On February 18, 2007 at 23:33, juliejacobson said...
A lot of passion on this one.
A lot of high-end custom integrators have gone out of
business for this very reason--over-customizing, saying
yes to anything. How do you keep your programmers in check
when it's oh-so-tempting to perfect every little detail
of an interface?
I happen to have Crestron, got to pick any interface I
wanted, and it's nice (guifx). But if the integrator had
come to me and said this is what your interface will look
like, I'd have been fine with that. That's why I went
with Guifx, using the same template that so many integrators
seem to use.
Would I like the design to match my Frank Lloyd Wright-style
mid-century modern home? Sure, but I wouldn't pay a programmer
$100 per hour for the extra effort.
High-end, complete customization is a good business model
for some, but it represents a very small portion of this
industry. The large majority of integrators use less-customizable
products like HAI. That's a swell business model, too,
and shouldn't be pooh-poohed. (ha ha, I said pooh-pooh)
When working with programming and developement we leave the final figure open in regards to customization. So far this has worked out to cover us and keep our clients happy.
The 2 projects I mentioned total came to nearly a million bucks in parts, labor and programming. Almost everything was laid on the table and all options were covered. Very proud to be a part of these projects.
Granted, this is not with all projects and many go with a basic cookie cutter set up. But knowing I can take the projects a notch up is very important. We can and do give basics when the budget calls for it.
