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Contract inspection?

ANDREW CRAWFORD
Hey guys, lately I've been mulling over the idea of buying a used CMM and doing contract inspection on the side. I'm still a little green under the gills (only been programming about two years) so its a fairly tentative plan with no time frame yet, but just as an idea I figured I'd look into it a bit more. Anyone on here have any sort of experience doing this sort of thing? Obviously I'd get whatever certifications I'd need as well (ISO, etc.) but I'm trying to think of any unforeseen issues that might arise or how well I could find customers. Any thoughts? Thanks!
  • At a former job shop we just contracted out to local companies in need of programming, first piece, layout, full lot inspection. Maybe start there (if they're up for it) and get a feel as to how it will work.

    I've often thought about this but am more concerned about the liability issues as I work automotive and have worked aerospace as well.

    my $.02
  • There are 10 things you absolutely need to make a contract inspection house work:

    1. Industry contacts.
    2. Industry contacts.
    3. Industry contacts.
    4. Industry contacts.
    5. Industry contacts.
    6. Industry contacts.
    7. Industry contacts.
    8. Industry contacts.
    9. Clean, well lit, temp controlled shop with CMM, inspection plate, staggering variety of hand tools and stylus equipment, nice stereo, etc.
    10 Industry contacts.
  • There are 10 things you absolutely need to make a contract inspection house work:

    1. Industry contacts.
    2. Industry contacts.
    3. Industry contacts.
    4. Industry contacts.
    5. Industry contacts.
    6. Industry contacts.
    7. Industry contacts.
    8. Industry contacts.
    9. Clean, well lit, temp controlled shop with CMM, inspection plate, staggering variety of hand tools and stylus equipment, nice stereo, etc.
    10 Industry contacts.

    you forgot Industry contacts
  • There are 10 things you absolutely need to make a contract inspection house work:

    1. Industry contacts.
    2. Industry contacts.
    3. Industry contacts.
    4. Industry contacts.
    5. Industry contacts.
    6. Industry contacts.
    7. Industry contacts.
    8. Industry contacts.
    9. Clean, well lit, temp controlled shop with CMM, inspection plate, staggering variety of hand tools and stylus equipment, nice stereo, etc.
    10 Industry contacts.

    you forgot Industry contacts


    And a fridge full of beer (liquid refreshments for the customers!! Wink)
  • Its not an easy as you may think. Getting everything setup and then look for customers will not be easy. I know a guy who got his cmm and a very nice facility, but getting clients is not easy for him. Very costly!!

    It took him about 6month to get up and running, so for 6m he was without a paycheck, and then. Getting work was also hard. He got a few clients and he is operating now, but not full time maybe 30h a week of work sometimes less.
  • Yeah, I posted a similar thread on another site we all know and love. Suffice it to say I'm sufficiently discouraged ;P I mean I was looking at it as a long term goal but by the sound of it, it's just not really feasible.
  • Yeah, I posted a similar thread on another site we all know and love. Suffice it to say I'm sufficiently discouraged ;P I mean I was looking at it as a long term goal but by the sound of it, it's just not really feasible.

    its really is not. Unless you have enough funds to stay afloat, I would say at least $100,000 not including the expenses of the shop.
  • As Josh pointed out - unless you have a job that involves spending time at a lot of customer sites and have built a good reputation at those sites, you'll never make it. As well, to hang your shingle as an inspection house, you need exposure to a wide variety of industry. Heck, at two years experience, you're not even aware of all the mistakes you're making yet.Wink (trust me on this)

    A job as an application engineer for a cmm company could put you in a better position to eventually do what you have in mind.

    Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
  • Also: offering off-line programming services would be a more realistic starting point. Much lower startup costs. Again, you'll need that cross-industry experience.

    Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
  • As Josh and others pointed out above, contacts are very important.
    Even more than that, trust.
    If you start out on the off-line programming only road, you still need that trust.
    That takes time to develop.
    Think about it. Even if someone sent you a free program, how eager would you be to try to run it? You would probably only try it out if you were desperate and had no alternative, but barring that, it's unlikely you would go through the effort of testing an unknown.
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