I'm considering paying for a small robot feasibility study before choosing a package. No contract agreed.
I want a result another integrator could understand if we don't proceed with the first one. Is asking for the working project reasonable, or should I be asking for the assumptions, drawings and results instead? I can see why a supplier wouldn't hand over every reusable bit of their software. I also don't want to pay for a film with a cheerful soundtrack
What decision is the study meant to support? Agree that first; 'the project files' could mean a useful evidence package or a folder nobody else can open.
And if a model is part of the evidence, I'd ask for its revision, inputs and limitations, plus an agreed way to inspect it. A screenshot leaves a lot behind
A readable model is useful, but permission to pass it to another integrator is a separate question. I would state that intended use explicitly when requesting the study quotation.
The decision is whether to keep investigating one handling task, not whether the cell is ready to buy. I was mixing that up with buying a transferable design. Different scope, probably a different conversation about the fee
I would not buy a complete design to answer an early feasibility question. Specify the decision, required observations and unresolved work. Price additional deliverables separately.
I'm not suggesting a complete design. If their conclusion depends on a model, I want enough of that model's assumptions to understand the conclusion. That can be a much smaller deliverable
That distinction helps, thank you. I'll ask for two things separately: evidence supporting the feasibility conclusion, and optional material we could reuse later. Plus the sharing permission. No need to buy every file merely because it exists.