Capital Equipment News May 2019

EDITOR'S COMMENT

DITCHING INDUSTRYWARRANTY NORMS

C ost of ownership considerations in equipment start long before the load hits the road or the bucket tips into the bin. While capital equipment buying decisions have for long been largely influenced by factors such as price and aftermarket support capabilities, warranty is seemingly taking an even more important role. We will all agree that a warranty is a very valuable component of any capital equipment purchase. As one industry expert put it, “a warranty is like health insurance, we hope we never need it but when we do we are glad we have it”. Capital equipment owners need to be certain that the equipment they are buying is free of defects in workmanship for a considerable period. During buying time, the length of warranty should not be overlooked. While similar products may have different price tags, they are also likely to have different length of warranties, and this should be figured into the equation. The longer and more comprehensive the warranty, the lower the overall potential cost of ownership. The warranty is also a good measure of the manufacturer’s confidence in its product, and it is only as good as the company providing it. With that in mind, forward-thinking OEMs and their suppliers are flipping the industry warranty norm on its head. The trend towards longer warranties has already taken root in the automotive industry where Hyundai, for example, has been the frontrunner with its 7-year/ 200 000-km warranty. In the capital equipment space, leading this revolution are Metso and its southern African supplier, Pilot Crushtec International, and more recently, Goscor Lift Truck Company (GLTC) and its principal, Doosan. In a ground-breaking development, Metso and Pilot Crushtec International

have rolled out an industry-first, standard 5-year/ 10 000-hour warranty on all Metso crushers and screens, effective 1 January 2019. The move ushers in a new era in the crushing and screening industry where a 1-year/2 000- hour warranty is generally the norm on these mission-critical assets. The initiative is a true indicator of Metso’s confidence in its product. It is also a sign of service commitment from Pilot Crushtec International as the exclusive distributor of Metso’s aggregates products and services, including static, tracked and wheeled crushers, scalpers and screens in southern Africa. The initiative is in the best interests of the consumer. A longer product warranty gives equipment owners some extra coverage for their big-ticket purchases, along with a little more peace of mind. From an OEM perspective, it says a lot about the confidence in the brand. From a supplier point of view, it also means that the dealer is committing to be there for its customers for the long haul, and be involved in their businesses with a vested interest. As you will also see in this edition of Capital Equipment News , with its newly-introduced 5-year warranty on its Doosan 7 Series range, GLTC is setting new standards in the South African materials handling equipment industry. The new offering is said to be the longest ever warranty to be offered in the South African forklift industry, where the industry norm is generally 12 months. The pertinent reasoning behind the extended warranties is the fact that the initial capital investment on these machines is very high. Therefore, to retain the value of the product, the warranty should be long enough to support the product for at least the first five years of its life.

Munesu Shoko – Editor

capnews@crown.co.za

@CapEquipNews

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