As a market the Middle East is often reluctant to change, particularly in construction, how do you promote new technology to such a market?
We don’t develop machines like the Dyson Airblade hand dryer with a particular market in mind. We let the technology guide us. It is important to give people what they want, but we want to give them machines that work well; not just something that looks the part and demand for the product is growing in this market today.
Rather than focus on how we promote we set out to make something better. Something that solves a problem. To really achieve that goal, you have to do more, with less. We have taken that approach for the past twenty years; from our first vacuum cleaner to the Dyson Airblade™ hand dryer. We strive for the same or better performance with improved efficiency and fewer materials. We call it efficient engineering.
The outside world has only seen the market ready versions of Dyson products. In reality what difficulties did you face and what lessons did you learn from the experience?
It all started with an idea: a vacuum cleaner with no bag. Bags clog with dust, and lose suction. Bags were my bugbear. Inspired by an industrial cyclone at a timber mill, I created a vacuum that used centrifugal force to separate the dust and dirt. It did not quite look the part, but it worked. Five years of testing, tuning, cursing, bankruptcy, and more than 5127 failures — I’d had it. Well, most of it. I had yet to manufacture and sell the thing.
This thing had become my life. I was adamant that my idea would revolutionise vacuum cleaning, and put an end to bags once and for all. For three years I went door to door, from one vacuum manufacturer to another, and not a single yes. There was a tried and true business model that was worth some $500m, and no one was willing to take a gamble on an engineer. The suits had spoken: a vacuum without a bag would not sell.
I knew then that if I wanted to make the machine, I would have to do it on my own. Penniless and alone, I went for it. I had not lost my resolve, and by that point I had stopped listening to everyone and acted on instinct.
Eighteen months after DC01 rolled off the production line in the UK it became the best selling vacuum cleaner in the UK. Failure is part of being an engineer. Iteration after iteration of the vacuum came about because of a failure. The important thing is that I did not give up after the first, second or 5000th failure and I never will.
How would you describe and/or define Dyson’s business model? What’s the future for the company?
We sell our machines in over 50 markets but our ethos is always the same. We focus on Research, Design and Development (RDD). We build and sell machines that really work. From vacuum cleaners that don’t lose suction, to high-speed, hygienic hand dryers, and bladeless fans, we are growing our engineering team to keep pace with the technology. And we are investing massively in RDD, not glitzy marketing campaigns.
Everything that goes on in RDD is confidential. But I can tell you that we are working on developing the next generation of motors; our own Dyson digital motor, which powers the Dyson Airblade™ hand dryer. It uses aerospace technology and spins at 104,000rpm; five times faster than a Formula One engine. It is twice as energy efficient as its predecessor and just a third of its size; consuming less energy and requiring fewer materials. Motors open up unexplored territory for Dyson, and we are itching to get our feet wet.