Nothing seems to ruin your day more than a phone call or letter from an inside sales rep, offering an extended warranty or service contract on a new perimeter that it feels like you just purchased. How time flies, it’s already month 11 and in 30 days, you may be shocked to find out how much you will be charged if something goes wrong.
Why is service so expensive?
It doesn’t have to be, but service is a separate cost center for some companies and they need to return a profit. In order to do that, if you have a recognizable name, product, proprietary parts and software, it is a recipe for a super high mark-up. For example, the leading perimeter company has over 50 service reps with company vans full of tools. If they are to be profitable, they need your support dollars to pay for all that.
OPTOPOL perimeters come with a two-year warranty and we do not believe in service contracts. They are not necessary. Why?
Reason #1: The technology is newer, Optopol perimeters are intentionally separated from memory and processors and have very few moving parts. There is very little to go wrong. We use a small 4” x 4” PC that is hidden behind the touchscreen monitor, THAT is what makes service so simple. First, it is a powerful Intel PC running the latest version of Windows. We can easily access it remotely to diagnose and fix problems. In the worst case, we can ship another PC, which is about the size of an Apple TV or a Mac Mini. Since this is a second-generation design and customer support was a serious consideration in the product development cycle. This is not the case for the HFA, whose basic design has not changed for over 20 years.
Reason #2: Service is not a separate cost center that is expected to turn a profit, it is a necessary expense that customers should expect, not be forced into because the technology is cumbersome. (Does this sound familiar…”I’m sorry, that is a separate department and there is nothing I can do about the charges. However, I can draw up a contract to trade your unit in for a new one!”).
So, the next time you get an email or phone call asking you to pay for a service contract for your HFA, call Optopol USA for a quote!
