Lasco's CEO presents a contribution check for NMU Football to Marcus Tribble, a Senior at Northern Michigan University and Defensive Back on the NMU football team.

Pictured: Al Hawker (V.P. of Lasco and NMU Alumni), Dennis VanLandschoot (President/CEO of Lasco), Marcus Tribble (NMU Football, Defensive Back), Melissa Murphy (V.P. of Lasco and NMU Alumni)

This time last year I was living in Seattle, driving a 60 mile commute to work each day with a 4,500 foot change in elevation through the Cascade Mountains. During the winter months drivers were required to carry tire chains in their vehicle and most people who drove that route regularly had studded tires. I, however, had highway tires that were near the end of their life. It wasn't even the first week of November before I found myself slipping and sliding all over the road on my way home from work after a huge storm. The news was already warning of Avalanche risks due to the condition of the snow pack with more snow and ice on the way.

Later that evening I found myself in a tire store staring at a few dozen tires of varying price. My first inclination was to take the lowest cost option to get the job done. However, I began to reconsider this as I weighed the fact that the quality and performance of the tire I chose could potentially save my life in the right situation. Working with the representative from the store, I selected an appropriate tire from a nationally known manufacturer over some of the cheaper options. On my commute the next morning I felt much more safe and confident and found myself thinking of other instances that this same type of situation translated into my day-to-day work in the IT field.

Often times a business is presented with many different options, just as I was at the tire store, when it comes to price and quality in their selection of hardware and software. With each option the features and benefits can be extremely different. As the price increases, so does the advertised benefit, the length of warranty and the reputation of the manufacturer. Regardless, in certain situations, the higher priced item is not always the best or most appropriate one. However, as is often times my experience, spending a little extra money will add a lot of extra benefit. Even so, with many people feeling the effects of a down economy, their first inclination, just as mine was at the tire store, is to pick the lowest cost option to accomplish the task.

It might be the case that such an item is installed and works without a hitch for many years. It is my experience that this is rarely the case. The lower cost item usually needs to be reset weekly, updated monthly and, with its limited features, many workarounds need to be explored to accomplish the task it was originally purchased for. As time goes by, and precious time ticks away, the end user spends time on the phone and internet trying to keep the item running. As frustration levels and hours continue to mount, this item is eventually replaced with one of the original, albeit higher priced, options and from there on it is smooth driving.

When considering an investment into new technology it is important to think about the true cost of an item. This can be measured by the quality and reliability of service received and the amount of time spent in configuration and maintenance. While a device or piece of software may not be responsible for saving lives, it could be responsible for soaking up a lot of a company's time and money. It is hard to put a price on peace of mind that something will work as intended with little maintenance allowing efforts to be concentrated elsewhere.

To learn more about what Lasco can do for your commercial business, please contact Al Hawker at 906-228-1053 or ahawker@lascoinc.com.