Our year here at Rottweiler has started as strange as I have witnessed in many a year. Quotes for new work is off the chart and if we were to receive all the work we have submitted quotes for in the 11 working days this year, we would exceed revenue totals for the entire year of 2008! But what really caught my attention was the foolishness that some people will try just to "save money". Let me explain.
One of our integrators called us last week for a repair on a system that was discontinued a few years ago. It seems that the physician that had purchased it had done so to "save money" and technical support for the product was $ 360/hour! I explained to both that it was discontinued because it was a horrible customer experience product and they were throwing their money away by trying to use the product.
Mistake # 1, he hired an unlicensed contractor to install his wiring in the office. Rather than pay an extra 20% for a professional installation, he planned to save money. The computer integrator explained not to blame him for the horrible installation, but he had spent over 2 hours trying to fix the installation and had done the best he could do without wiring the whole office again.
Mistake # 2, wire termination in the ceiling, code violation! After 10 minutes of explanations we discovered that the wire was terminated in the ceiling and the intent was to place the hub, routers and associated electrical hardware above the ceiling plenum. The wiring the doctor had paid for was too short to use and he has created a fire hazard not only for his own office, but for other tenants as well. Not only will he have to rewire the office but the money he just spent for the computer integrator to "fix" the wire he is out as well.
Mistake # 3, he bought his phone system off of ebay, system absolete and without warranty. When I heard that, I realized that he was out to see how much money he had to throw away! Professionals know that buying electronic phone systems off of ebay is a waste of money. I explained to the physician that it would never work, contained no warranty and the functionality of the hardware was obsolete several years ago.
Now comes the math question, what did he save in the end? He had spent over a week trying to fix his various issues and best that we can guess will continue until he finally gives up in frustration. He spent over $ 3,000 dollars for work that does not have any warranty and will have to be removed. He created a fire hazard that could have cost other tenants in the building big time and spent another $ 1500 dollars on a phone system that he cannot ever get to work.
Rottweiler offers Life Time Warranties on wire installations, double the manufacturer warranties and discounts on all purchases to customers that are BACR customers. Want to save some money? Don't fix it - replace it! Better yet, if someone else has something that is used, make sure you consult a professional before you spend your hard earned dollars. And always use a licensed contractor!
