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<< Lancair Builders' Mail List >>
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Adam Molny wrote:
> Sometimes we lose sight of the fact that the point of building your own
> airplane is to BUILD YOUR OWN AIRPLANE. If a builder feels confident in
> attempting a particular task, he should be free to proceed (at his own
> risk, of course).
If you are willing to do the panel AT YOUR OWN RISK, then let me ask you the
following:
* Will you be willing to pay $75/hour to Garmin for any time they spend talking
to you about the installation?
* Will you be willing to pay freight, labor & parts in case you return the unit
to them because it does not work in YOUR installation?
* Will you be willing to sign and abide by an agreement that bars you from
making any negative comments about Garmin in case the system does not work as
expected or if the whole installation turns out to be nightmare?
Unless the answer to all three questions is an unqualified YES, then you are
not really doing this at your risk. Garmin is sticking their neck out on your
ability. If you are not as capable as you claim to be, then Garmin, not you,
will foot at least part of the bill. Can you blame them for not taking that
chance?
Manufacturers are finding out that as the systems get more and more
complicated, the potential for problems grows exponentially. Even in the best
case, a trained and experienced avionics technician requires some level of
factory support for his first installation. Be it attending factory training,
working under the direct supervision of someone who has done the installation
before, utilizing a lot of phone support and frequently all three. Things get
easier for subsequent installations until at some point the person can do
installations without any factory support. That is the most cost effective for
the manufacturer.
In the case of a homebuilder doing their own installation, the factory can
count on at least as much phone support as an avionics tech doing his first
install without any prior system specific training or direct supervision. In
the worst case, they can end up spend a lot of time and $$$ teaching people who
have no idea what they are doing, or worse yet, have no clue about how clueless
they are.
Are Garmin and other manufacturers going to loose out on the business of
customers who are adamant about doing their own installations? Sure, and they
will be happier for it. After factoring in the cost of all the support that
they may be stuck with, they are looking to loose money on the sale, not make
it. The fewer sales like that, the better the business will do.
Here's another angle to think of. Someone was so unhappy about Garmin's
policy, that they started a thread advocating Garmin's boycott. That says
something about the person's personality. They are someone who does not keep
their opinions to themselves, are willing to speak their mind loudly and are
willing to make a lot of noise if THEY PERCEIVE that they are wronged. Nothing
wrong with any of that. In fact they are admirable qualities. However, can
you imagine the amount of bad publicity that Garmin is risking if this person's
installation does not work. Is it a wise business decision for Garmin to risk
the reputation of their products on the unknown technical capability of such a
person? I would think not.
Hamid
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LML website: http://www.olsusa.com/Users/Mkaye/maillist.html
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Please send your photos and drawings to marvkaye@olsusa.com.
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