We Wanted a Square Sink, Not an Oval One!
A homeowner recently remodeled his master bath area. He and his wife spent several weeks working with a contractor to identify all of the work that was desired to update the bathroom. Construction day finally arrived, and after two weeks of living in the basement guest suite, the homeowner was excited to finally get back into his master suite.
The granite counter top was installed, one of the final steps in the construction process. Immediately, the homeowner noticed an error! The granite countertop, all one piece, had an oval cut out for the sink, not a square cut off that was originally designed. Oops—a big mistake.
The granite installer went ahead and installed the countertop, thinking that the homeowner, after living 2 weeks in the basement would accept an oval sink instead of the square sink. Well, no dice! The homeowner was unwilling to accept the error and required that a new piece of granite be installed, properly designed and cut to his original specifications.
Well, 2 more weeks of basement living, 4 trips of 140 miles each way for the granite company, another piece of $3000 granite— again, errors of monumental proportions that should not have happened if the attention to detail step was performed all along the way.
The contractor offered to “reduce the price” for the countertop—however, the homeowner did not want an oval sink—he and his wife ordered a square sink.
How could this error happen? Again, failing to pay attention to detail, carefully reading the customer requirements caused the granite company to have to “absorb” the rework costs of the countertop. Can the granite cut in error be salvaged? Perhaps, if some smaller pieces can be cut from the larger piece.
Was the homeowner unreasonable with the contractor? No, in our opinion. The homeowner ordered what he wanted and was delivered something that failed to match his requirements.
We have said this previously, but will say it again—close attention to detail is necessary and required in all facets of business operations.
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