Buying Cheap Pressure Hoses Will Cost You

Recently, our markets have become flooded with imports, competing with the top manufacturers by offering cheaper parts and lower cost assemblies. When the costs of pressure hoses vary so dramatically, buyers and maintenance managers can get confused, opting for the cheapest option as a way to save costs or choosing the middle ground, in the hopes that the quality will be better. Unfortunately, while the outlay of costs may be small to begin with, choosing a standard product over a premium product will ultimately cost your business substantially more in the long run.

Your machinery relies heavily on its working parts, so it’s certainly worth investing in the best possible options. If you knew that a premium product would last twice as long as a standard product, would it still be worth going for the cheaper option? What if the premium product had a lifespan five times that of the standard product? The initial investment suddenly doesn’t seem as daunting as you thought. With machinery, you have to consider that you’re not just investing your money, you’re investing in the production, the safety of your operators, the entire operation – surely that’s not worth compromising?

The hard truth is that cheap products are guaranteed to be low-quality products and the facts regarding low-quality products are as follows:

• A high risk of premature failure.
• A very short lifespan
• A high risk of mechanical failure.
• A high risk of collateral damage from an unexpected failure, such as injury or death, down-time, hydraulic fluid loss, missed deadlines and damage to the entire assembly.
• Higher maintenance costs.
• Higher replacement costs.
• Higher repair costs.
• Higher labour costs.

Those are a lot of risks to take for the sake of saving on the purchase price.

The other mistake that buyers make is not considering the warranty of your assembly. It’s common to see hoses and fittings from various manufacturers attached to a single machine. Whether it’s for cost reasons or simply down to product availability and timing, it’s important to remember that assembly warranties are typically only valid if the hoses and fittings are from the same manufacturer.

Selecting the best possible hose and fittings for your assembly and sticking to the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) will ultimately optimise your investment and lower your cost of ownership in the long run. Bearing Centre stocks a wide spectrum of hydraulics and pneumatic solutions from accredited and highly regarded suppliers. Contact our highly capable team today to learn more about our extensive range of high-quality products.