Our Story
THE TORNADOR® STORY
I remember very clearly the day I first experienced, what we call today the “TORNADOR® Cleaning Tool”. I was preparing my trip back to the USA while sitting in a Tokyo train station. I was with Japanese associates that I’d been working with on various projects, such as the detailing clay bar. While having my last Bento lunch, one of the team players set down an aerosol can of air, which looked like a chemistry funnel glued to the end. Inside the funnel was a flexible tube. They handed it to me and asked my opinion and its possibilities in the USA. Their intention was to target this idea to computer users; for blasting away dust on computers. I picked up the can and depressed the trigger. The flexible tube inside the cone went crazy. I then spread cigarette ashes on a white napkin and put it to a test. I was immediately impressed with the results, having such a small amount of air. But unfortunately, the tube would freeze up and stop working until the can warmed up. My first response was, I’m not sure where this will fit in the automotive reconditioning market. Afterall, that’s why I was sent to Japan; to sell reconditioning products and evaluate the market in Japan.
My first request was that we build a version that would be powered by a larger air compressor source. This was something that was virtually non-existent in Japan, as they used small pocket compressors. So this idea was not very interesting to them at this point because very few shops would have a large compressor that could power the new air-powered cleaning device. I remained positive and firm with the idea. The first prototypes we put together were promising, but had several modifications in order to meet the standards of US detailers and their rough environments.
After many samples and ideas exchanged, I received the first solid product to introduce to my boss and select users. There was only one big problem. They had named the tool “Shock Gun”! They did this because testing and research suggested that when the weighted tube made contact with the cone, it felt like a shock; thus cleaning the surface with sonic-type action. I rejected the name; for not only did it have a negative description, it wasn’t really describing what the tool was doing. I explained what was actually happening with the tube’s cleaning action. I explained that it was more like a tornado in an out-of-control pattern, while pushing and pulling debris out of the way. The name “tornado” was used and weather related, so I merely placed an “R” at the end of the word. This name was also similar to the word “Matador”, which I liked and associated challenging the bull to a contest. So, TORNADOR ended up being the name. In short time it became official, after being registered with U.S. trademark offices.
This fine product was the result of several people with a strong desire to prove that it would work well in the USA; and it has. My biggest satisfaction of this long transformation of TORNADOR® is similar to the detailing clay bar story. It made one’s life and job easier, while perhaps earning them more money and saving time. This product has now become a mainstream tool for the reconditioning professional and I’m proud to be part of its creation.
My passion is in automotive reconditioning and I will continue to build relationships with those who share my interests. I continue to travel the globe and build alliances with factories, inventors and my customers, to be able to provide innovative tools and processes that make life easier.
Dennis Dehn
Entrepreneur, Inventor, Consultant
