When you are in need of springs, you need to find a reliable spring supplier. This is not as easy as it might sound. There may be a variety of instances where you need custom designs or rush orders. If you don’t find the right supplier, they are going to cost you a lot of business or cause you to miss deadlines. There are three questions to ask a supplier to ensure you do business with the right one.
Can you provide customizations?
There are going to be times when you need just the right spring. This may mean getting a particular length or circumference. It may also mean asking for a spring to be made in Beta C titanium as opposed to stainless steel – or some other type of metal alloy.
You may not be able to find the spring you need on the shelf. This means you have to find a spring supplier that can take a custom order. If you aren’t sure of exactly what you require, you want to find a company that is knowledgeable and can walk you through the selection process. Talk to a few companies, explain to them what you want, and see who responds in the most intelligible way.
What are your prices?
Learning about the prices is just as important as everything else. You have a budget to stay within and you can’t blow the entire thing on springs. There are a lot of variances between what different suppliers charge. You want to be sure you are getting a great price.
Talk to the supplier to find out if there is a way to reduce the price because you are going to buy in bulk or because you are going to be a regular customer. Making the inquiries to lower the price can help you dramatically. Remember that it never hurts to make the inquiry – a company may be very willing to provide you with a discount as a thank you for your business.
What is your turnaround?
Even when a spring supplier says that they will customize the springs to your specifications and provide you with a price that you can’t turn away from, you still cannot be sure they are the right supplier for you. You have to find out about their turnaround. Some suppliers simply cannot provide you with the supplies you need within the timeframe you require.
The turnaround for suppliers can range from 1 day to 1 month – and that’s a big difference. Much of it has to do with whether they are counting on other companies to get you what you are looking for or if they are producing everything in-house. Ask these questions to ensure you know you are getting exactly what you think you are getting.
In the end, only you can choose your spring supplier. If you don’t know which supplier to go with, these three questions will help you to narrow down the field and choose the one that will help to make your business a success.