Mikey P
Administrator
History of Cobb Carpet Supply
Cobb Carpet Supply was started by my late father 40 years ago as an Installation Supply House. Cleaning Supplies were added to the line about 30 years ago. I joined the company 25 years ago. We have 45,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing & distribution space here in Dallas.
Were you ever a cleaner your self?
Absolutely; I started cleaning area rugs in my dad’s shop when I was 13 years old.
One day he told me that the shop guys wanted to see if I could handle the new 17” Multi-Clean shampooer. What they didn’t tell me, was that they had it running in reverse with a broken-in nylon brush. That made it react violently, in the opposite manner to it’s normal rotation. I was able to handle it, but they had a good laugh on me.
Later, we started using the “dual process” system of shampooing, followed by a dual-vac Jiro rinse system direct-hooked to the water system with a weighted 12” wand.
Next big event in carpet cleaning came when my uncle bought the first chrome-plated “Deep Steam” hot water extractor for $3000 (equivalent to the price of a TM back then).
It had a #2 blower driven by a 1.5 HP electric motor and a strong pressure pump.
We had the first machine in Dallas that would pull BLACK WATER from every dirty carpet. The customers were amazed when we showed them.
We cleaned lots of “high-end theaters” in Dallas. It was all 100% wool wilton-weave carpet in bright colors. That is where I learned the importance of reducing agents in cleaning.
My dad also taught me to install carpet, and I worked at both carpet cleaning and installation for several summers while in High School. I fondly remember the joy of stuffing a sizable 12 ft. roll of carpet into a 7ft. high elevator for the trip up in many commercial buildings. Mikey, that’s where I got my first red carpet tattoos.
As I started engineering classes in college, I went to work in my uncles carpet workroom. That consisted of serging, binding and installing fringe on various rugs. Since many of them were geometrical shapes, we had to construct an “air table” to float the rugs for ease of turning.
After I got out of college, I went to work in the entertainment industry with a sound & lighting company by the name of Showco Inc. I helped build sound equipment, and then lighting/laser systems for some very popular bands. The clients included Beach Boys, Eric Clapton, the Who, Led Zeppelin, Paul McCartney (Wings), Bad Company, David Bowie, etc. Traveling with the bands was enjoyable, but grueling. It also showed the band stresses of night-after-night performing tours.
After touring in the U.S. and Europe for several years, I left that industry to help my dad with his “carpet supply”. A “short stint” turned into relying on a minor in college chemistry courses to reformulate some extraction cleaners that were too foamy.
And that led to the Dynachem line of chemicals and truckmounts.
Did you come up with the 14 inch CMP angled jet concept or did you Bridgepoint the idea from Greenie and decide to sell it for $100 less?
We worked with the forerunner of CMP products in Anaheim, when they made wands for Century 400. Their wands evolved into the most popular portable 2-Jet wand ever in this industry. When Century moved to Colorado, they started manufacturing wands for other machines.
I had some input into the CMP 14” wand head design that they currently produce. Our 14” Angle-Jet does differ from Greenie’s design in several aspects. Our stainless jet brackets are welded directly onto the wand. We utilize 4 Jets for producing higher impact directly on the carpet. We have one Spraying Systems check valve at the solution valve, since we had some sticking issues with the jet-mounted types, with some of our customers. We do like the design of Greenie’s Glide for this wand. We also utilize 1.75” diameter tubing, since we feel it is easier to reach around to grip the valve handle. We currently price it @ $629.
What is the argument for pliable film forming encapsulates vs. brittle film forming encapsulates? Details please.
“Film-Forming” encapsulates were first introduced by DuPont with their Resistec foam cleaner. When the Dupont Flooring Systems groups realized the limitations of the custom TM speced out by Jeff Bishop, they went back to the polymer chemists of DuPont to develop a cleaner that would stay clean for a month of heavy traffic. Resistec was the final result of that R & D effort. They could not outclean the TM, but it stayed clean months longer. The latest versions of Resistec have polymers as well as fluorochemicals.
This increased the gallon price of it to over $75. As DuPont pulled out of the encap business, these polymer chemists realized the potential of “encap cleaning” and continued the research they started at DuPont.
We chose the best anti-resoiling technology for our Dynachem Encapsulate product. That was a polymer which had a natural affinity for nylon fiber, resisting soil attachment to the fiber.
Another camp pursued “encapsulating the soil” which was then vacuumed away.
This vacuum-away approach does little to keep the fiber clean week after week.
Have you managed to get your stone-polishing compound right yet? The first 2 versions I tested were less than impressive, although the 2nd batch was much better than the first. Can you make the polishing compound pH neutral?
We think The Dynachem Dura-Glo outperforms the competition. It achieves a spectacular shine with some polishing technique experience. It works best with a final wet-to-dry polish system. You just need some more practice.The Dura-Pro polishing powder has a time-release acid as an important synergist.
What is it like being couped up with your coworkers all day? How many times have you contemplated suicide?
Nineteen employees usually forces me to down a large frozen margarita by Friday evening. All in all, it is gratifying, to provide jobs to a good group of employees.
