within the Ten-Tec organization.  I have given 
>> you a phone number and an email to use so feel free to do so.  John Henry 
>> kindly explained it to me and I am sharing it with you.
>>
>> In closing, hang in there gang... Ten-Tec is still in business and I know 
>> this because I just checked.  We may not hear from them daily, but it 
>> does not indicate there is a giant crater in the ground in Sevierville. 
>> I believe it means they are busy designing, building and selling radios.
>>
>> Be well & 73,
>>
>> -Eric
>> W9WLW
>>
>>
>>
>> --------------------------------------------
>> On Wed, 1/14/15, John Rippey <w3uls73 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>  Subject: [TenTec] Ten-Tec service
>>  To: tentec at contesting.com
>>  Date: Wednesday, January 14, 2015, 7:58 PM
>>
>>  I spoke with a Ten-Tec service guy
>>  some time back before the recent
>>  move.I remarked on the red tape now imposed on customers
>>  before
>>  sending a rig in for service. He expressed guarded
>>  unhappiness about
>>  all the changes being imposed. Not a happy camper. Doubt if
>>  he's still
>>  there.
>>
>>  The "CEO" who took over for the long-time CEO left shortly
>>  thereafter.
>>  No "CEO" now, I guess. It appears everything now is being
>>  directed by
>>  the suits in Colorado. For my money, Ten-Tec risks
>>  deteriorating into
>>  just a brand, rather than maintaining its status as a
>>  separate
>>  stand-alone entity. This will be denied, I suspect, but my
>>  sense is
>>  that T-T's best days may be in the rear view mirror.
>>  Cryptic,
>>  unhelpful comments from the service department may well be
>>  an early
>>  indicator.
>>
>>  73,
>>
>>  John, W3ULS
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