Selected Answers

From K Sanchez of CSP on December 4, 2017:
If "Manufacturers are driven by sales; contractor ...read more If "Manufacturers are driven by sales; contractors are driven by workload," you should also ask what drives inspectors (consultants?). I would submit that the answer from Eric is the best: a warranty is always better than an inspection if the contractor has the credibility to back the warranty. Inspectors have the potential to drive up cost by delaying and causing unnecessary work. An inspector may miss things that may not show up for a year or two, but a long-term warranty would encourage a contractor to provide more quality than needed to cover the warranty period. Inspectors are money motivated, as well. We call this "billable hours"... more delays mean more billed hours. There needs to be checks and balances on all.

From Eric Murrell of SME on December 1, 2017:
If you want to convince management, you need to pr ...read more If you want to convince management, you need to prove the savings will offset the cost. Find a company in your area that has embraced third-party observation and talk to them about why they pay for it. That may give you some ammunition to make your case.

From Philip Kabza of SpecGuy Specifications Consultants on November 29, 2017:
To give a for-instance: Unless a facility owner su ...read more To give a for-instance: Unless a facility owner subscribes to an ongoing roofing preventive maintenance relationship, we recommend specifying only standard warranty terms, and spending the savings on an independent roofing inspector who will be onsite to observe and correct practices.

From Michael Halliwell of Thurber Engineering Ltd. on November 28, 2017:
I agree with Mike but will go further...and please ...read more I agree with Mike but will go further...and please, no one take offense as these are way beyond broad brush generalizations. Manufacturers are driven by sales; contractors are driven by profit and limited by workload; many employees want to do the least possible to keep their job and make a buck; and none of them care about the owner except as a source of money. Yes, third-party inspection costs money, but they are there to look out for the owner's interests and to make sure the owner is getting what he or she is paying for.

From Mike Rutherford of Conspectus (QLD) Pty Ltd on November 27, 2017:
Manufacturers are driven by sales;  contracto ...read more Manufacturers are driven by sales;  contractors are driven by workload.  Between these poachers, you need a gamekeeper to keep them "honest."