The title of this post may seem odd. After all, some people may think of Pendant as a control panel shop, as if the control panels are the only product.

Control panels are part of the product, a very important part. We take pride in the panels we produce in our shop located next door to our offices, overseen by Brad.

There are panel shops to whom we can subcontract production of control panels, and very occasionally we do. Our limited experience subcontracting to other shops has generally been very good. Some control systems integrators choose to subcontract most if not all of their panel building.

We choose to keep over 95% of our control panel building in house. The main reason is that our product, and what you are buying from us, is a well thought out control system that is completed on time, at a fair cost, that works the way it is supposed to work. This obviously includes the production of high-quality panels that work, but it’s way more than that.

Consider the process, and where it begins, with a quote. Our responsibility is to prepare a plan, usually very quickly, for your project that you can count on to be accurate in terms of the layout, the timeline, and the price. The better we understand and control our entire production process, the more accurate we are. The end result is that you can have faith in our plan.

Why We Keep It In House

With regards to the production of control panels, there are three main reasons we keep it in house:

• The first consideration you probably thought of is quality. Quality is a critical consideration, and keeping control of it is important to us. But quality means more than just producing something that meets specs. There is a difference between a Mercedes and a Kia, even when both meet the specs. Subtle but important improvements in quality accrue from having our project management, design, programming, and startup teams working in close proximity to our panel build team. The feedback loop and teamwork produce panels that are efficient in their use of space, thoughtful in terms of allowing for future changes and expansions, simple to understand and use, and perhaps most importantly, ready when they need to be even with the tightest of schedules.
• Deadlines matter to you and us.  When we produce the panels, we control the production schedule. We make the resourcing choices with a clear view of the big picture. If there is a bobble, we make the adjustments. As a result, your panels are ready on time.
• Preparing panels for shipping is challenging to get right. Every panel we ship is packaged, loaded, and secured in the trailer by our team. We use only dedicated trucks that go directly from our shop to the customer’s location. This critical step, done poorly, can ruin an otherwise great project by creating significant delays and additional costs. The best way for us to avoid that is to tightly control this part of the process.

Yes, we build control panels. We’re obsessed with doing it the Pendant way, right in our backyard.

Build some of those for me, please