[Message Prev][Message Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Message Index][Thread Index]

Re: Brinks & Broadview Takeovers



On Oct 1, 11:40=A0pm, Jim <alarmi...@xxxxxxx> wrote:
> On Oct 1, 5:35 pm, tourman <robercampb...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
>
>
> > On Oct 1, 5:43 am, "Robert L Bass" <Sa...@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> > wrote:> "tourman" wrote:
>
> > Unfortunately, there are far too many "professional" installers who
> > really
>
> > > ought to be doing something else.
> > > Regards,
> > > Robert L Bass
>
> > RHC: I suspect that anyone who has been in the industry for awhile has
> > seen his share of poor quality installations. I know I have, likely
> > due to the high rate of new alarm companies coming and going in the
> > business, made worse here in Ontario because there are no licenses of
> > any sort required for security services.
>
> Would just like to point out that licensing in no way cuts down on
> poor quality work. Just because someone passes a test and gets a
> license doesn't mean that the have the ethics or even the ability to
> comprehend what the importance of what this trade is about or what
> good quality workmanship is. I see it allllll the time. And I'm not
> even sure it's intentional. I've had people work for me who were
> former alarm company owners for 15/25 years and I've had to teach them
> how to snake a wire rather than breaking sheet rock. Or even how to
> secure a wire to a fish snake, so that it wont slip off. That a motion
> detector isn't going to detect under itself if you mount it over 8
> feet high. That when told to check to make sure the zones are all
> working on a takeover, that you don't just check for continuity and
> the view at the keypad. That it's necessary to check each and every
> opening for open and close and visually for possible problems. =A0And
> the list just goes on and on. And what's licensing going to do about
> that? What do you do when you see work like that being done? Call the
> licensing bureau and report them for poor quality workmanship? You
> think they're going to go out and check his jobs and fine him .....?
> Aint gonna happen.
>
> So don't get your sights too fixed on what you think licensing is
> going to do. Just like any other govenment run office, it's all about
> them getting the money for doing as little as possible or nothing at
> all. You WILL get a good long list of the things you're not supposed
> to do and you can get fined for but they have nothing to do with
> workmanship. They'll get you for not finger printing employees, not
> having a license. Improper employee records. Not displaying your
> license number. etc etc. But workmanship? =A0 NAAAAH! that not in the
> least bit important to them. When we were first licensed in NY, and
> people reported infractions to the Department of State, they were told
> that they were not an enforcement agency. If they wanted enforcement
> of state law they've have to call the NY State police and report the
> infractions. Yeah ..... sure.!
>
> As for the rest of your post ..... Ahem!!!!
>
> If you insist on bringing up these old ghosts, ............ that 99%
> of the trade disagrees with you about .....
> Most here wont take you to task on them ..... but you know that I
> will. We disagree on this and it works both ways. If you feel you'd
> like to raise the dead .......... so can I.
>
> Without a rebuttal, anyone reading what you say, can think that what
> you say is what the whole trade thinks to be true .... =A0which is not
> the case .... and you know it.
>
> Anyway, ................. I just thought we'd seen the last of that.
> It's been pretty nice here .... of late.

RHC: Don't get your shorts in a knot ! I said I wouldn't get into
discussions about the many abuses of long term contracts and I won't.
I simply mention it as another thing in this industry that is not what
it should be. There are a vast array of other things more serious
things that are far more"wrong" with our industry than that ! If
people are stupid enough to restrict themselves with long term
contracts when there are other options, that is their problem ! On
that, consumers clearly have a choice.....on other things they don't !

Licensing won't stop poor quality workmanship but it likely would stop
a lot of people from jumping in untrained to try to see what they can
reap, only to leave at the very first sign of difficulty.There are
literally dozens of new firms just in our city in the last several
years, most of whom feel they can only succeed by steep discounting of
everything. As we all know, this cheapens the market for everyone. The
problem has become much worse with the downturn of the economy, with
everyone looking for the cheapest pricing, and the lowest monitoring
rate possible. At $15 monthly, I used to catch crap from other dealers
over my pricing. Now it is only "middle of the road"..! It's no wonder
that people choose a "safe"  but poor option and go to well
established companies like ADT and Brinks. You can hardly blame them,
especially when most buyers are not inclined to do any real shopping
for security services and the market is so chaotic....

Hell, I have been a locksmith for over 30 years and I don't have a
single license other than a normal business license, because there
simply is none to get. I carry all the tools of the trade and there
are very few doors I can't get by, yet I haven't ever been required to
submit to a police background check. There's something wrong with that
picture !!!!!

Like yourself, it takes quite a few years to build up a good name in
the business, and this is eventually what keeps you going against
competitors lower priced than yourself. I don't need to concern myself
much about it anymore but this low balling doesn't do the industry any
good overall. I think what pisses me off the most is that the
organizations that supposedly represent the security industry are more
concerned about maintaining the status quo than they are about raising
issues that really matter, but don't do so because they would step on
their members toes if they did....especially the big companies in the
business. So nothing ever really happens.....


alt.security.alarms Main Index | alt.security.alarms Thread Index | alt.security.alarms Home | Archives Home