I do interface with lots of customers each day.
Describe your ideal customer. Describe your ideal sales person. Describe your ideal vendor.
Ideal Customer - Pushes the envelope for delivering better value to his customers
Explores novel methods for increasing quality of work
Confidence to invest for better return on investment.
Has enough profit to replace equipment when required.
Ideal Sales Person - Remembers every single point from your last conversation.
Knows production targets for all his customers
Understands the direction of client’s companies
Has a good sense of humor and works thru his limitations
Ideal Vendor - Understands the abuse that equipment receives in the field.
Honors their warranty
Partners with the distributor/manufacturer
Listens to the users of the product.
Has a good sense of humor and works thru his company's limitations
If you had to choose between a low cost, "decent/good enough" product & an expensive "best possible" product which would you stock & why?
I think my ideal product would be :
1. Above Average in Quality & Performance
2. A Better Value than the Competition
“Best Possible” products are priced out of reach of even high-end cleaners.
Who would win in a fight: You or Rick G?
Who would win in a fight: Ed from your office or Julie from CCSOP?
I have an advantage over Rick with my CleanFax Great Debate experience/victories.
Julie from CCSOP would be hard to beat.
Will washing OP towels with PowerMax Powder adversely affect my washing machine?
No, but it will probably be cleaner than normal.
Where do you see Cobb Carpet in 1, 3, 5 & 10 years?
1 Year – More Cleaning Market Share & Innovative Online Ordering
3 Years – More Profit on Existing Products from Economy of Scale
5 Years – More Dominant Industry Products
10 Years – New Management w/ New Direction
What is the most effective low moisture method of cleaning carpet?
Truckmount with “actual steam output” and 18” of lift.
(The Indusry is not quite there yet)
Why do some of your chems have dilution rates disproportional to most other chems on the market?
I think the dilution rates for our Dynachem chemicals vary a great deal.
Consider the difference in machine ability between a standard 2-2 stage 100 PSI portable and a firebreathing #5M TM @ 600 PSI and 2.5 GPM.
Those two extremes require very different concentrations of prespray to achieve acceptable cleaning levels.
Don't you think if you had an online store there would be less chance of your guys screwing up an order?
We like to talk to our customers to insure they get the best product for their application.
A typical example is when a Web-brousing customer picks out a product that is not the best choice for his specific use. We try to point out an alternative product for better performance. Of course, the customer ultimately makes the final decision, but at least he compares the best choices.
Online ordering does have many advantages such as time independence and the ability to see detailed photos from different aspects.
I think the best ordering system is when the customer is on the web page looking at the products while we are discussing the various aspects of several products.
Cobb Carpet Supply was started by my late father 40 years ago as an Installation Supply House. Cleaning Supplies were added to the line about 30 years ago. I joined the company 25 years ago. We have 45,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing & distribution space here in Dallas.
Were you ever a cleaner your self?
Absolutely; I started cleaning area rugs in my dad’s shop when I was 13 years old.
One day he told me that the shop guys wanted to see if I could handle the new 17” Multi-Clean shampooer. What they didn’t tell me, was that they had it running in reverse with a broken-in nylon brush. That made it react violently, in the opposite manner to it’s normal rotation. I was able to handle it, but they had a good laugh on me.
Later, we started using the “dual process” system of shampooing, followed by a dual-vac Jiro rinse system direct-hooked to the water system with a weighted 12” wand.
Next big event in carpet cleaning came when my uncle bought the first chrome-plated “Deep Steam” hot water extractor for $3000 (equivalent to the price of a TM back then).
It had a #2 blower driven by a 1.5 HP electric motor and a strong pressure pump.
We had the first machine in Dallas that would pull BLACK WATER from every dirty carpet. The customers were amazed when we showed them.
We cleaned lots of “high-end theaters” in Dallas. It was all 100% wool wilton-weave carpet in bright colors. That is where I learned the importance of reducing agents in cleaning.
My dad also taught me to install carpet, and I worked at both carpet cleaning and installation for several summers while in High School. I fondly remember the joy of stuffing a sizable 12 ft. roll of carpet into a 7ft. high elevator for the trip up in many commercial buildings. Mikey, that’s where I got my first red carpet tattoos.
As I started engineering classes in college, I went to work in my uncles carpet workroom. That consisted of serging, binding and installing fringe on various rugs. Since many of them were geometrical shapes, we had to construct an “air table” to float the rugs for ease of turning.
After I got out of college, I went to work in the entertainment industry with a sound & lighting company by the name of Showco Inc. I helped build sound equipment, and then lighting/laser systems for some very popular bands. The clients included Beach Boys, Eric Clapton, the Who, Led Zeppelin, Paul McCartney (Wings), Bad Company, David Bowie, etc. Traveling with the bands was enjoyable, but grueling. It also showed the band stresses of night-after-night performing tours.
After touring in the U.S. and Europe for several years, I left that industry to help my dad with his “carpet supply”. A “short stint” turned into relying on a minor in college chemistry courses to reformulate some extraction cleaners that were too foamy.
And that led to the Dynachem line of chemicals and truckmounts.
