Radwell wasn't "professional" for me, they cost me time and money. They were 0-2. They said a bad component was good and a good component was bad. I believe they take on too wide a range of work to be proficient at all of it.
Good Points, I think if you ask them ahead of time what their level of proficiency with a given unit is, they will be open to letting you know so you can evaluate the risk and possible delays if they can't finish the job.
I am not affiliated with them except as a customer buying/selling to them.
From my understanding, they do set expectations in a written policy on repairs, and what happens if they are not successful.
Did they follow the policy and charge according to what they said they would for your repairs (even though they did not succeed?)
I think the best 3rd party repair centers for a given device probably would have former employees from a specific OEM, and that is not always possible.
I agree if you know of a company either OEM or a specialist 3rd party with specific expertise in an item, this is going to be the way to go.
Practical machinist is a gold mine for this type of info, and perhaps other people can provide recommendations for your vendor/brand/part number who may be better suited.
I don't mean to suggest Radwell is the silver bullet for every repair, but they are a reputable, professional company who are well staffed, stable and will be in business for a long time to come based on their size and profitability.
I would always pay more to work with the OEM or a 3rd party that specializes in a specific item, assuming Radwell does not know about a particular item.
Perhaps Radwell did not fit this profile for the part you brought to them.
In this case, perhaps if you did get it fixed, you can share who repaired if for you so this info can be available to other people?
Radwell does have a written policy that covers how they handle issues where they try once, fail, try again, and fail again.
Obviously this is not a desirable outcome, but they do not charge full price when they cannot do the job,
and I think if you know the policy ahead of time this should be considered as fair treatment.
If they are successful, you do get a warranty on the repair.
I don't think any repair center can promise 100% success,
unless they are the OEM and can get access to new components from the factory stock, and access procedures and firmware that only the OEM has full access to.
We also find having known good items to compare side by side can also help, but this is not always possible if they are seeing an item for the first time, or only have one to examine.
They do have trained technicians at benches with test equipment, they troubleshoot and swap components to the component level. They learn and keep track of repairs in a Database they made that were successful, and keep versions of firmware. I received a tour when I was a seller to them, and overall the operations seemed more professional than any other I have seen. Obviously this is easier if it is a capacitor, resister or simple component vs. an IC or ROM component that requires firmware. I think they are unique and should be considered a resource for people to try if other better options are not available (OEM or 3rd party specialist).
They have a policy about what they do if they can't fix an item, but I can see cost and delays go up if they ship it to you after repair, it is not fixed, you send it back, they try again and fail 2X. Not fun, but they are trying, and probably are lower price than OEM's for most repairs as this is their niche. I mostly deal with them on buying/selling, and I do want to say I have not used their repair services yet just to be open. But I liked what I saw as far as their approach and I do think they have a lot of happy customers. At my client sites, I do see them repair boards/equipment for very large companies that have tight maintenance budgets, and they are successful for many repairs.
For a machine that is down, perhaps going to a more costly repair center (OEM or 3rd party that is a specialist on the item) would be preferred.
I personally do prefer OEM support, but sometimes on a fleet of machines, you might have a part that is failed, and it might be worth trying to work with Radwell if you have "spares" or "cores" that can get cycled out to repair.
I agree if you have a specialized company who services a specific brand and item well, it is worth a premium and may be better to work with a specialist for critical CNC parts.
However, I would say if Radwell says they have experience with a particular part, they are a good place to try.
For my purposes I have CENTROID, HAAS and FANUC, and so far CENTROID and HAAS have handled my needs for repair well so far.
I am concerned on my Haas that old boards from 1994 can be repaired by the OEM.
If Radwell does not say they have expertise on an item, and it is critical, I agree would keep looking for a place with experience on a particular item.
If a smaller company advertises expertise or support for a failed Haas board, I would probably try them before Radwell for the reasons you and OX observe.
The FANUC is new and under warranty, and I likely will pay for OEM support if a problem develops in the future.
In general I think if the OEM stops support, a 3rd party specialist is not available, Radwell would be who I would try next.
If Radwell says they have expertise on an a particular item, I would trust them to try to make a repair.
Dualkit - did you get your part fixed from another repair center? If so, can you share who did this so other people can benefit?
I agree that their may be better fits for specific items for 3rd party repair, but we find sometimes it is good to have options such as Radwell and they do have a lot of happy customers.
We see they can be a good place for large companies we deal with as they do support old legacy equipment and are in business for the long haul.
We work with a very large company who purchase equipment from Europe, some that is now 20+ years old.
Radwell is able to keep old PLC/HMI and items running/repaired and they do gain experience with specific items, so they are experts on some areas.
Did Radwell provide the services as they said they would? Did they follow the procedures they listed on their website and bill according to what they promised at the start?
If a part is truly critical, the OEM or repair centers that maintain proficiency with a specific item are always preferred.
If Radwell says they have knowledge on an item, they they would fall into the "expert" category on an item.
If not, I agree that it might make sense to find a specialist if you cannot afford down time or have concerns about their knowledge on an item.
I think Radwell will answer questions about their experience level with a specific item to address these concerns.
For most people and large companies that have repairs needed, if they have multiples of an item, and can afford trying Radwell and share info and maybe even spares to them to assist with the troubleshooting and repair process, they can come up to speed. (my suggestion - this is just a suggestion to help them)
I do believe they are a good company and they do a lot of good work for a lot of satisfied customers.
