The pressure of choosing something better is immense. Of course, you would like to get the latest and the most innovative equipment. But, the problem is, your CFO is going to ask about the reasons you spent the GDP of your country on the equipment. Actually, the right choice is usually not the most expensive one. The thing is, you have to change the focus from “top shelf” to “best fit”.
First of all, do not listen to your sales representative in the first five minutes. You should think of your engineering needs. Do you have to test high-frequency RF signal for 5G or you have to check continuity of the circuit in consumer electronics? It makes all the difference. Keysight N9000B is the extreme overkill if your engineers need Rigol DS1054Z only. Do not waste your money on useless functionality.
Certification is the boring procedure that can save you from future problems. Always look if the recent NIST traceable calibration certificate is available for the equipment you want to buy. Purchasing the used equipment without this certificate means taking serious risk. You can save around 40% once, but then spend 60% of your time repairing the instrument rather than testing your product. Not really a good bargain.
Do not forget about the so-called “ecosystem”. Some manufacturers make you use their proprietary software. It becomes a serious issue if you hire a new employee used to work with open standards. Try to find the equipment based on standard SCPI commands. It will give flexibility to your laboratory. You should be able to connect a probe without the IT support participation. It is your trump card.
Sometimes renting can become the good choice not only for startups. It can be the nice tactical move for some temporary project. For example, if you need some expensive thermal camera for one month test, you can try to rent it. Also, the leasing can help you to spread your capital expenditure evenly and avoid the dangerous lump sum. It will be converted to the regular monthly operational costs.
Of course, there are hidden costs besides the obvious sticker price. You have to reserve funds for such expenses as probes, fixtures and shipping insurance. Service contracts are the additional costs too. Ignoring the extended warranty for your expensive spectrum analyzer is the very risky move. After the power surge it will be ruined. So, you have bought a very expensive garbage.
The secondary market can be very rewarding if used properly. Companies like TEquipment or even eBay offer many bargains. Nevertheless, you have to check the reputation of the seller. Ask him to send the photos of the actual unit, not stock pictures. Check if there are any signs of physical damage like cracked screen, bent connectors and so on. Scratches on the case mean that the instrument was dropped and probably has some internal damage.
Always think about the future, but do not exaggerate. The rate of technology development is very fast. Do not purchase any system that is close to its end of life. Check the manufacturer’s roadmap. At least five years of software support have to remain. The obsolescence slowly kills your budget forcing you to replace the instruments earlier than it was planned.
It is the essence of responsible sourcing. It is all about risk management. You have to decide when to invest and when to save. You are the keeper of the company’s budget. Make a decision that solves the problem without spending R&D budget.
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