Situation
With 15 locations spanning California, Utah, Colorado and Mexico, Nolte Engineering is considered a leader in the development of sustainable solutions for civic infrastructure development. Each office is staffed with civil engineering teams who rely heavily on their HP imaging plotters for their CAD drawing and rendering output.
Candi Becerra, Nolte’s corporate procurement supervisor, is responsible not only for the purchase of these mission-critical plotters, but also for ensuring that they consistently operate at optimal levels and without any downtime.
“We had historically purchased our HP plotters through California Surveying and Drafting Supply (CSDS) but went directly to HP for our maintenance agreements and service paks,” explains Candi. But with more than 17 large-format HP plotters and printers corporate wide, each under a different service agreement, Candi was spending more time than she wanted on maintenance-related matters for Nolte’s imaging equipment. “It was a matter of just having to deal with too many different people, too many contracts and no real continuity when it came to our corporate-wide imaging solution,” explains Candi. “I just felt that there had to be a better way.”
CSDS Steps In
Nolte Engineering has always had a successful, longstanding relationship with CSDS when it comes to the purchasing of their HP printers and plotters, with CSDS Account Manager Robert Barabino consistently impressing Candi with his proactive and consultative approach to their imaging needs. “For me, successful business relationships are based on good communication, honesty and reliability,” explains Candi. “Rob offers all of that and more – it’s truly stellar customer service.” In addition, Candi works with CSDS surveying specialist Mike Woodel who provides support for the company’s surveying equipment and software needs. “Rob and Mike have always brought an exceptionally high level of service and expertise to the table for us,” Candi comments. “Their team approach to servicing our account works very successfully. Once I became aware that they could potentially handle our equipment maintenance, I was certainly open to the idea based on their past performance.”
Rob recognized that there were huge inefficiencies in Nolte’s plotter maintenance process, and convinced Candi that CSDS could indeed handle all of their HP service needs. “As an Authorized Warranty Delivery Partner, we are held to extremely high standards by HP in terms of our performance metrics,” explains Rob. “I was very proud to report that we consistently score 99% in all categories of service and support in the Graphics category.” By taking over the HP service agreements, CSDS could provide Nolte with a single point of contact for all of their plotter and printer maintenance and repair. When Candi discovered that this change would also save the company money, she agreed to test drive the arrangement.
“We started by having Bruce Lowe (CSDS’s HP Technician) service our Sacramento office,” explains Candi. Once she experienced the high standards of customer service and responsiveness that Bruce delivers, she agreed to let CSDS service Nolte’s entire U.S. operations. As maintenance renewals came to maturity, the contracts were transferred directly to CSDS.
“When you have this type of in-depth service relationship, you can really understand the history of the equipment,” explains Bruce. “We can now provide a single help desk to support Nolte’s 13 U.S. locations. We’re only a phone call away and Nolte can deal with
a single organization they trust.”
“These days we refer to Bruce as our ‘Plotter God’,” jokes Candi. “Not only do we save thousands of dollars a year by going directly to CSDS, but I now have a single point of contact for all of our plotters and printers. Their responsiveness is incredible. They even proactively schedule technicians to spot check equipment or look into software updates if they are in the area servicing another account. We save money and the service is seamless.”
Maximizing HP’s Promotional Programs
Candi also appreciates how Rob and his team keep her abreast of HP promotional plans like the Purchase Edge Points program where customers can earn one point for every $4 spent on over 1,300 qualifying HP products. “It’s been such an incentive that we now purchase all of our toner and paper products from HP,” says Candi. “Robert even coordinates our recycling program for us, which earns us points as well. We’ve been able to get several small laser jet printers free because of this wonderful program.”
With 13 U.S. locations to be equipped and serviced, Nolte Engineering requires proactive partnerships with their vendors to continually analyze their needs and present cost-effective equipment solutions. “There is no company that better embodies that type of ideal business partnership with us than CSDS,” notes Candi.
