How we charge for our services

Consul-vation bills for its services on a time and material basis.

Time

For phone/remote support and off-site implementation or consulting, we charge an hourly rate, measured in half hour increments. However, we do not charge our clients for individual calls lasting less than 7 minutes, unless the same issue has time accumulated over multiple calls.

Time for on-site support and/or on-site consulting visits are measured in the same half-hour increments, after the initial 1 hour minimum per visit is exceeded.

We reserve the option to charge remote and on-site “off-hours” rates for remote calls or on-site visits that occur outside of our normal business hours (M-F 9:00a – 6:30p ET). We maintain an on-call system in place for when you need assistance outside normal operating hours.

Billing Rates

The services we offer have an associated billing rate based on the expertise level of the engineer (see rate table below). We will make a best-effort attempt to provide support at the lowest rate, however, if the issue is urgent and requires expedited handling, upon approval, a higher rate engineer may be assigned.

Procurement

Consul-vation does not resell products. As a service to our clients, we will research, present quotes for approval, and purchase products on the client’s behalf from a vendor with no markup. The client is responsible for payment to the vendor for all product purchases. We do not charge our clients for purchasing time that requires less than 10 minutes to complete. Purchasing time over 10 minutes will be billed in 15 minute increments.

Travel
We make every effort to design your IT environment to be accessible remotely in a secure way that is conducive to efficient remote support. The less travel required, the less impact there is on cost and the environment. However, when travel is required, it is billed at the associates normal rate in 15 minute increments. Travel is billed for one-way only.

Pickup/Delivery – If no other work is being performed, whether scheduled or not and you require Consul-vation to pick up or deliver equipment outside of a project scope where this might be included, normal travel billing rates apply with the only difference being that BOTH directions are billed, not just one direction.

Travel Expenses – While traveling, if an associate takes a train, airplane or other form of transportation or is required to park in a paid parking facility, those expenses will be billed as separate items at the exact cost of the expense.

Fixed Price Implementations
When we fix-price a project, the deliverable will be fulfilled for a flat cost, regardless of time expended. When there are changes to the scope after project start, an approved fixed price or time and material rate will apply.

Retainer agreements and Remote Monitoring and Management services are both billed at a fixed monthly rate agreed upon by Consul-vation and the client. While the cost and scope are tailored to each client’s needs, the terms and conditions still apply unless otherwise specified.

When we bill
Consul-vation uses a monthly billing cycle. Invoices are generated on or around the 26th of every month. Once an invoice is finalized, any subsequent billable effort for that calendar month is allocated to the invoice for the next billing cycle.

For environmental reasons, we prefer to email invoices to a designated contact in Adobe PDF format. But, we will accommodate any client who prefers their invoice via fax or standard mail.

Payment Terms
We offer our established clients a 2% discount on an invoice balance (Net 2/5) for early payment assuming there is no outstanding balance. If your invoice payment is received in full within 5 business days of the invoice date, we will deduct 2% of the invoice balance as a discount. The discounted amount will appear on your invoice along with the full amount and due date to take advantage of the discount.

Net 10 – If a client does not choose to pay early, payment is due within 10 business days of the invoice date as specified on the invoice.

Form of payments
Consul-vation accepts payment as follows: Cash, company check, major credit card, and PayPal. There is no additional fee for any form of payment. The above mentioned Payment Terms apply to all forms of payment.

The Invoice
The invoice Consul-vation generates will list every call, help desk ticket and project task that was made during the billing period. We provide as much detail as possible so you can review what the invoice balance covers. Discounts on line items will be clearly marked or show a zero dollar billing rate. Follow-up calls (which are not billable) will also be listed on the invoice.

Currency
All payments must be made in U.S. Dollars (USD).

Non-Payment
While Consul-vation makes every effort to work with a client to resolve outstanding payment issues, we reserve the right to suspend providing services and/or charge a 0.75% per month interest rate until a satisfactory agreement is made or payment is received in full.

Authorization/Usage Policies
To help avoid runaway IT costs and to allow our clients to step back and make an informed business decision, Consul-vation employs the following authorization mechanisms to keep checks and balances in place:

1 hour rule – On any support issue or ad-hoc task (i.e. not planned as part of a project), we will stop work after 1 hour of billable time and provide a designated contact status and an expectation of how much more time may be required. In some cases, this will be difficult to assess (i.e. dependency on 3rd parties), but we will offer the best effort assessment possible at the time. The contact will need to authorize further work for our associates to continue.

After hours – Our business hours are Monday thru Friday from 9:00a to 6:30p Eastern Time. Any support issues or project work outside of business hours will be billed at normal rates. After hours support is NOT offered by default, it must be negotiated in advance.

No Obligation
Consul-vation strives to build sustaining business relationships. Our clients are valued and we work to demonstrate that every day. In the unfortunate event where we must part ways, we will make the transition as smooth as possible. Under no circumstances are Consul-vation clients bound to stay with Consul-vation by contract or otherwise. A payment structure for the transition services must be agreed upon by both parties in advance of a transition plan being implemented.

Confidentiality
Consul-vation agrees to hold in strictest confidence, and not to use, except for the benefit of the client, or to disclose to any person, firm, or corporation without the prior written authorization of the client. “Confidential Information” means any of the client’s proprietary information, technical data, trade secrets, or know-how, including, but not limited to, research, product plans, products, services, customer lists, markets, software, developments, inventions, processes, formulas, technology, designs, drawings, engineering, hardware configuration information, marketing, finances, or other business information disclosed to Consul-vation by the client, either directly or indirectly. Consul-vation may use the confidential Information to the extent necessary for negotiations, discussions, and consultations with the client personnel or authorized representatives or for any other purpose the client may authorize in writing.

EMail Correspondance
As a Consul-vation client, we may send unsolicited email notices to primary client contacts that are relevant to their IT needs. We do not spam clients, nor sell, lease, lend or give away email information (see Confidentiality above). Contacts will be added upon becoming a Consul-vation client. Clients have the ability to opt-out of these email communications by choosing the unsubscribe link at the bottom of such emails or notifying us directly.

Independent Contractor
Consul-vation performs the services solely as an independent contractor. Nothing in any agreement shall be construed as creating a joint venture, partnership, franchise, agency, employer/employee, or similar relationship between Consul-vation and the client, or as authorizing either party to act as the agent of the other. Consul-vation is and will remain an independent contractor in its relationship to the client. Nothing in these terms shall create any obligation between either party and a third party.

Rights and Responsibilities
Consul-vation makes no warranties for the services unless otherwise specified and expressly disclaims all other warranties, whether express, implied or statutory with regard to deliverables and the services provided and any statement of work, including without limitation, all warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose and warranties arising from course of dealing or usage or trade.

Consul-vation is not liable to client, or to any other party for any special, indirect, consequential or punitive damages pursuant to services including but not limited to loss of profits, loss of business opportunities, or loss of goodwill, even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, in no event will Consul-vation’s liability related to services exceed the fees collected by Consul-vation.

Governing Law
All work performed by Consul-vation shall be governed by the laws of the state of New York, USA. In the event that litigation results from or arises out of the performance of Consul-vation, the parties agree to reimburse the prevailing party’s reasonable attorneys’ fees, court costs, and all other expenses, whether or not taxable by the court as costs, in addition to any other relief to which the prevailing party may be entitled.

Last updated on February 23, 2023 – Subject to change without notice.