7.6. Technical Inquiries
Refer to the following sections when contacting Lake Shore for application assistance or product service. Questions regarding product applications, price, availability and shipments should be directed to sales. Questions regarding instrument calibration or repair should be directed to instrument service. Do not return a product to Lake Shore without a Return Material Authorization (RMA) number.
Contacting Lake Shore
The Lake Shore Service Department is staffed Monday through Friday between the hours of 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM EST, excluding holidays and company shut down days.
The Lake Shore Forum is also a great place to look for solutions, to post issues, and to share successes: forums.lakeshore.com.
Contact Lake Shore Service through any of the means listed below. However, the most direct and efficient means of contacting is to complete the online service request form at www.lakeshore.com/service. Provide a detailed description of the problem and the required contact information. You will receive a response within 24 hours or the next business day in the event of weekends or holidays.
If you wish to contact Service or Sales, use the following:
Return of Equipment
The M81-SSM is packaged to protect it during shipment.
Note
The user should retain any shipping carton(s) in which equipment is originally received, in the event that any equipment needs to be returned.
If the original packaging is not available, a minimum of 76.2 mm (3 in) of shock absorbent packing material should be placed snugly on all sides of the instrument in a sturdy corrugated cardboard box. Please use reasonable care when removing the product from its protective packaging and inspect it carefully for damage. If it shows any sign of damage, please file a claim with the carrier immediately. Do not destroy the shipping container; it will be required by the carrier as evidence to support claims. Call Lake Shore for return and repair instructions.
All equipment returns must be approved by a member of the Lake Shore Service Department. The service engineer will use the information provided in the service request form and will issue an RMA. This number is necessary for all returned equipment. It must be clearly indicated on both the shipping carton(s) and any correspondence relating to the shipment. Once the RMA has been approved, you will receive appropriate documents and instructions for shipping the equipment to Lake Shore.
RMA Valid Period
RMAs are valid for 60 days from issuance; however, we suggest that equipment needing repair be shipped to Lake Shore within 30 days after the RMA has been issued. You will be contacted if we do not receive the equipment within 30 days after the RMA is issued. The RMA will be cancelled if we do not receive the equipment after 60 days.
Shipping Charges
All shipments to Lake Shore are to be made prepaid by the customer. Equipment serviced under warranty will be returned prepaid by Lake Shore. Equipment serviced out-of-warranty will be returned FOB Lake Shore.
Restocking Fee
Lake Shore reserves the right to charge a restocking fee for items returned for exchange or reimbursement.