EIO

In 1948, a 34-year-old electrical components manufacturer in the small city of Sonneberg was nationalized by the People’s Republic of East Germany and named Elektro Installation Oberlind.

That name is understandably shortened to “EIO.”

But the German pronunciation omits the “E” so verbally it sounds like “EYE-OH.”

It was a period of difficulty for people who had long gone without many things basic to minimum living standards. The government, concerned that excessive hardship could lead to thoughts of revolution, used the factory to produce consumer products such as Christmas lights as well as motors for film projectors and vacuum cleaners.

Well aware that most German housewives are vigorous housekeepers, the decision was eventually taken to focus all of the EIO people and facilities entirely on vacuum cleaners -- not just any vacuum cleaner, but one that would reflect the intense engineering and research to which its development would be subjected.

The first vacuum cleaner produced was an upright named the “Steppke.

It was a sales success with almost 400,000 models sold within 36 months of its introduction.

But, in spite of its popularity, EIO engineers deemed it a performance failure, discontinued it and for all time eliminated uprights to concentrate entirely on the canister concept. What followed in 1963 was a canister that offered such features as variable suction power, a dust bag content level gauge, automatic cable rewind and a range of specialized on-board attachments.

Throughout the latter part of the Cold War, the EIO would be a prized position not only throughout East Germany but also with senior officials in east block countries throughout the world. Several vacuum cleaner manufacturers throughout the free world from Sweden to England to the USA found inspiration in each succeeding EIO model.

In 1995, the company was sold to the Glen Dimplex Group, an Irish-based appliance manufacturer with factories throughout Europe.

The result was the emergence of one of the world’s most modern vacuum cleaner manufacturers with an annual output of some 750,000 units sold in more than 40 countries.

In 1999, EIO engaged Wilson Paas, a small Winnipeg based advertising agency to explore the feasibility of introducing the EIO Varia model into North America.

The agency decided that the place to start was the VDTA Convention in Las Vegas. German born agency partner Rudy Paas explains that they attended the VDTA Show not to sell vacuum cleaners but to learn what the attending members of that association would say about the Varia and to report back to the EIO engineers in Sonneberg.

“This group of engineers are philosophically descended from the ones who killed the Skeppke,” said Paas, “and it was clear they weren’t going to spend much time listing to likes and dislikes unless there was an underlying logic to what we had to say.”

Paas’ report on the dealer comments met with a mixed response.

To the idea of having real horsehair instead of poly brushes, the engineers agreed immediately.

To the idea of having rubber wheels they shook their heads. “We have yet to scratch a floor in 50 years,” they said.

To the idea of a heavier, more substantial hose, they shook their heads again. “It is lighter and stronger and we can prove it,” said the engineers and proceeded to show the testing area where the hose is punished continually. He said, “Why should we add cost for only cosmetics?”

The question of installing a conventional power head was one that the engineers turned down but later recanted. Today’s Targa has a conventional power head, the first one ever to be put on an EIO.

11-19-05