What happens when the most recognized brand in garage door openers decides to completely redesign their entire line to meet consumer concerns as well as update with the latest in technology? You end up in Baltic and Mt. Hope, Ohio, home of The Genie Company.
We were graciously invited to be a part of Genie’s first-ever Digital Summit, and let me tell you, it was quite the experience.
Nestled in the heart of Ohio’s Amish country lies the only company to still build garage door openers in the US, between two locations in Ohio and one in Virginia, with customer support in Dallas, TX and the location above (which is built out of garage door panels!) in Mt. Hope, Ohio.
What began as Alliance in the 1950’s has grown into the first most listed brand by surveyed DIYers in an unaided study at a whopping 44% or respondents, and has cultivated the Genie name synonymously with garage door openers themselves for nearly just as long. A
fter experiencing the enthusiasm and unparalleled attention to detail from the heads of Genie, it’s no surprise why this brand has maintained such a high level of regard in their arena.
First off, we were provided a tour of the Baltic, Ohio assembly plant, where stock is made to inventory then shipped out to retailers such as Lowe’s and Home Depot, to authorized dealers, and to professional installers.
The factory works on a three-shift rotation, and throughout the assembly process the utmost in quality assurance and safety standards are employed and practiced to ensure that every product to come off of the line is worthy of the Genie name.
Every unit is built on a single assembly, and 100% of the units are repeatedly quality tested throughout assembly before being packaged.
The units also have product serialization — meaning every single aspect of its assembly and testing data is stored for future analysis and tracking, so if you think you get a faulty unit and call customer service, they’ll be able to cross-reference their files with your experience to pinpoint the exact issue with your specific unit. Pretty advanced, right?
One of my personal favorite stations was the testing section, where openers undergo a “quarterlife” testing — which is 5000 revolutions of the unit. Two from every series made are randomly selected to undergo this test to ensure the quality of the product being made.
It was also hard not to be impressed with the distribution part of the plant, where every product Genie makes awaits it’s final destination:
Second, we traveled through the gorgeous Ohio countryside to the Mt Hope headquarters where assembled units were available for us to test out all of their new features, as well as an impressive tour of their state-of-the-art facility.
We’ll pick up next time with the new line of products, but as an Ohio girl myself I have to say it’s commendable for a company to work hard to keep their business right where it started, where it supports several small communities (both Amish and not) in a rural area with a commitment to the people who helped them grow.
Overall I was very impressed with the company before I even got my hands on a unit, and I couldn’t thank them enough for taking the time to truly show their passion for their product.
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