Star Tech Journal
Issue: 1981-August - Vol 3 Issue 6 - Page 12
12
,---------Press Release-------.
BALLY AT MIDWAY SERVICE MANAGER'S SEMINAR
MAY, 1981 - RENO, NEVADA
CHICAGO:
The Holiday Inn, Reno, Nevada was the site of a gathering of distributor Service Managers from the Bally Pinball Division
and the Midway Manufacturing Company distributor network.
The seminar which ran from May 18th - 20th drew participants from all over the U.S. as well as Canada.
The content of the program encompassed all elements within the realm of "service" and was designed to more thoroughly
define the state-of-the-industry role of the service manager and provide the necessary tools for effectively functioning in this
capacity.
A lineup of guest speakers who are considered experts in their respective fields joined members of the Bally and Midway
staffs in conducting the various sessions.
In addition, special arrangements were made each day to entertain the 15 or so wives who accompanied their spouses. The
activities began with a champagne party on opening day. On Tuesday, the women were taken on a luncheon tour to Ponderosa
Ranch and Virginia City; and on the following day to a local shopping mall, which was climaxed by a luncheon.
The seminar opened with a multi-media presentation showing a full tour of the Bally and Midway factory facilities in
Bensenville and Franklin Park, Illinois. Bernie Powers then welcomed the attendees and introduced the guest speakers. John
Reckas of Bally Pinball Division marketing research then addressed the group on this subject and also conducted an extensive
research survey for the factories over the course of the 3-day period.
Midway's director of sales, Larry Berke talked about the link between sales and service, elaborating on the various
communicative processes necessary to solidify the structure.
Customer relations and how Bally and Midway handle this vital departmental function was the subject of a presentation by
Diane Guzzi and Midway's field service manager Andy Ducay.
Jim Sneed of Kurz-Kasch and Gordon Pickavance of Sencore appraised the group on the latest test equipment available,
utilizing various demonstration units for illustration.
The Tuesday morning segment focused on the hiring of technical personnel, including evaluation, on the job classification,
and intermediate type testing. This session was conducted by Baily's Ed Schmidt and Midway's Ken Dabek. Bernie Powers
followed with a lecture on the team concept in managing shop personnel. This portion of the program was climaxed with a
presentation by Jim Roberts of James Industries, suppliers to Bally-Midway of TV monitors, transformers, lamp sockets and
various other components.
Present and future prospects were covered on Tuesday afternoon in the discussion "Where We Are Going Technologically,"
conducted by Midway's Andy Ducay and Ken Dabek and Baily's Bernie Powers and Arnie Aarstadt.
"Marketing Your Service Department" was the subject of Bernie Powers' discussion on Wednesday morning and the
presentation focused on the elements for perfecting and making known the attributes of this vital function.
Midway's Brian Osowski conducted a session dealing with the factory's warranty policies and the structure of the parts
department.
How to evaluate software packages for possible implementation into computerized systems was discussed by Bernie
Powers in the opening session on Wednesday afternoon. He elaborated on the evaluation of mini and micro computer systems.
Barbara Brown of Bally Distributing, Reno and Katie Lawson of Advance Automatic Sales in San Francisco discussed the
practical aspects of automated parts departments, in terms of saving time and saving money without sacrificing efficiency.
Baily's Pete Gustafson continued the discussion relating to the Bally parts system.
The final event, climaxing a very comprehensive study program, was an evening in the MGM Grand Hotel in Reno to see the
production "Hello Hollywood Hello."
,---------Press Release-------.
BALLY AT MIDWAY SERVICE MANAGER'S SEMINAR
MAY, 1981 - RENO, NEVADA
CHICAGO:
The Holiday Inn, Reno, Nevada was the site of a gathering of distributor Service Managers from the Bally Pinball Division
and the Midway Manufacturing Company distributor network.
The seminar which ran from May 18th - 20th drew participants from all over the U.S. as well as Canada.
The content of the program encompassed all elements within the realm of "service" and was designed to more thoroughly
define the state-of-the-industry role of the service manager and provide the necessary tools for effectively functioning in this
capacity.
A lineup of guest speakers who are considered experts in their respective fields joined members of the Bally and Midway
staffs in conducting the various sessions.
In addition, special arrangements were made each day to entertain the 15 or so wives who accompanied their spouses. The
activities began with a champagne party on opening day. On Tuesday, the women were taken on a luncheon tour to Ponderosa
Ranch and Virginia City; and on the following day to a local shopping mall, which was climaxed by a luncheon.
The seminar opened with a multi-media presentation showing a full tour of the Bally and Midway factory facilities in
Bensenville and Franklin Park, Illinois. Bernie Powers then welcomed the attendees and introduced the guest speakers. John
Reckas of Bally Pinball Division marketing research then addressed the group on this subject and also conducted an extensive
research survey for the factories over the course of the 3-day period.
Midway's director of sales, Larry Berke talked about the link between sales and service, elaborating on the various
communicative processes necessary to solidify the structure.
Customer relations and how Bally and Midway handle this vital departmental function was the subject of a presentation by
Diane Guzzi and Midway's field service manager Andy Ducay.
Jim Sneed of Kurz-Kasch and Gordon Pickavance of Sencore appraised the group on the latest test equipment available,
utilizing various demonstration units for illustration.
The Tuesday morning segment focused on the hiring of technical personnel, including evaluation, on the job classification,
and intermediate type testing. This session was conducted by Baily's Ed Schmidt and Midway's Ken Dabek. Bernie Powers
followed with a lecture on the team concept in managing shop personnel. This portion of the program was climaxed with a
presentation by Jim Roberts of James Industries, suppliers to Bally-Midway of TV monitors, transformers, lamp sockets and
various other components.
Present and future prospects were covered on Tuesday afternoon in the discussion "Where We Are Going Technologically,"
conducted by Midway's Andy Ducay and Ken Dabek and Baily's Bernie Powers and Arnie Aarstadt.
"Marketing Your Service Department" was the subject of Bernie Powers' discussion on Wednesday morning and the
presentation focused on the elements for perfecting and making known the attributes of this vital function.
Midway's Brian Osowski conducted a session dealing with the factory's warranty policies and the structure of the parts
department.
How to evaluate software packages for possible implementation into computerized systems was discussed by Bernie
Powers in the opening session on Wednesday afternoon. He elaborated on the evaluation of mini and micro computer systems.
Barbara Brown of Bally Distributing, Reno and Katie Lawson of Advance Automatic Sales in San Francisco discussed the
practical aspects of automated parts departments, in terms of saving time and saving money without sacrificing efficiency.
Baily's Pete Gustafson continued the discussion relating to the Bally parts system.
The final event, climaxing a very comprehensive study program, was an evening in the MGM Grand Hotel in Reno to see the
production "Hello Hollywood Hello."
Future scanning projects are planned by the International Arcade Museum Library (IAML).