Did you come up with the 14 inch CMP angled jet concept or did you Bridgepoint the idea from Greenie and decide to sell it for $100 less?
We worked with the forerunner of CMP products in Anaheim, when they made wands for Century 400. Their wands evolved into the most popular portable 2-Jet wand ever in this industry. When Century moved to Colorado, they started manufacturing wands for other machines.
I had some input into the CMP 14” wand head design that they currently produce. Our 14” Angle-Jet does differ from Greenie’s design in several aspects. Our stainless jet brackets are welded directly onto the wand. We utilize 4 Jets for producing higher impact directly on the carpet. We have one Spraying Systems check valve at the solution valve, since we had some sticking issues with the jet-mounted types, with some of our customers. We do like the design of Greenie’s Glide for this wand. We also utilize 1.75” diameter tubing, since we feel it is easier to reach around to grip the valve handle. We currently price it @ $629.
What is the argument for pliable film forming encapsulates vs. brittle film forming encapsulates? Details please.
“Film-Forming” encapsulates were first introduced by DuPont with their Resistec foam cleaner. When the Dupont Flooring Systems groups realized the limitations of the custom TM speced out by Jeff Bishop, they went back to the polymer chemists of DuPont to develop a cleaner that would stay clean for a month of heavy traffic. Resistec was the final result of that R & D effort. They could not outclean the TM, but it stayed clean months longer. The latest versions of Resistec have polymers as well as fluorochemicals.
This increased the gallon price of it to over $75. As DuPont pulled out of the encap business, these polymer chemists realized the potential of “encap cleaning” and continued the research they started at DuPont.
We chose the best anti-resoiling technology for our Dynachem Encapsulate product. That was a polymer which had a natural affinity for nylon fiber, resisting soil attachment to the fiber.
Another camp pursued “encapsulating the soil” which was then vacuumed away.
This vacuum-away approach does little to keep the fiber clean week after week.
Have you managed to get your stone-polishing compound right yet? The first 2 versions I tested were less than impressive, although the 2nd batch was much better than the first. Can you make the polishing compound pH neutral?
We think The Dynachem Dura-Glo outperforms the competition. It achieves a spectacular shine with some polishing technique experience. It works best with a final wet-to-dry polish system. You just need some more practice.The Dura-Pro polishing powder has a time-release acid as an important synergist.
What is it like being couped up with your coworkers all day? How many times have you contemplated suicide?
Nineteen employees usually forces me to down a large frozen margarita by Friday evening. All in all, it is gratifying, to provide jobs to a good group of employees.
I do interface with lots of customers each day.
Describe your ideal customer. Describe your ideal sales person. Describe your ideal vendor.
Ideal Customer - Pushes the envelope for delivering better value to his customers
Explores novel methods for increasing quality of work
Confidence to invest for better return on investment.
Has enough profit to replace equipment when required.
Ideal Sales Person - Remembers every single point from your last conversation.
Knows production targets for all his customers
Understands the direction of client’s companies
Has a good sense of humor and works thru his limitations
Ideal Vendor - Understands the abuse that equipment receives in the field.
Honors their warranty
Partners with the distributor/manufacturer
Listens to the users of the product.
Has a good sense of humor and works thru his company's limitations
If you had to choose between a low cost, "decent/good enough" product & an expensive "best possible" product which would you stock & why?
I think my ideal product would be :
1. Above Average in Quality & Performance
2. A Better Value than the Competition
“Best Possible” products are priced out of reach of even high-end cleaners.
Who would win in a fight: You or Rick G?
Who would win in a fight: Ed from your office or Julie from CCSOP?
I have an advantage over Rick with my CleanFax Great Debate experience/victories.
Julie from CCSOP would be hard to beat.
Will washing OP towels with PowerMax Powder adversely affect my washing machine?
No, but it will probably be cleaner than normal.
Where do you see Cobb Carpet in 1, 3, 5 & 10 years?
1 Year – More Cleaning Market Share & Innovative Online Ordering
3 Years – More Profit on Existing Products from Economy of Scale
5 Years – More Dominant Industry Products
10 Years – New Management w/ New Direction
What is the most effective low moisture method of cleaning carpet?
Truckmount with “actual steam output” and 18” of lift.
(The Indusry is not quite there yet)
Why do some of your chems have dilution rates disproportional to most other chems on the market?
I think the dilution rates for our Dynachem chemicals vary a great deal.
Consider the difference in machine ability between a standard 2-2 stage 100 PSI portable and a firebreathing #5M TM @ 600 PSI and 2.5 GPM.
Those two extremes require very different concentrations of prespray to achieve acceptable cleaning levels.
Don't you think if you had an online store there would be less chance of your guys screwing up an order?
We like to talk to our customers to insure they get the best product for their application.
A typical example is when a Web-brousing customer picks out a product that is not the best choice for his specific use. We try to point out an alternative product for better performance. Of course, the customer ultimately makes the final decision, but at least he compares the best choices.
Online ordering does have many advantages such as time independence and the ability to see detailed photos from different aspects.
I think the best ordering system is when the customer is on the web page looking at the products while we are discussing the various aspects of several products.