So I'm currently having another round of sleeplessness, and decided to work on some reports. While going through the report, one of the columns of data is Lead-time. It is an important detail that every salesperson uses daily, and with every quotation a lead-time is to be advised.
Looking through the data, I see the typical 1-2 days. Some specify work days, as in 1-2 work days. Again, very typical for HPAlloy. Even 2-3 days is not horrible. We usually do not work weekends, but we do run extra shifts.
(Did you know that we do offer same day shipping? Of course you have to call early to get a spot... And it has to be able to be pulled, cut, inspected, labeled, packed, cert pulled, packing slip made, package labeled, billed and picked up)
Occasionally I'll see a creative 10-12 days, (this is actually 2-2.5 weeks). Always work in the smallest numbers possible.
A lead time is sometimes negotiable, and should never be ambiguous. If you see a lead-time that is unclear or unacceptable, the quote stage is when you should bring it up to the sales person or their manager.
PROTIP: If you know they day you need it by, tell the salesperson that it is your
dock date that you need On or Before "OOB", otherwise known as No Later Than "NLT"
More insight into the quoting process? DYAS is supposed to mean DAYS, and sometimes misspelled as DAUS.
WKS is weeks, occasionally denoted weejs, clearly a typo though.
ARO is After Receipt of Order
So, in summary, what I would like to say is that we will offer a lead time, though it may not be the lead time you need. Tell us early if you are going to need it in a rush. This usually also expedites the quote process. It does neither of us any good if we are working to reduce the cost and our quote arrives after it's been bought. It is a validation of our sales process, but moot nonetheless.
When you win, we win. It's a team thing, so lets work together.
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