PLUMBING Delany Products: Setting Sights High Q&A
behind the product is just as important. Delany Products is one such company that takes pride in producing hand- crafted valves and is second to none in quality, service, dependability and delivery. Coyne & Delany Company was born
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in Brooklyn, New York. In 1879, John J. Delany decided to risk the job security of being a horse-drawn streetcar driver to, along with his partner, Thomas Coyne, found a company that manufactured plumbing products. In those days, plumbing products were copper-lined wooden bathtubs and wooden overhead tanks for water closets. By the early 1900s, a wide variety of plumbing products were being produced, among which were cast iron bathtubs, brass plumber’s trim, wooden flush tanks and fittings and ballcocks. By the 1900s, the product line had
expanded to the point where Tom Coyne and John Delany were starting to see the fruits of their labor, with their salaries rising to $25 per week. Then, in 1910, Tom Coyne died suddenly. The Coyne family had no male heirs and sold their interest in the business shortly afterwards. In 1928, the company designed its first diaphragm operating flush valve, the Flushboy, considered to be the simplest (and thus most reliable) design for direct pressure flushing. Like the nation, the company suffered
through the Great Depression. During this time, and leading up to World War II, many design improvements and Delany patents refined their basic diaphragm flush valve to the point that it required only six moving parts. The copper-lined bathtubs and other product lines were replaced by the flush valve line. At this time, Coyne & Delany was a leading manufacturer in the mid- Atlantic and Northeastern states. World War II brought such huge demand for flush valves that, by the end of the war, the company was no longer just a regional supplier but a national manufacturer, specializing in diaphragm flush valves.
n this continuing uncertain economy, installing the right product for the job is imperative. The company
with Scott Delany, VP & CFO, Delany Products
In 1969, Coyne & Delany
moved from its home on Kent Avenue in Brooklyn to Charlottesville, Virginia, where they purchased seven acres of land and built an expanded state-of-the-art manufacturing plant. At this time, the transition to the company’s fourth generation of family ownership and leadership was underway. In 1979, the company celebrated its 100th year in operation, a huge accomplishment shared by only a few other American companies. In the 1990s, as globalization began
changing the world economy, competitors began importing cheaper products from overseas. These firms changed the commercial plumbing landscape forever, often by grabbing market share via discount price strategies, not based upon quality. These imported products posed a significant threat to smaller family owned U.S.- based manufacturers such as Delany. As these changes were occurring, the
old Coyne & Delany struggled to adapt. The run-up in copper prices in the mid- 2000s provided the final tipping point. As other firms absorbed the commodity price increases, the small, family-run Delany saw slim margins erode into loses. The culmination of this was probably the darkest day in company history, when it was forced to close its foundry in November 2007 and lay off two-thirds of its workforce. As the company limped along in 2008,
a rebuilding plan was underway. Rebirth began in 2009 following a restructuring in the early part of that year, which resulted in the company cutting to the bone. Another 40% of staff was laid off and management took pay cuts. During this time the company transitioned itself to a lean efficient model that was focused on R&D, marketing and distribution, while 100% of assembly and 100% of product testing were performed in Charlottesville. The company also took on its first ever financial officer. In the fourth quarter of 2009, the
company unveiled its new name and logo, Delany Products, providing a clean simplified image of “Changing for the Better.” By that time, the implementation of a new state-of-the-
art CRM system was already underway, and the company began to hire back employees. An advisory board was set up to instill proper corporate governance and a first-ever representative advisory board was formed in order to get better feedback from the market. In 2010, the focus was on timely deliveries, in order to rebuild faith in the company. After successive years of losses, Delany turned a profit in 2010 and, with new products coming in 2011, the future is brighter than ever. Recently, Plumbing Engineer caught up
with Scott Delany, vice president and chief financial officer for Delany Products. The following is an excerpt of that Q&A:
How did you get involved in the industry?
Delany: Honestly, I have never been
in the industry. I never worked for the company and have been living and working in Japan since 1997. My career took a very different path from my brothers. I am now drawing on this vast wealth of experiences to help the team today. I started on the floor of the
American Stock Exchange before becoming an original member of a global brokerage firm called TIR in 1987. We built TIR from scratch and sold ourselves for $125 million to E*Trade. Along the way, I moved to TIR/E*Trade’s Tokyo office to run the trading desk there. From there, I left to establish a real estate investment fund, investing and running small to medium sized hotels throughout Japan. During this time, I was not aware of the magnitude of the company’s downturn. I first became aware of the problems in 2008 and began consulting from Japan at night. By the end of that year, I saw the opportunity to return and help turn this sleeping giant around.
Explain your involvement in the company.
Delany: I work every day to implement and live our motto of
“Changing for the Better.” I have taken full responsibility for the company’s finances, making sure that we have the capital necessary to expand and that we are focused on profitability first. I
phc july 2011
www.phcnews.com
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