Industrial equipment does not have list prices, and buyers new to the category find that frustrating. It is not evasion. A booth or a lift is configured against your building and your duty cycle, and a published figure would describe a specification that is not yours.
What follows is how to run RFQ industrial procurement so that the quotations you receive are actually comparable — which is the part most buyers get wrong, and it costs them more than any negotiation.
Fix the measurement conditions before you compare
The single most useful discipline in this process: specify how a figure is measured, not just what it should be.
Two suppliers can both quote 0.3 m/s downdraft velocity while describing very different cabins, because one measured at a different height with new filters and the other did not say. Require the measurement basis and the differences that looked large usually vanish — and the ones that survive are real.
The same applies to compressor flow, which changes with pressure. A flow figure without its reference pressure is an incomplete number.
Send your site, not just your requirement
Most RFQs describe the equipment wanted and omit the building it goes into. That guarantees a revised quotation later, and sometimes an unusable order.
| Include | Because it changes |
|---|---|
| Ceiling height | Rules lift types in or out before anything else |
| Slab thickness, strength, level | Determines installation method and schedule |
| Electrical supply and spare capacity | Single vs three phase decides the model |
| Heaviest vehicle accepted | Sizing is done on this, not on the average |
| Peak simultaneous demand | Sizes compressors and extraction realistically |
| Bay dimensions and access | Determines what physically fits and how it is installed |
Gathering these takes an afternoon. Omitting them costs weeks, and it is the most common reason a quotation has to be reissued.
Ask what is excluded
Comparing quotations on headline price is how buyers end up with unbudgeted line items. The questions worth asking explicitly, in writing:
- Is installation and commissioning included, and to what extent?
- Is operator training included, and for how many people?
- What does the warranty cover — and what does it exclude?
- Which consumables will I be buying, and how often?
- What site preparation is assumed to be complete before delivery?
On warranty specifically: consumables — filters, belts, wear parts — are normally excluded, and the applicable warranty is typically the manufacturer’s with its stated duration and conditions. Confirm which warranty applies rather than assuming a supplier warranty sits alongside it.
Judge the answers, not only the prices
This is the part experienced buyers rely on most and it does not appear on any comparison sheet.
Ask each supplier a specific technical question — measurement conditions, floor requirements, delivered versus intake flow. A supplier who answers precisely has done the engineering. A supplier who answers vaguely has quoted from a catalogue and will discover your constraints at installation, when discoveries are expensive.
A supplier telling you a figure cannot be published without knowing your site is being accurate, not unhelpful. Treat confident numbers offered before anyone has seen your building with more suspicion than caution.
Common questions
Why can’t I get a price range at least?
A range wide enough to be honest is too wide to be useful for budgeting, and a narrow one would be misleading. Supplying the site details above converts the exchange into a real number quickly — which is faster than negotiating toward one.
How many suppliers should I approach?
Enough to compare, few enough to give each the same complete information. Three well-briefed suppliers produce more useful comparison than six working from partial requirements — and partial briefs produce quotations that cannot be compared at all.
What most often delays delivery?
Site preparation, not supply. Slab condition and electrical capacity set the schedule, which is why duration is established after a site assessment rather than quoted in advance.
Should I specify a brand or a requirement?
State the requirement and the operating conditions, then let suppliers propose against it. Specifying a brand narrows the field before anyone has established whether it suits your building — and you lose the engineering input you were asking for.
Where to start
Gather the six site figures above, then open the quotation request — it collects them in order. For the specification detail behind each category, see paint booth airflow, lift selection and compressed air system design.