subject: Cisco Product Delays. How Long? I'm in a Bind! [print this page] Cisco Product DelaysCisco Product Delays. How Long? I'm in a Bind!
A few months ago one of our customers called me in a panic. He had done his homework and found a config of hardware that he believed would work great for his needs. And, he would have growth capabilities without breaking the bank.
There was just one thing he forgot to check....availability of the product through Cisco distribution. It turned out there was a 6 week delay but he had scheduled his installation in 2 weeks. He had lined up the tech guys for the installation. He had made promises to his customers about service initiation dates. He had committed to his boss and his sales people they would be ready. He was now in a bind. He had visions of public ridicule and a short career with his employer. He had never considered that unpredictable spikes in demand and manufacturing delays do occur. And they always seem to happen when you can least afford it. I'll give you the rest of her story about this in just a minute.....fortunately, it's a happy ending.
When you're looking for network equipment, knowing your installation date is critical, it's always wise to consider that the components you've selected may not be the only ones that can do the job. Frequently, there are perfectly acceptable alternatives that can be identified. So, by checking availability when you select your network components you can immediately confront any obvious product delays and select alternatives or plan for the delays (if possible).
Changing project specifications once you have placed an order and get surprised by supply delays can be expensive and time consuming. For large companies, or ones with many layers of authorization for a project, the problems can be compounded as Purchase Orders have to be revised and re-authorized, or voided and re-initiated.
It's so important that once you design your network and have a target installation date that you quickly contact your trusted supplier to verify not only prices but availability. And, that you emphasize and apprise your supplier of the due date and it's critical nature. Also, make sure that you get in writing, usually via proforma invoice, all relevant commitments for delivery.
Well, now back to the story I began with.....
Fortunately, for our customer, NetworkEquipment.net has world wide sourcing and we were able to find the product he needed in a very unlikely part of the world. It had been produced before the production delay and was sitting unsold, new in sealed box, in the warehouse of a company who had bought it for an installation and their project got canceled. They were stuck with it. We were able to negotiate a price that wouldn't increase the cost to our customer and have the product sent by expedited freight to our warehouse for inspection and then to our customer with time to spare.
