Introduction
I once bought the cheapest coffee pot at the store. Twelve bucks. Black plastic, probably weighed less than a can of spray paint.
By day three it was sputtering like a bad chainsaw. By the end of the week it gave up completely, mid-brew, leaving a half-pot of lukewarm brown sadness on the counter.
That $12 “bargain” coffee pot ended up costing me a whole lot more. Because without coffee, productivity in a land surveying office drops faster than a busted tripod leg. By the time I replaced it with a decent machine, we’d lost hours of momentum—and let’s just say morale wasn’t exactly perky either.
That’s when I came up with what I call the Coffee Pot Rule:
If you use it every day, don’t cheap out. Buy once, cry once.
Cheap Fixes That Cost More
Surveyors are experts at stretching gear. We’ve all pulled a MacGyver move in the field now and then. But there are times when going cheap comes back to bite you.
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Boots: You think you’re saving money with bargain boots, until your rodman walks like a wounded duck after a day in the mud. That $50 you saved just cost you a day of productivity.
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Batteries: Knockoff batteries for the data collector might be cheaper, but nothing makes a client question your professionalism faster than your equipment dying mid-shot.
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Coolers: Sure, the budget cooler from the discount aisle seemed fine—until the ice melts before 10 a.m. and the whole crew turns into grumpy lobsters by noon.
Each of these “savings” ends up costing more than just buying the right thing in the first place.
The Hidden Costs of “Cheap”
The problem with penny pinching is the price tag doesn’t show you the hidden costs:
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Time lost on site.
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Extra trips to redo work.
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Crew morale sinking like a steel tape in quicksand.
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Clients who start to wonder if you cut corners everywhere.
That $12 coffee pot wasn’t a bargain—it was the most expensive sludge I ever brewed.
How to Apply the Coffee Pot Rule
Here’s how I’ve learned to think about spending in a surveying business:
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Consumables: Paint, bug spray, gloves, flagging tape—cheap is fine. Buy lots, replace often.
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Daily Gear: Boots, batteries, coolers, office chairs, coffee pots—buy quality. These affect productivity and morale every single day.
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Precision Equipment: Total stations, GPS units, data collectors—this one’s obvious. Nobody’s duct taping their prism pole.
The trick is knowing where it’s okay to save a buck and where it’ll cost you ten later.
The ROI of Buying Right
When you stop seeing expenses as “costs” and start seeing them as investments in productivity, everything changes.
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Quality boots mean fewer twisted ankles and sick days.
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Reliable batteries mean no downtime in the field.
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A cooler that actually keeps ice means your crew doesn’t mutiny in July.
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And yes, a decent coffee pot means the office doesn’t grind to a halt before 9 a.m.
These aren’t luxuries. They’re the grease that keeps the gears of a surveying company turning.
Closing Thoughts
Surveyors are good at making do, but sometimes making do costs more than doing it right. The Coffee Pot Rule is simple: if it’s part of your daily workflow, don’t go cheap. Buy once, cry once, and keep your business running smoothly.
“That $12 coffee pot didn’t just break—it broke me. Spend smart, not cheap.”
