Saving pennies but spending pounds

11-03-2021

Why installation costs should be a significant consideration when quoting.

Let me give you a scenario. Two similar linear batten products from two LED lighting manufacturers. Prices are similar – maybe there is less than 10% in the wholesale price between them. How do you choose which product to go with? Of course, you will be looking at performance, efficiency,warranty, reliability of the brand but perhaps the most significant difference in price for the client will be the installation costs.

What are the key product features that save time on installation?

User instructions: Perhaps stating the blindingly obvious, but good user instructions are a must.If you spend a couple of hours trying to understand what goes where, everyone loses.

Installation templates:   Drilling templates make life much easier for the installer. One of the worst things a contractor can do is to damage products whilst making holes for installation so a well made product will guide the contractor to do this the right way.

Tool free installation: Piano key connectors allow for tool-free wiring – no screwdriver or screws are required. This saves a great deal of time and fiddling around with tiny screws or trying to ensure that the contractor has the right screwdriver. The contractor presses the  “piano keys”, creating a gap for the wire to be inserted into. When the key is released, the wire is held firmly in place.

Installation options: Even if you are only lighting a single space, you might need to use a variety of mounting options.If a product can be mounted in a variety of ways, then it gives total flexibility for the contractor to use the method which is the most convenient –is the product BESA compatible? Can it be wire-mounted or can it be installed flush with the ceiling via keys lots? There are loads of mounting options and the best products will offer a good choice.

Selectable output: The most annoying situation for any contractor is to install products perfectly and for the client to have concerns about the lighting levels – too bright, too dim –even with the best planning and lighting designs, sometimes light levels are just a personal preference. Taking down lights that have been installed is are ally time-consuming and lengthy process. The new generation of LED lighting,such as the Solray Select, offers selectable output which means that even if you have already installed a product, you can easily increase or decrease the light levels to meet the clients requirements

So, lets look at the maths in the scenario posed. The slightly cheaper product takes 25 minutes to install – and there are 20 products to install. Total installation time would be 500 minutes – just over 8 hours. With breaks and stoppages, at least 1 ½ -2 days of installation time.The slightly more expensive product takes 15 minutes per product to install, total installation time of 300 minutes, 5 hours, which is probably completed in 1 day. On this small job alone, you are saving ½ -1 working day in labour costs.Its easy to justify spending a tiny bit more to get a much quicker installation as the extra day of labour would cost say £200, which is an extra £10 per product.

On top of this, if you have installed a Novah selectable product, you can be sure that the customer will find a lux level that they are satisfied with – no reinstallation costs or damaged product if the customer changes their mind.

Novah are always looking at the bigger picture and are working hard to ensure that not only are our products great value but that installation is taken into consideration too. Please contact us to discuss your installation questions at sales@novah.co.uk or call +44 (0)1928 242918   

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