Time cannot be bought
In our experience, the average time from the first contact with the customer, through the technical arrangements, to the equipment's delivery amounts to about 20 weeks. Of course, this time applies if the customer is simply willing to buy a winch as quickly as possible.
Another type of enquiries come from customers planning to purchase in the future. This is simultaneously good and bad news, and it's not just a question of money. Very often we encounter a situation when a customer comes back with an order a year after receiving an offer. This is all fine as long as the client does not expect to buy the winch outright because that has suddenly become his priority. Unfortunately, we would not be able to help, as order completion times have their own technological justification.
Technical arrangements
In the industrial sector, many builders consider a winch to be something that can be bought on the spot or within a week. The industry's reality is quite different. Industrial winches unfortunately do not stand on a shelf. Even though they are built on the basis of the same series of types, each one is designed for the particular investment and the specifics of the given application.
It should be remembered that technical arrangements, exchange of feedback, drawings of application sites and optional additions unfortunately take many weeks. This process often involves many departments and people working on a given project.
Ordering
When all technical and financial conditions have been accepted, it is time to place the order. From the date of its reception, our company has 14 days to prepare a detailed executive drawing and the client has 14 days to make an advance payment. Usually it is 30% of the order's net value. The finished executive drawing is signed by the customer, and after it's acceptation or optional amendments, it is directed to production.
From this moment on, we start counting production time of the winch.
Production time
The production facilities are located in the Netherlands and are divided into two separate companies. One is EMCE Winches and the second is Elsto. In the former, the mechanical production process and the testing of the winch takes place. At Elsto, designing and assembly process of the winch automatic control systems is carried out.
The most popular units are electric winches. Their production time is approximately 12-13 weeks from the time the signed executive drawings are returned. There are several stages to this process.
For the first 8 weeks, your winch will be built mechanically. At the same time, Elsto's automation department will design the control box.
After 8 weeks, the winch is delivered to the painting facility, where it will undergo the painting process according to the selected painting class. The time spent in the painting facility is about 7 days. After returning from the painting facility, the process of installing the electrical parts and testing the winch in a special testing facility begins. This process takes approximately 4 weeks.
The situation is similar for hydraulic and pneumatic winches. The only difference is the lack of electric part. Such a winch is produced within approximately 9 weeks of the execution drawing being signed.
Third party test (optional)
As our winches are supplied to major customers all over the world, we have to meet stringent regulations tailored to the country of the recipient. We have several internationally recognised certification companies to choose from, such as LLoyd`s Register, Bureu Veritas, DNV or SGS. The customer may request a post-production test, the so-called Third Party Test. This means that a representative of e.g. DNV is invited for a post-production trial in order to participate in the testing of the winch. This test under the supervision of DNV or another body is concluded with a test report, which is usually respected by the national supervisory authorities.
Delivery
After being notified of the readiness for a delivery, the remaining 70% of the order's value is paid by the customer. The finished unit is typically delivered to our clients using EXW transport.
Summary
When planning the purchase of a winch for a project spread in time, it is advisable to account approximately 20 weeks for the entire process of ordering and delivery of the winch, including the technical arrangements.