Choosing Process Heating Equipment Vendor

Are you choosing process heating equipment vendor? You may be experiencing some anxiety and option overload.  A lot of time has probably been dedicated to determining the details of your requirements, researching options, getting bids, and analyzing those proposals.  The question now is, “Which process heating equipment vendor is best for you?”  How do you make this decision?  Powerblanket has some suggestions.

Choosing Process Heating Equipment Vendor

Visit the vendor’s production facility

If you really want to know who you are working with and what kind of product they produce, go to where the magic happens.  Spend a day or two getting to know the staff and the facility.  It is worth the time.  There is really nothing that can replace old-fashioned, face-to-face interaction.  You have probably had plenty of interaction with the sales personnel, but now you can talk directly to the engineers who will build, test, implement and service your process heating solution.  Get a feel for the atmosphere of the work environment and the relationship of the team.  Happy employees usually indicate that you will also be a happy customer.

Ask to see the testing facilities.  This will give you a chance to observe the tools they use and the team that conducts tests.  Watching their problem-solving process can give you great insight to the actual expertise of the team.  Don’t be afraid to ask questions during your observations.

Visit actual customers in your industry

When choosing process heating equipment vendor, go visit another company that uses this vendor’s product. Ideally, you will want to be pointed in the direction of a company that works in an industry like yours with heating equipment similar to your needs.  You don’t typically buy a car without a test drive.  This process will allow you to see the equipment in action.  Talk to the staff about reliability, consistency, and quality output.  Ask about the vendor’s customer service, reliability, and responsiveness.  

Ask for References

When an individual or company offers a reference you can expect that it will be a glowing reference with only fantastic things to say about the vendor in question.  Seek out a variety of references.  Find a reference that will tell you about the ups and downs of working with this process heating equipment vendor.  Find a reference who has had a long-term relationship with the vendor.  Do your homework and ask a lot of questions:

•    How does this vendor handle setbacks?
•    How did this vendor work with your industry standards?
•    If a problem arose, how quickly and efficiently did they respond?
•    Did they do the right thing, even if it wasn’t the convenient thing?
•    Do they stand behind their equipment?

After all this hands-on research, you should have a new perspective on the original bid.  Choosing a process heating equipment vendor becomes much easier after you have invested the time and effort to see and hear about how this vendor really works.  Now proceed with confidence.  

Process Heating with Powerblanket

Often, when your industry is unique, or your product very specialized, there is not an off-the-shelf solution for your specific process heating needs.  In these cases, Powerblanket engineers take a hands-on approach to creating a custom solution just for you. Powerblanket engineers use their ingenuity and Powerblanket technology to solve the temperature needs of many different companies throughout many different industries, saving time, money, and/or headache for our clients. With Powerblanket custom process heating solutions, you’ll benefit from quick turn-around times. Our products are certified to universal safety standards and are easy to install, use, and store. If you can build it, produce it, or store it, Powerblanket can cover it and protect it.