Who’s in Your Network of Preferred Equipment Partners?
As indicated by the fact that the global industrial gases market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.2% through 2022, more and more industrial, R&D, and high-tech environments are integrating the use of specialty gases within their processes to power innovative applications. It also means that these operations will have an increased need for gas source and distribution equipment that enables them to effectively handle various gases, liquefied gases, and gas mixtures.
Contractors, architects, and engineers that specialize in these types of environments need to align with a gas delivery systems provider that can support their projects with application-specific equipment. Ideally, this partner would be able to fulfill the gas delivery equipment needs of multiple projects, helping streamline your vendor evaluation and selection process by becoming your go-to source for diverse system requirements whenever they arise.
With that ultimate goal in mind, here are some key things to look for when seeking out a preferred gas delivery equipment provider:
Product Variety that Matches Process Diversity
No two build-outs are the same, and your customers’ gas delivery needs won’t be either. The sheer number of industrial gas types and the diversity in their physical and chemical properties means that across different projects, you will face a wide range of requirements for gas handling, storage, and safe monitoring. You’ll need a systems provider that can provide a portfolio of product options to ensure you can meet diverse but exacting performance requirements. Product variety also helps you keep costs in line, as you can more easily select equipment with the right features without overpaying for unneeded capabilities.
Remember that oftentimes gas delivery equipment providers who also supply gases have developed their systems as a means to an end – meaning equipment engineering is secondary to their main business of selling gases. You may find that these providers offer far less flexibility in their system configurations, because equipment innovation is not their priority. Contractors that are creating environments for customers across a range of industries – all with their own unique processes – need more than a few standard system options, and should look for a provider that is invested in continually innovating their gas delivery equipment via add-on features, flexible configuration, customization, etc.
Insights to Differentiate You in the Bid Process
A gas delivery equipment partner that is focused on product innovation can also give you a competitive edge in the bid phase by offering value engineering insights to differentiate your quote. They may be able to offer a custom-tailored equipment solution that delivers more value to the customer than the standard product they have specified, or identify ways to scale back product features to save costs without sacrificing performance or quality. To do this effectively, your equipment partner must be well-versed in the regulatory and process demands of your customers’ environments, and have a track record of successfully supporting gas delivery needs for applications with similar profiles.
Services to Ensure Optimal System Implementation
With the complexity of modern gas delivery systems, contractors can benefit from an equipment provider that is able to manage the testing, commissioning, and installation of their engineered systems as part of the build-out. Ideally your equipment partner will offer these field services as an option to help you streamline system implementation processes – because who better to install the system then the experts that built it? Any additional field services that the provider can offer, like equipment user training and ongoing equipment support, could also be seen by your customers as added value that you can bring to the table through your partnership.
These are just a few of the factors that contractors should consider as they evaluate a gas delivery equipment supplier to add into their vendor network. For information as to why you should consider AES for the job, download our Partner Brochure.
Share this Post: