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Buying Machinery At Auction

The Condition Of The Machine

When you buy anything online, the experience is unsettling for you. Online auctions have become popular and are where most people visit when they want to sell their underutilized machinery.

You need to make sure you have a condition report on the machine before you can bid on it. some auction houses are going to provide you with the report if you ask.

If the location of the machine is not far, then you can go and inspect it in person. You can bring along a trusted friend who is going to help in inspecting the machine.

If this isn’t possible, then pay a local mechanic to help you inspect the machine you are interested in.

Retail Price vs Auction Price

This is an important thing to consider because in the past auctions provided buyers with a place they could get machines at a bargain. The internet has made life a little easy and auctions can be done online.

Online auctions are handling a lot of transactions daily because it has become the go-to place for many people. One thing that has happened in the auction “bargain” price becoming the auction “retail” price. If you check out eBay, you will see the “buy it now” option is popular.

You need to research so you can know the difference between a “retail” price and a “bargain” price. There is no need of paying more than needed when buying a machine when you can visit the Surplus Database.

The Service Records

Before you buy a machine, you need to ensure that you can service the machine.

If you are good at mechanical stuff, you can do it yourself. If you have to rely on a mechanic to repair or service the machine, make sure you can get the service books or advice from an OEM if needed.

One thing you have to keep in mind is the machine is going to break down at some point and the important thing is how long is it going to be down. You can save yourself a lot of time when you have the service manuals and you need to work on the machine after it breaks down.

Spare Parts Availability

Spare parts are very important because you will need them when the machine breaks down. When you buy from an online auction and see a good machine from a brand that is unfamiliar in the marketplace, ask yourself whether you are going to get spare parts easily.

If the machine is from a foreign brand, then it is going to be hard to get genuine parts when you need to repair the machine, which will complicate things a lot.

There are few dealers who will have the reach to get international parts when you need them.

Machine history

This is going to go hand in hand with the condition of the machine. you will find many machines at the online auctions that are reported to have low hours of operation, but they are not. The owners gave it a quick “liquid overhaul”.

You need to know where the machine was before. The place where the machine was previously is going to have a big impact. A machine that has 1000 hours of operation in a fruit shop is different from one that has 1000 hours of operation in a foundry.

Transportation costs

Many people overlook this when buying machines online. They realize it when it is too late. When they realize the machine is in another state and they have to spend it the moment they realize they have made a mistake.

Make sure you factor in the transport cost when calculating how much you are spending on the machine. You might be surprised to find that you could have bought it locally at the same price.

Warranty

When you buy a machine from an online auction, forget about getting a warranty with that purchase.

The machinery is most of the time sold as it is unless it is stipulated. If you get the machine and you start using it then you realize it has broken down a few days later, you don’t have a warranty that covers the purchase.

You have to meet the full costs of repairing the machine.

The condition of the unit, service availability, and spare availability is very important if you want to keep it running.

The afterlife

You need to think about what you are going to do with the machine after you are done using it.

Is it easy to resell it? Can you relist it on the online auction and then sell it? Are you going to own the machine until the end of its natural life?

It is a good idea to have a disposal plan for any machinery you purchase.

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Eddie Castillo’s Powerful Ocean Conservation Video Campaign

“We are the last generation that can save the oceans, and we are the first generation that must learn to live without them.” – Silvia Earle

By Altered State Productions

The Ocean Foundation has taken on a mission of critical importance: to save our dying oceans from the irreversible damage caused by human activity. With marine ecosystems teetering on the brink of collapse, the organization’s latest campaign aims to educate and inspire action through the power of storytelling.

Meet Eddie Castillo, Founder of Dallas production company Altered State Productions and media director who’s passionate about the ocean’s survival. His latest project with an ocean conservation organization takes viewers on an emotional journey, blending breathtaking aerial footage with a powerful stewardship message.

“It’s easy to become numb to the devastation happening around us”, says Castillo, “We scroll past images of environmental destruction, momentarily horrified, yet quickly moving on to the next distraction.” While other campaigns often depict the devastation—plastic, trash, turtles entangled in debris—the Last Generation campaign strives to remind us of the beauty we are at risk of losing forever. The brand video captures the ocean’s waves hitting the shore, smooth and therapeutic.

Castillo’s work, reminiscent of National Geographic’s Planet Possible, combines awe-inspiring visuals with a profound sense of responsibility for our planet. Using advanced drone technology, Castillo captured mesmerizing scenes of Hawaii’s North Shore, showcasing the pristine beauty of marine ecosystems under threat. These stunning visuals, paired with philosophical narrations by Alan Watts and a cascade of electronic synths, create a dreamlike quality that blurs the lines between reality and fantasy.

The Ocean Foundation’s storytelling hinges on compelling imagery, reminding us of our collective responsibility to protect these fragile ecosystems. By raising awareness and inspiring change through the power of commercial video production, the project serves as a rallying cry for ocean literacy, species protection, and habitat preservation.

Altered State Productions proudly circulates its media campaign through syndicated sources, utilizing targeted messaging that hits viewers on a different level. “As a media production company, our mission is to create impactful messages that drive real change,” says Brian Medina, Communications Director at Altered State Productions. “We pour our hearts into every project, hoping to make a difference. We’ve successfully generated over a quarter billion dollars in attribution for brands and companies worldwide. If we can do that for profit, imagine what we can achieve for causes worth standing for.”

The media agency’s impressive portfolio includes over 96 nationally aired TV ad campaigns for brands like Jameson, Valyou, and OWN.

In one scene, two young children hold up a surfboard to protect themselves from an incoming wave, playing innocently as kids do. The scene cuts to a breathtaking timelapse of an iridescent coral reef, with aqua blue currents turning the rock. This moment signals that those two kids could be the last to witness such beauty, delivering the hard-hitting message of what we stand to lose—an ocean and all its wonder, and the chance to truly experience it.

In the end, we are faced with the undeniable truth that if we do not act, our children and their children may never know the oceans’ true splendor, leaving behind only a memory of what once was—a heartbreaking legacy of neglect, making the next generation, possibly the last generation.

Altered State Productions is a video production company and digital marketing agency, specializing in video editing services that propel brands with competitive advertising.

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Eric Schroeder Releases Album

If you’ve ever heard the music of Eric Schroeder before, you already know that melodic sting is often the backbone of his heady rock sound, but in his latest release Turned on the Stereo, which was released this year everywhere quality indie-rock is sold and streamed, it plays as great a role as the lead vocal does. The guitar is the star in the title track of this LP, much as it guides the grooves of singles “Parting (No. 2)” and “Stayed the Same,” and whether you’re a six-string buff or not, it’s an element that will engage anyone who catches a glimpse of this album’s most powerful moments.

There’s a lot more to Turned on the Stereo than just gilded guitar tones; after all, when listening to songs like “Mother Said,” “The Kind of Wound That Never Heals,” “Plan For Me” and the juggernaut “Never Go Away,” everything from the percussion to the vocal harmony itself is presenting us with a different layer of emotion. There’s scarcely a juncture in this record where Schroeder doesn’t sound deeply invested in the narrative he’s trying to get across, which is something I could only wish to see among his mainstream competitors nowadays.

At the center of every song on this LP is the magnetizing melodicism of the leading man, which despite flexing some legit muscle in past releases bearing the Eric Schroeder name sounds much more relaxed and on-point in tracks like “Do Done Now,” “Claire’s Song” and “Easier Way to Go” than it ever did before. There’s no hesitation on the part of our leading man here; if anything, I’m not sure that he’s come across quite as confident in his performance as he does in a couple of this record’s most climactic fever pitches.

https://open.spotify.com/album/7h8hV4kn18WMWcov4723YN?si=CgrNzFBvRs6D-BaqroToKQ&nd=1&dlsi=b22a7ce812e34a6e

As far as the production quality is concerned, Turned on the Stereo is a superbly tight album that doesn’t leave us guessing how richly textured and full a song like the title track or “Never Go Away” might sound in a live capacity, which is undeniably a tough feat to pull off. It’s perhaps not as evenly mixed as The Crucifixion of Eric Schroeder was, but I don’t know that he was looking to go super-polished in this instance; there’s a certain authenticity that comes with filtering fresh material through a raw, unconventional sound, and that could be why this LP stings as hard as it does.

Though I just started exploring Eric Schroeder’s complete discography a little closer this April, I’ve come to appreciate his approach to songwriting all the more thanks to Turned on the Stereo, which I deem the most mature offering he has released thus far. Schroeder isn’t working with major label assets by any means here, but he’s nevertheless turning in something that feels wholly compelling and different from what his contemporaries are producing in this first half of 2024, and that alone makes it a worthwhile listen for anyone who demands organic quality in rock anymore. Top to bottom, this is a terrific listen for those who love indie riffs and smoldering lyrical emissions.

Sebastian Cole