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GE's machines show up everywhere, including airport security checks. In a more security aware world it's no surprise many companies are making security equipment, GE included. High profile sites online have seen posts commenting on GE's 'puffer' machine through which passengers are being blown with air to dislodge particles for security analysis in airports.
Sadly, the 'puff' of air is not unlike the 'slight discomfort' of a dental pick for most people. It hurts the exposed skin. Now add to that the discomfort for many of standing in a closed-off contraption of a machine. Many people who have experienced the 'puffer' are talking loudly and trying to spread the word around. Microsoft Executive Kim Cameron is one of them. Since she experienced one, the sight of the GE logo has been enough to turn her off from buying anything branded GE, a perfectly Pavlovian response to the painful air puffs.
One person won't sink GE's brand, but the story has popped up on a few high profile sites. Will people come to associate GE with the activities of airport security? After all, what company wouldn't want to be associated with pat downs and long waits in long lines?
Sometimes a brand can be assaulted by just a puff of air
Posted May 5th 2006 5:10PM by Tobias Buckell
Filed under: Blogs, Microsoft (MSFT), General Electric (GE)
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-06-2006 @ 1:10AM
Josh said...
And this my friends is why the rebranded product was invented.
5-06-2006 @ 10:51AM
John A said...
It's a puff of air...get over it. I've been through this machine over a dozen time this past year. Hate Osama, not GE.
5-06-2006 @ 4:56PM
BW said...
"After all, what company wouldn't want to be associated with pat downs and long waits in long lines?" I know. I hate that GE us trying to make things safer. Geez.
5-07-2006 @ 5:03PM
Kirk said...
Kim's reaction is unwarranted - I'm just sorry that you had to mention it... GE produced a product that served a purpose and I'm sorry to say that I would NEVER stop buying GE products simply because of the "puffer." Kim, take an honest look at yourself - we don't need to be sensationalizing absolutely everything.
5-07-2006 @ 7:42PM
HERBERT GLANZ said...
My wife and I went thru the GE Puffer at PBI and we didnt have to bother reomoving our shoes, which we had to do when we returned thro Boston's Logan. It did disturb my wife's hair doo, but I was proud to be a GE stockholder who built such a sophisticated machine that would add to my and my family' safety!!!
5-07-2006 @ 11:01PM
JOY H. said...
CAN'T IMAGINE WHAT THAT LADY IS TALKING ABOUT.I ASKED WHAT IT WAS ALL ABOUT AND WAS TRULY GLAD TO BE TOLD IT WAS TO DETECT ANY EXPLOSIVE MATERIAL. IT WAS ONLY A BURST OF AIR. I KNOW I FELT BETTER KNOWING EVERYONE ON MY PLANE WOULD BE CHECKED. THERE IS NO WAY ANYONE COULD HAVE PAIN OR DISCOMFORT, SEEMS LIKE SOMEONE IS LOOKING FOR SOMEONE TO GREASE HER PALMS.
5-08-2006 @ 12:18AM
tobias s buckell said...
Hi guys, if you read Kim's report she's not complaining about the *idea* of the machine, just how effective the puffs are. She compares the GE machine to another air puff machine on her return trip:
"On the way back from Vegas, I was put through a different puffer, this time the Sentinel II manufactured by Smiths. In the large sense, it is just as invasive. But the difference between this machine and the GE machine is astounding. The Smiths machine speaks in a voice no more unreasonable than any amusement park ride, and, as the company says, ?Gentle puffs of air dislodge any particles trapped on the body, hair, clothing and shoes.? And the puffs are gentle - a completely different experience from the horror devised by the idiots at GE. Further, the machine doesn?t produce the sense of being trapped."
One can dismiss her, but Kim probably won't be the only person who feels like this...
5-08-2006 @ 11:19AM
jdelf said...
The GE device enhances air travel security. A puff of air is a minor inconvenience compared to the ultimate sacrifices suffered by those on Flight 93 and the other three flights on 9-11. This Microsoft official should not draw attention to herself or her company by complaining about trivia. If I reacted to every insult that her company's products presented to me through operating system failures, security breaches, etc., she'd long have been out of a job and I'd be crunching an Apple right now.