LCRMS Participates in Korean Volvo Customer Clinic

Dave Bonus (left) with the North American and European participants at the VIP factory tour in Changwon, Korea

On April 20, 2018, Dave Bonus, deputy director of Lycoming County Resource Management Services (LCRMS), traveled with Highway Equipment & Supply Co. Territory Sales Manager Brian Hoffman and Volvo Construction Equipment staff to Seoul, Korea, to participate in a Volvo Customer Clinic. The clinic, held in the Volvo Testing and Validation Center in Hapcheon, Korea, evaluated Volvo excavators from a customer perspective.

"Their travels took them from Seoul to Buschan, Hapcheon, and Changwon, and concluded with a tour of the DMZ the day after the historic meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean leader Moon Jae-in," said Hoffman. "This was an opportunity for our customers to have input in the Volvo products for their respective markets."

Bonus experienced a week of hands-on equipment operation and a series of meetings with the engineers, product managers, and factory personnel responsible for global Volvo excavator production. He was one of only three customers selected to represent the North American region for this clinic. The European and Asian/Pacific regions also sent three representatives each.

Dave Bonus operating a Volvo excavator

Each day included hands-on machine operation, walk-arounds, and classroom discussions on how to improve the machines. Throughout the process, Bonus provided feedback and shared ideas about the Volvo excavator product line destined for the North American, European, and Asian/Pacific markets.

All clinic participants gathering around a Volvo excavator, including Brian Hoffman (fourth from the right)

At the VIP tour of the Volvo Large Excavator Factory in Changwon, Korea, Bonus was able to see firsthand the excavators being built. The factory produces approximately 1,200 large excavators per month and is preparing to open another line to meet the increased demand for Volvo excavators worldwide.

Dave Bonus (right)

"This Volvo clinic emphasizes the importance Volvo CE places on customers' input into the machines they are building and marketing across the world. Dave's contributions will help Volvo improve the excavator line in the North American market," said Hoffman. "Highway Equipment & Supply Co. and Volvo CE thank LCRMS and Dave Bonus for their participation in this important customer clinic."

Each evening, the customers ate Korean BBQ for dinner. These guys are happily eating their first American food upon arriving home.