Wilson's True Technology takes the market by storm

From Next magazine issue 2/2002. Text by Arja Vartia

The production equipment at Wilson's Humboldt golf ball factory in Tennessee, USA is really humming these days with Wilson's new Staff True golf ball.

The perfectly balanced Staff True golf ball was launched at the PGA Golf Show in Orlando last January. Consumers are already so impressed with the ball's performance that the Humboldt factory is operating round the clock.

The factory has no buffer stocks at all, but still factory manager Mark Loscudo is promising delivery times of 1-3 days for US customers.

Competition is particularly fierce on the golf ball market, which is worth approximately USD 1.2 billion globally. The Staff True has strengthened Wilson's belief that it can become one of the market leaders. "Staff True enhances the Wilson brand's high performance image" says Loscudo. Wilson's new ball is in the upper price bracket, and it is sold through specialist stores and pro shops.

Wilson responded to keen price competition by driving down its production costs, which has involved rationalising the business and keeping a tight rein on raw material costs. However, no compromises have been made as far as the quality of the raw materials is concerned. The new ball requires rubber of consistent quality for the ball's solid core and urethane for the outer cover.

The manufacture of the new ball required additional investments mainly in measuring instruments and equipment. A number of patent applications have been made to protect the manufacturing method.

From idea to production

Ball-balancing in salt water is nothing new. Floating balls in the salt water shows where the unbalanced ball's lightest point is. It was not until the head of product development Frank Garrett discovered the enormous practical benefits of balanced ball technology that production began.

Garrett and his research and development team developed a new putting simulator with which thousands of balls of different makes were tested. In putting tests the unbalanced balls would veer off line enough to miss the hole over a distance of just ten feet. Only the perfectly balanced Staff True rolled straight into the cup time after time.

In addition to a laboratory, there are several club-swinging and putting simulators at the golf ball test center, which is in connection with the Humboldt factory. These are used to test the flight, spin and, of course, putting characteristics of Wilson's and competitors' golf balls.

Three-day pipeline

The factory's manufacturing areas are clinically clean and the production personnel cheerful and friendly. They are obviously pleased to be making successful products.

The manufacturing process begins with reels of thick rubber material being cut up into small marshmallow-looking pieces of various colours. These pieces become the cores of the golf balls. The outer covers of the ball contain tiny flakes of urethane, and these make their way to their own press. They are coated with a hard special composite. The ball's dimple pattern is then pressed into the assembled core and cover, followed by grinding and washing before they are polished and painted. The logo is applied and the balls are packaged.

The whole process takes three days. the biggest markets for Wilson golf balls are the US, Europe and Japan.