As you may or may not know, OEM’s (original equipment manufacturers) make proprietary elevator equipment. This is equipment that’s made by them, serviced by them, and includes mechanically proprietary parts. So when you need a new motor or integral part, you’ll have to get those from them also.
This presents a couple of glaring issues for building owners and managers. OEM’s have changed the lifecycle of their equipment over the years. So equipment and parts that used to last 30 years, now can be discontinued after just three. And when a $1000 part isn’t available anymore, the repair costs are considerably higher to replace it with another proprietary component. In the daily operations cost controls for your building, that’s a lot to consider.
Second, many independent elevator companies simply can’t work on proprietary equipment. Either because they don’t have training and experience on the equipment, or the aftermarket tools and diagnostic software required to effectively troubleshoot, maintain and repair them. So when your elevator is down and the OEM you purchased it from can’t service it for four weeks or more, unless you want to pay for overtime — you are flat out of luck.
OEM’s will install their preferred equipment at a discounted rate, knowing they’ll be locking you in to their proprietary equipment for years to come. While you anxiously wait for a repair, you may also be faced with extremely high fees that OEMs charge for preventive maintenance and servicing of their equipment. With few options and longer downtimes, you have less control over your operations and are likely paying more than is necessary for a repair or a preventive maintenance contract. These are the many real costs of proprietary equipment that are usually not considered at the time of purchase – either at new construction or modernization.
Allied knows there’s much less risk in choosing proven, battle tested non-proprietary equipment that a lot of techs know how to install, troubleshoot, maintain and repair. Just as important, manufacturers of non-proprietary equipment are truly in the “customer service” business – they support their customers — thousands of independent service companies like Allied Elevator, every day, in the design, engineering, manufacturing, installation and maintenance of their equipment.
So, if you’re involved with construction of a new building with elevators, or are gearing up for modernization, consider the long-term, downstream impact and hidden costs of highly proprietary equipment, against greater ability to control costs and work with a preferred service provider. Your property management team will thank you for giving them more options and better control.
At Allied, we keep our clients financial and long term interests in mind by using only non-proprietary equipment which has been around for a long time and is proven to be both durable, reliable, and easy to service. Giving you everything you need to know to make the best decision. It’s the Allied way.
