A " grab " shouldn't cost any money. It should make money.

When purchasing a grab , one figure stands out large and clear on the paperwork: the purchase price. But that isn’t the amount on which a business owner ultimately makes or loses money. That happens afterward—during every workday, every operating hour, and every job. After all, a grab isn’t a product that sits in the workshop just to look nice. It’s a piece of equipment that’s meant to produce: sorting, crushing, loading, moving, and processing. The more hours it reliably does its job, the more return on investment it helps generate. That’s why, when choosing a grab , there’s a better question than “how much does it cost?”—namely: what will it do for me?

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Profit is generated during operating hours

Suppose two grippers can perform the same tasks. One is cheaper to purchase, while the other requires a higher initial investment. At first glance, the math seems simple—until you factor in time. What happens after 1,000 operating hours, after 5,000, after ten years? How much maintenance is required, how often does the machine come to a standstill, and are parts available when you need them? Can the grab be overhauled, and how much will it still be worth after years of use? That changes the equation. Because an hour during which the grab operates without a hitch generates revenue. An hour during which the machine is idle due to the grab does exactly the opposite.

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Downtime is not included in the quote

That’s the tricky thing about a low purchase price. You immediately see what you’re saving, but you don’t see what a breakdown will cost in three years. It’s not just the part that matters—it’s also the technician, the lost production time, a machine that’s out of service, and possibly a schedule that needs to be adjusted. That’s why reliability isn’t just an abstract concept of quality: reliability has economic value. Zijtveld builds its grippers based on this principle, featuring a robust design, functional simplicity, and replaceable parts. Parts are available from stock for all gripper models. Parts are usually still available even for older grippers.

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The best grab isn't the cheapest

That’s why you don’t judge a good investment by how much you save today, but by what it delivers in the years to come: in terms of operating hours, availability, productivity, maintainability, service life, and residual value. That’s why we at Zijtveld take a different approach to the price of a grab. The purchase price is the starting point of the calculation, not the end result. A grab must generate revenue—today, tomorrow, and for many years to come. That is ultimately what makes an investment a good one.

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Wondering which grab is right for you?

Wondering which grab is the best fit for your machine and your operations? Contact a Zijtveld distributor and look beyond just the purchase price.

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