Faster with Bill Chambers Power Meter Series. Interview with Michael Naughton, Chief Operations Officer Nielsen Kellerman.
Jun 7, 2024
In this chat, Michael Naughton, COO of Nielsen Kellerman and a seasoned engineer with nearly three decades at the company, shares his journey from novice rower to industry leader. He recounts the fascinating evolution of NK's iconic products like the Cox Box and the adaptation after the fallout with Concept2. Michael highlights the diverse markets for their Kestrel instruments, discusses customer-driven innovations, and teases future developments in rowing tech. His insights on product development post-COVID and the future of rowing gear are particularly engaging.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
From Tester To COO
- Michael walked into NK to fix a broken Stroke Coach and left with a job after delivering detailed test results.
- He started on the assembly line and progressed through engineering, sales, and operations over 30 years.
How The Coxbox Began
- Richard Kellerman watched a coxswain crash into a bridge and saw they were juggling megaphone and stopwatches.
- He and Paul Nielsen built the first Coxbox in Xerox's think tank in the late 1970s to solve that problem.
Losing C2 Forced A Pivot
- NK developed the first Concept2 performance monitor by measuring power from the flywheel.
- Losing that contract nearly sank NK and pushed them to pivot into handheld wind meters and Kestrel instruments.