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Making Smart Decisions in a Spec-Obsessed Industry
In Parts 1 and 2 of this series, we peeled back the curtain on “Spec Range Swagger”—the industry tendency to inflate environmental sensor specs beyond practical application. At Comptus, we’ve built our reputation on real-world performance, not marketing bravado. Now, let’s talk about how you—engineers, procurement teams, facility managers, OEM partners—can cut through the noise and make confident, informed choices when evaluating sensor specs.
1. Know Your Environment Before You Buy
Before diving into any spec sheet, ask: What are the actual environmental conditions this sensor will face?
- Temperature: Will your sensor be in a protected housing or exposed on a mountain tower?
- Humidity: Is the application indoors, in a greenhouse, or near the ocean?
- Wind & Rain: Are you measuring light breezes or planning for storm resilience?
Once you’ve defined the true operational context, you can ignore spec ranges designed for marketing—not meteorology.
2. Ask the Right Questions
Vendors should be able to explain how a sensor performs in real-world conditions—not just idealized lab settings.
Ask:
- “How does the sensor perform across the full temperature range, not just at 73°F?”
- “Is this pressure spec based on natural occurrences or theoretical limits?”
- “How is rainfall accuracy maintained in splash-heavy or high-wind conditions?”
- “What happens to the data when the sensor gets dirty, icy, or sun-faded?”
If the answer sounds like marketing lingo, not engineering reasoning—you may want to keep shopping.
3. Don’t Let RFQ Standards Box You In
Here’s the trap: one manufacturer adds an extreme spec to their datasheet. A specifier copies it into a public RFQ. Now, every vendor has to meet or beat it, or risk disqualification—even if the number has zero relevance to the application.
At Comptus, we frequently help our customers navigate and rewrite RFQs to reflect practical, mission-critical requirements—not spec sheet folklore. We encourage you to challenge spec inflation and advocate for fit-for-purpose performance.
4. Prioritize What Really Matters
Here’s what to actually look for:
✅ Durability – Will it last in your environment for years, not months?
✅ Accuracy Where It Counts – Is the sensor precise in the conditions that matter most to your use case?
✅ Serviceability – Can it be maintained or recalibrated easily in the field?
✅ Support – Will the manufacturer be there when you need help, or just send you back to a PDF?
At Comptus, we’re committed to supporting every product we build. Our sensors and control systems are engineered not just to meet expectations—but to exceed them where it really counts.
Final Thought: It’s Not Just About the Numbers
Environmental sensing is about data you can trust. That means sensors built for your reality, not just an impressive range on a spec sheet.
We hope this series has helped demystify how specs are written, when they matter, and what to look out for. If you’re rethinking how you evaluate sensor performance—or RFQ requirements—we’d be glad to talk. At Comptus, we’re not here to win the spec race. We’re here to help you win the job, the project, and the long-term reliability your application demands.
Let’s Build Smarter.
Contact us today to talk about your sensing needs—or to review an upcoming project together.
Visit www.comptus.com | info@comptus.com | (603) 726-7500
