Ken Newton

Expresso Coffee Maker Explodes in Michigan! February 6, 2009

Actually, yesterday’s blog was a good launch for today’s article.  Ties in with coffee

Lynda and I bought a couple of Christmas presents here in Panama before heading to the US and Canada for the holiday season.  One of the items was an expresso coffee maker made by a company called Premier Electric (Japan) Corporation.  It’s not an electric appliance, but when heated on a stove, steam is pushed up through the ground coffee and condenses into rich coffee in an upper canister.  There are many of these expresso makers on the market, and I made the unfortunate mistake of buying one from Premier.

Quick background.  Premier has a significant market presence in Latin America, Chile, and Hong Kong.  They state their vision as being a company that makes quality products that contribute to peoples’ welfare and make life more enjoyable.  First off, that’s about as bad an effort of a corporate mandate as any idiot could generate, but giving the benefit of a reasonable vision statement, the reality is the only thing it does about life is place it in jeopardy.

The unit we bought was a CM-1659S.  Nice stainless steel design.  Nice packaging.  Impressive gift, having weaved its way from Latin America through the maze of homeland security and immigration to a place under a Christmas tree in Michigan.

The gift was put into service at our son’s home.  One morning, with 4 of us (including a 10-month old baby) in the kitchen waiting for the expresso maker to perk, the unit exploded with a force that badly damaged the ceiling, sprayed everyone with scalding hot water, and coated much of the kitchen with coffee stain.  It had literally become a missile, and we were fortunate that no one was hurt other than burn spots.

Here’s the point.  Defects happen.  Things break.  But pressure valves should never fail, and simple appliances turn into weapons. (hey  -  perhaps homeland security should put a watch out for Premier expresso makers as weapons of mass destruction or something….  just a thought…)

I have tried regularly and unsuccessfully to derive any form of a response to my report to Premier.  At first no threats, than gradually moving to where I would contemplate turning their headquarters into a giant Premier expresso maker.  But absolutely no acknowledgment, apology, remedy, commitment to better quality control, ban on the CM-1659S (sounds like a prototype plane, doesn’t it…) or automated response.  Nothing…

My point.  Don’t buy anything from Premier Electric (Japan) Corporation.  Find something destructive and derogatory and defamatory to say about their product and their integrity.  Tell your lawyer friend that he or she should consider getting rich on assembling a class-action suit, because I am sure these things are exploding all over the world.  Tell the story to your children before they go to sleep each night so that they grow up protected from this evil manufacturer.  Coordinate protests that shut down major transportation corridors.  Serve your guests freeze-dried instant coffee and tell them why you care enough to do that.

And, whatever you can do to take this corporation down, do it.  They put my family in serious harm’s way, and they couldn’t care less.

Just had to say something….

Next article, back to all that’s truly good about life….