When choosing a supplier for your custom tool requirements there are a lot of things that should be considered. What’s the lead time like? What types of capabilities does the shop have? How long have they been in business? What other companies are they working with? How’s their customer service? If you have doubts about your current supplier in any of those areas it may be time to switch things up a bit.

Lead time costing you money?

No matter your industry, lead time is important. If you’re not getting your tools in time it could cost you time, money and, even worse, it could cost you valuable business you worked hard to get. A quality custom tool supplier should see your relationship as a partnership, not just as a vendor. Your success is ultimately their success.

Tools should be delivered on time, exactly how you expected. If this becomes a continuous issue, then it is definitely time to switch suppliers. Downtime in a shop is expensive and costly. You shouldn’t have to worry about having the right tools for the job with plenty of time to meet your timeframes. Start the conversation about lead time early,  making sure it is crystal clear.

Capabilities just not there?

Different shops have different capabilities. Knowing these capabilities ahead of time will save you time, money and headaches. If you enter into a partnership with a custom tool supplier, you should know their capabilities inside and out before agreeing to do business with them.

However, your requirements may outgrow your current supplier as well. As your company advances,  you may begin doing different projects that require different capabilities. It’s OK to maintain a relationship with more than one supplier; make sure you do your homework, though, and find the suppliers that meet your exact requirements while also keeping lead time and customer service in mind.

Poor Customer Service?

Customer service is absolutely huge. If your supplier treats you as a partner and not  as a number in their books, the relationship should be very solid. Whenever you have an issue, it should be resolved right away (within reason of course). Solid customer service is directly correlational with solid communication. If you pick up the phone with a question, will someone answer? If one of the tools has a defect, will it be taken care of quickly? These are all questions you should ask during the initial process of finding a custom tool supplier. It’s also not a bad idea to ask for a few references. This  gives you an idea of what to expect from the company based on other customers’ experiences.

We can help…

Custom Tool & Grinding prides itself in on-time delivery, great customer service, and excellent tools. We have state-of-the-art multi-axis capabilities designed to produce any type of custom tool to the best standards and fidelity. When  you want your tool custom built, cut or ground, contact the experts at Custom Tool today.