Buyer Beware: Manufacturer Viability Issues Can Cost You
Due diligence can ensure you don’t buy a system made by a company that won’t be around long enough to provide bug fixes and tech support.
Keep an Eye on Integrators Too
Manufacturers aren’t the only ones suffering during lean times, and the promise-anything approach is in play here as well. On a recent project, where bids were opened and read publicly, pricing ranged from $215,500 to $601,000 for a system that was tightly specified. Since there were almost no variables (product performance requirements demanded stringent compliance), each bid reflected an identical system.
While a competitive environment contributed to the wide range, in many cases we see integrators bidding jobs at or below cost just to get the work. They may feel that they will make it up on change orders, or that they will make substitutions that will save them money. Although a campus can benefit if a low bidder such as this is monitored closely, it can create delays in completing projects as there’s no money left in the job to send people back to clean up the loose ends. The jobs that tend to drag on forever often do so because they weren’t profitable for the integrator.
If an integrator is taking on work for little or no profit, the obvious question is “Will they be around to support you in the future?” If this is a concern, the best you can do is ensure that everything is documented properly. Transitioning to another integrator is a nightmare without proper drawings and installation best practices. This means that wiring should be identified and routed neatly and logically. If you have to pay another integrator to troubleshoot or clean up the mess later, you are certain to lose more than the low-bidder savings you realized initially.
So what can you do to prevent this from happening? While everyone asks for financial information and references, few people check them. Add that to your checklist, and make sure someone on your procurement team has an ear to the ground and knows what is going on in the industry. But overall, the old adage has never applied more than it does now – “If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”
Robert Grossman is president of R. Grossman and Associates (www.tech-answers.com), a consulting group specializing in electronic security products and projects.
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