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Why you should specify
non-proprietary products. |
Most
knowledgeable design professionals and elevator buyers today specify non-proprietary*, easy-to-service
equipment instead of the highly specialized, proprietary designs provided by
the Major elevator
manufacturers. This is especially true when
long-term cost of ownership considerations are factored in.
| The reason? It's simple. |
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Non-proprietary products are easier and
less expensive to
service. |
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They don't become obsolete as fast. |
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Technical information and
support are readily available to all companies. |
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They can be serviced by most any good quality
firm- you have freedom of choice. |
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It's a straightforward,
honest transaction without any games
or "gotchas". |
These benefits
make good business sense for building owners and managers. Don't get trapped into
an exclusive arrangement with the installer because you bought something only they can service. You can buy with confidence from American Elevator-- knowing we provide
the highest-quality, non-proprietary products. The philosophy at American Elevator
is
that you should do business with us because you want to-- not because you have to.
Click on this link for sample
language to insert in your project specifications and/or contract to protect yourself from the
pitfalls of proprietary products.
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Many
industry experts would classify the following models as examples of highly
proprietary systems. Ask for yourself though, find out before you buy
if your local Independent (and even other Majors) can fully service them afterwards. |
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Manufacturer |
Models |
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ThyssenKrupp Elevator
(Dover) |
TAC20™, TAC50™, ISIS™, DMC-I™, DMC-I/M™, DMC-II™
LMT-AC™, LMH-PLC™, SmartTech™
Door Equipment,
10k Drive™ Motor Drives, SSLR System, ISIS, TWIN |
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KONE (Montgomery) |
HH Series®,
MX Series®, MonoSpace®, ECO System MR® |
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Schindler
(Westinghouse) |
Miconic VX, HX and 300
Series |
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Otis |
211M, REM®
Systems, Gen2™ |
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The
game as it can be played by the Majors goes like this:
1. You solicit and receive bids. The
bids from the Major companies are usually the lowest and may be surprisingly close in price
with each other, with the Independent companies usually somewhat
higher. You don't realize it, but you may have received
pricing that is at or below the installation cost of the Majors.
2. You award the contract to one of the lowest priced
Majors, thinking they should have a good reputation since they are
such a large
substantial company (and they have beautiful brochures so they must
be great, right?). They install
the elevator.
3. Towards the end of the job, you are presented with a
5-year maintenance contract from the Major. You then solicit
maintenance bids
from other contractors and... gotcha!
4. You learn (too late) that you have bought a highly
proprietary* elevator that only the Major that installed it can
service completely- possibly at a much higher price and with more
restrictive terms than if you had
chosen non-proprietary. You have limited
choices at this point:
Choice A: Sign with the Major and pay whatever they want.
Choice B: Go with a maintenance contract offering less coverage with a
3rd party contractor.
Choice C: Do not purchase any maintenance and take your
chances. (not recommended)
Choice D: Have a 3rd party contractor replace all the
proprietary equipment with non-proprietary so you can obtain service
at a competitive price from your choice of provider.
Caveat Emptor (Let the Buyer Beware)
Ouch...
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Proving
there's no reason to have to go proprietary, here
are some top non-proprietary brands of equipment we recommend.
Given a quality installation and professional maintenance, this equipment will equal or exceed the
Major brands.
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Controllers:
Motion Control Engineering (MCE)
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Hoist machines and other major
elevator system components:
Hollister-Whitney Corporation |
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Door Equipment:
GAL Corporation
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Complete Elevator Systems and components like Jacks & Pump Units
Canton Elevator
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* pro·pri·e·tary
Pronunciation: pro-'pry-e-"ter-EE
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -tar·ies
Date: 15th century
1 : one that possesses, owns, or holds exclusive right to something; specifically
:
2 : something that is used, produced, or marketed under exclusive legal
right of the inventor or maker; in this context specifically : an electronic
or mechanical device or
software program that is protected by secrecy, patent, or copyright against free
competition as to name, product, composition, operation, maintenance or process of manufacture
3 : a business secretly owned by and run as a cover for a
counter-intelligence
organization |
 Thank you, Mr. Webster. |
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