Questions to ask when hiring or appointing an independent contractor for your automation project

One of the most common requests that we receive from customers when designing equipment is to keep the cost down. Now as much as this is sometimes unavoidable based on an inexperienced customer’s expectations, there are a few things that can be done during the quoting process that can help lower the cost of our equipment. However, that usually entails lower the product quality as well.

At Tuff Automation, we believe that the most important thing the customer can do to help keep cost down is to find a contractor who can provide everything they need. When numerous contractors are stacked on top of each other, this not only tends to cluster the project’s physical design, but also includes unnecessary mark ups in price.

So how do you make sure that the contractor you pick can provide everything needed for your application? Just ask! Here are a few key questions to ask a contractor to help you make the right pick for your automation project.

Are they outsourcing the design responsibility to an OEM?

Many end users who don’t have their own engineers on staff will first reach out to a system integrator to provide a layout concept that would best suit their application. This might be an acceptable path to take if you’re wanting to consider what a project might look like a year or so down the road. This would usually only cost you a small engineering fee at the present time, which might be worth spending for your team to have this project drawn out.

However, if you are looking to have an automation project come to fruition within a year, it might be better to find a contractor that not only can design the system and its equipment, but can also manufacture the equipment. Please notice how I said “manufacture”. Plenty of integrators will answer this question by saying something like “we can provide any equipment for this system.” This tends to mean they will reach out to OEMs to fulfill their order.

Also remember that a lot of OEMs who provide system integration will usually waive any integration engineering fee when an order is received for the equipment.

Do they have an in-house controls engineering department?

Controls engineering is one of the most important aspects of providing a turnkey automated system. This kind of engineering is primary to making sure any system is set to provide the efficiency and dependency that a business expects, and standalone controls engineering companies know that. That is why they will charge a small fortune to provide even the simplest of programming.

Finding a contractor who has its own controls department will immensely lower any up charge cost, especially if that contractor is an OEM as well. Here are a few additional perks of hiring a contractor who provides controls in-house:

• If the contractor is an OEM, the complexity of marrying the mechanical equipment to the controls programming is vastly simpler. (Again, which lowers cost.)

• The contractor will be able to provide in shop run-offs to work out any kinks before shipping the system to be installed on site.

• A contractor with its own controls department means that anyone you talk to from the salesman to the install team will most likely have controls knowledge. They can answer your questions!

Are they going to be around to support your system in the future?

When you pick a contractor for an automation project, you’re picking a company and a team of individuals who you might work with for months or even years to come. All the while, this contractor is responsible for designing and programming your system. Once your system is up and running, that contractor knows the system inside and out. Shouldn’t you make sure that particular company, not to mention the engineers, are going to be available to provide support and troubleshooting in the future?

A system integrator who can provide lifelong support will pay off in the short and long term. Starting over with a different controls engineer from different company will take additional time and money. Not to mention the risk you take of introducing a new engineer to a system they didn’t design.

Find a contractor who will be able to provide support and troubleshooting in the future. It’ll save you some headaches.

There you have it! These are the three most important questions to ask when hiring or appointing an independent contractor. At Tuff Automation, we are proud that we are an OEM that provides its own in-house controls and technical support. We believe that the smartest and most effective way to lower cost for our customers is to do everything ourselves. Let us work for you!