You’ve decided your facility needs better perimeter security. You get a quote from a security contractor, the price looks reasonable, and you think you’re ready to move forward.
Then the real costs start adding up.
The security company doesn’t handle electrical work, so you need a separate electrician. The foundation isn’t right for the gate installation, so you need a concrete contractor. Site prep reveals drainage issues that weren’t part of anyone’s original scope. When problems arise, nobody can quite agree whose responsibility it is.
This fragmented approach costs facility managers across the Midwest thousands of dollars in delays, change orders, and ongoing complications.
The Coordination Gap
When you hire separate contractors for different aspects of your security project, you create a coordination gap. The security company designs the system based on ideal conditions. The electrical contractor works from their own scope. The concrete crew follows their plan. In practice, these pieces don’t always fit together.
The security contractor installs a gate, but the electrical work isn’t ready because the electrician is booked on another job. Your project timeline slips right when your facility needs the security upgrade. A partially installed gate creates a vulnerability while everyone waits.
Site conditions can reveal surprises. Perhaps the soil won’t support the foundation as designed, or underground utilities complicate the installation. With multiple contractors involved, nobody takes ownership. The security contractor says it’s a site issue. The concrete contractor says the gate design is wrong. The electrician points at the foundation work. Each contractor points fingers while your project stalls.
The Real Cost of Change Orders
Project scope creep happens on almost every security installation. When you work with a single contractor, these changes are straightforward to implement and price. They know their crew’s capabilities and availability, they can estimate accurately, and you only have one decision to make (yes or no). Then work continues.
With multiple contractors, every change becomes complicated. Each contractor must review the impact on their work. You get separate change orders from each vendor. Contractor A charges $500. Contractor B charges $800. Contractor C charges $1,500 because they discover a conflict with the original design. A $2,000 modification suddenly costs $5,000 because three companies need to be involved, each with their own overhead and profit margin.
We’ve seen facility managers get blindsided by change orders that doubled or tripled their original budget. One facility manager told us a $150,000 project ended up costing $240,000 by the time all change orders were processed.
Warranty Gaps and the Blame Game
When multiple contractors are involved, the issue of warranty coverage becomes unclear. The security company warrants their equipment. The electrical contractor warrants their work. The concrete contractor warrants the foundation. But when the gate system fails because of an electrical issue, or the foundation settles and affects gate operation, whose warranty covers it?
The security company says it’s not their responsibility. The problem stems from electrical installation. The electrician says the issue is with the gate operator itself. Meanwhile, your gate doesn’t work and nobody’s stepping up to fix it under warranty. You’re out of pocket for diagnosis and repairs. A problem that should have been covered by a warranty costs you thousands.
In a worst case scenario, both contractors refuse to warranty the failed system because they blame the other vendor. Legal disputes begin and the seasons continue to change.
Meanwhile, your gate still doesn’t work.
Long Term Maintenance Complications
Imagine how these concerns can be compounded over time. Your access control system stops working several years later, so you call the original security contractor. They find that the electrical panel wired five years ago has issues, but the original electrician has moved on or gone out of business.
You’re stuck waiting while your facility’s access control remains offline.
Or let’s say your gate operator isn’t responding correctly. Could be the operator itself, or maybe it’s the electrical supply fluctuating, or the concrete foundation settled unevenly. With multiple contractors, determining the root cause bounces between vendors. The security contractor spends an hour diagnosing and concludes it’s probably electrical. You pay $200. The electrician spends an hour diagnosing and concludes it’s probably the gate operator. You pay $250. Neither one has actually fixed the problem, but you’ve spent $450 on service calls without reaching a resolution.
The Integrated Approach
When Garrison Gates handles your complete perimeter security project, we take responsibility for every aspect. Security equipment. Electrical work. Concrete and site preparation. Long term maintenance. We design the system with our full capabilities in mind. We execute the project with coordinated teams. When issues arise, we take ownership.
No finger pointing. No surprise change orders from multiple vendors. No warranty gaps.
Instead, you get one point of contact—and one team that stands behind the entire installation.
The Bottom Line
Choosing a security only contractor might look like cost savings on the initial quote. The hidden costs of coordination, change orders, warranty gaps, and ongoing maintenance often erase any savings and add stress to your project.
When you choose Garrison Gates, you get a single team handling everything—and all the benefits that come with that decision.
Call Garrison Gates at (317) 555-GATE (4283) or contact us for a free security assessment.
