Radio age research, manufacturing, communications, broadcasting, television (1941)

amazing' prugre-ss in chassis simpli- fication, we must keei) in mind that even today's television receiver of the highest quality has more than 20 tubes, over 1,000 separate com- ponents, and several thousand con- nections, most of which are subject to gradual deterioration and failure through usage. While great strides have been made in receiver design. any assumption that today's televi- sion receivers do not require occa- sional service is simply not realis- tic. No dealer can afford for long to perform gratis or to constantly argue with his customers the merits of service charges required by the limitations of local reception. Too many dealers take the easy way out and sell receivers without adequate provisions for installation and service, hoping that they will squeeze through the warranty pe- riod without burdensome service costs. Some dealers, in single sta- tion areas where recei)tion prob- lems are not too difficult, are al- ready adopting the old radio prac- tice of giving away service without charge, not realizing that this prac- tice represents a serious profit drain, particularly as additional transmitters go on the air and re- ception difficulties increase. Must Maintain Service Quality While progress requires constant product improvement and simplifi- cation, any manufacturer who per- mits his quality standards to deteri- orate ijlaces a heavy burden on his dealer organization. Whether or not a dealer handles his own service, neither he nor his service contrac- tor can afford the cost of servicing a receiver of poor quality. I am in-oud to be associated with a company which not only was an early pioneer in the television in- dusti'y, but which has constantlx' held leadership in television design improvements. For example, in the new RCA Victor TV receiver line, is a chassis with fewer tubes, al- most 30 per cent fewer components and connections, and with 50'i less power consumption than its prede- cessor. Despite this simplification, the numerous improvements not only have resulted in a more power- ful chassis with better picture and sound quality, but one which will be easier to service. Field Testing Essential Every important engineering change must be thoroughly field- tested before it is finally intro- duced into the product for sale to the consumer. At RCA, we think of quality as something real—some- thing that can be seen and heard. It begins with good basic engineei'- ing. It is built on good components and materials. It is created by good workmanship. It is assured and maintained by constant day-to-day field testing, by carefully reviewing service reports from the field, and by rigid inspection on the produc- tion line. Manufacturers and distributors have important responsibilities in helping dealers and servicing con- tractors in the task of improving the standards of television service. Each television market varies great- ly in the character of reception priiblems. The ))roblems in Easton. Penna.. for exami)le, are entirely different from those in New York. The consumer in each area is en- titled to know what he should and should not expect in the way of tele- vision reception, installation, and service. Since the beginning of television, one of the greatest problems of the iudustr\ has been to jirovide a suf- ficient number of well-trained tech- nicians to keep pace with the in- dustry's growth. Manufacturers and distributors can be helpful to field service organizations by mak- ing their service notes available im- mediately after a new line is intro- duced—particularly on new models where important circuit changes are involved. Servicemen are needless- ly handicapped if they are not fully equipped w-ith schematics and other technical details. An example of this cooperation is the Service Clinic Lectures which have been sponsored by RCA Victor distributors for their dealers throughout the country. So far this \ ear, over 200 of these service lec- tures have been held in the .57 tele- vision markets for thousands of servicemen and contractors who service TV receivers for RCA deal- ers. Lectures for Servicemen Coincident with the introduction of our fall television line, a series of 80 service lectures, featuring a tech- nical sound slide film and practical discussions on installation and serv- icing, together with complete serv- ice notes and technical manuals were furnished to more than 10,000 servicemen. Television manufacturers and dis- tributors together have spent liter- ally millions of dollars in similar efforts to train field technical per- sonnel properly and to raise the general standai-ds of television serv- ice. This is an endless task that will never be fully completed, but, with the i)recautions that I have outlined and with constant vigi- lance on the part of all of us in the industry, I am confident that we shall succeed. INf'OK.MAI ION FOR THE USE OF TELEVISION SEKVICEMEN IS (AREFII.LV PREPARED AND WIDELY DISTRIBUTED IN BLI'KPKINTS AND TECHNICAL PUBLICATIONS. THE FINEST SCIENTIFIC TEST INSTRUMENTS ARE AVAIL- ABLE TO THE EXPERT TECHNICIANS AT ALL RCA TELE- VISION SERVICE BRAN( IIES. 'i?t^