Terms & Conditions

1 - General

These general conditions apply exclusively to all our sales. All other conditions are binding on us only from the moment they have been expressly accepted and confirmed in writing by us. Any clauses contrary to said conditions, printed or handwritten, appearing in the order or in any other document emanating from the customer are deemed unwritten by operation of law. The mere fact of placing an order with us implies unreserved acceptance of these conditions.

2 - Characteristics of products and systems

We reserve the right to make, without notice, any useful modification or improvement to our products and systems, without having to modify the products and systems already ordered or delivered.

The photos & information on this website are for information purposes only. Archean reserves the right to change this information without prior notice.

3 - Conclusion of the sale

Any order or modification of an order must be written on business letterhead or provided with the customer's stamp and validated by signature. Any sale is complete only subject to our acceptance. After a period of 24 hours after receipt of our order confirmation, no claim, cancellation or modification may be accepted by us concerning the references, quantities, prices and technical conditions. The customer cannot cancel the orders that we have confirmed, unless we exceptionally give our agreement in writing. In this case, we can demand compensation, the amount of which, except in exceptional cases, should not exceed the sale price of the product or system ordered.

4 - Invoicing and prices

Our published prices may be revised without notice from us. In the event of a dispute, the price appearing on our order acknowledgment will be retained. Free shipping and packaging for orders over €1,000.00 Net excluding VAT. The minimum to order is €200 Net excluding VAT. Administrative fees will be automatically added to reach this amount if the order is less than €200 Net excluding VAT.

5 - Shipments, deliveries

Our sales are concluded in Montauban, regardless of the shipping and payment methods. Even when our prices are established "Free", the goods travel at the recipient's risk. In the event of damage, it is the recipient's responsibility to have the damage noted by the carrier within the required time limit and to exercise recourse against them.
Our goods are normally shipped by road carrier and by the usual channels. Any other shipping method (in particular EXPRESS mode) will only be accepted following a formal request from our customers, confirmed by letter or fax. The price difference between the normal shipping method and the requested method will be invoiced with a 10% increase for trouble and care.
It is expressly agreed that delivery times are in no case strict deadlines and that their non-compliance cannot result in cancellation of the order or application of penalties.

6 - Payment

Deliveries are made after payment in advance or against reimbursement. If the customer provides sufficient guarantees and/or if the deliveries are covered by our credit insurance, invoices, including for partial deliveries, must be paid by check or transfer in cash. Only the payment terms set out in our order confirmation are valid, to the exclusion of all other payment terms, in particular those set out on the customer's order form. In the event of payment by bill of exchange, failure to accept and return within 8 days, all invoices become immediately due and payable. In the event of a deterioration in the customer's financial situation and/or termination of the credit insurance and/or any other event indicating that payment for deliveries is no longer guaranteed, we are entitled to immediately demand advance payment for any delivery that has been the subject of an order confirmation or not. The costs related to payment, in particular bank charges, are the responsibility of the customer. Amounts not paid on the due date will automatically incur, from the due date and without prior formal notice, a penalty corresponding to one and a half times the legal interest rate. This penalty will be combined with late payment interest at the legal rate which will be payable after receipt by the customer of a formal notice.

We reserve the right to request compensation for any type of loss resulting from late payment. Failure to pay a single invoice or bill of exchange will result immediately and without notice in the payment of all our receivables from the same customer and from the Companies or Enterprises affiliated to it.
As a result, we reserve the right to suspend or cancel current orders, technical assistance (email, on-site telephone), after-sales service, to take back the goods delivered, the costs being borne by the customer, without prejudice to any other recourse, the payments made until then by the customer being retained by us as damages. All our invoices and debits are payable on the payment date shown on the invoice. Any delay in payment automatically results, on the day following this date, in the payment of late payment interest in an amount equivalent to the interest rate applied by the European Central Bank to its most recent refinancing operation increased by 10 percentage points, as well as a fixed compensation for recovery costs in the amount of 40 euros, without prejudice to any other damages.

7 - Warranty

The warranty is 2 years, parts and labor on all our equipment, except rotating mechanisms (CD or cassette players, hard drives, etc.) for which the warranty is 1 year and excluding batteries, accumulators and other equipment that degrades over time. For all trading equipment and software, the warranty corresponds to the warranty conditions of the manufacturer or publisher.
Remote maintenance will be provided on proprietary software for a period of 1 year, provided that the customer provides the necessary connection means and provides all mandatory information. The costs of providing and using these resources are the responsibility of the customer. Unless there is a specific maintenance contract, we cannot be held responsible for a breakdown in the quality of service.
Any damage resulting from external intervention or an error in connection, handling or use of the products and systems is formally excluded from the warranty.
The warranty is deemed to be exercised exclusively in Montauban, the equipment must therefore be returned at the customer's expense, accompanied by their warranty certificates where they exist, and information allowing each equipment to be linked to the business with which it was delivered (copy of the invoice).

8 - Return of goods

Similarly, in the event of complaints for justified defects, the goods cannot be taken back without our prior agreement. In all cases, whether there is a defect or not, returned goods can only be accepted in their original packaging.

9 - After-sales service / Return voucher

We have an after-sales service for the repair of any return of defective products (warranty, out of warranty and out of service) belonging or not to our brand (contact us to know the brands of sound equipment repaired on our premises).
Our staff has indeed followed the training and we have been qualified to repair the brands Baldwin and Boxall, leaders in communication systems and sound and evacuation systems and Contacta, leader for 50 years in communication systems and magnetic loops (www.audioaccessibilite.tech).
When the product is still under warranty, only the shipping of the product is your responsibility, the repair and return being at our expense. The equipment is generally repaired on our premises, so we do not depend on other factors than the repair time and the return of the equipment (as far as possible).
Archean brand products have a 2-year warranty (excluding third-party items, products of different brands, non-exhaustive examples: batteries, speakers, wiring accessories).
Archean is also authorized to diagnose and repair Baldwin and Boxall brand products. These have a 7-year warranty (All new products in the Baldwin and Boxall range purchased from May 17, 2022. Excluding third-party items, products of different brands, non-exhaustive examples: batteries, speakers, wiring accessories.)

Return Note Procedure
This service works with the implementation of a Return Note process (BR/tracking number). This process makes it possible to collect all the useful and necessary information, to identify the equipment to ensure efficient diagnosis and repair and to communicate the status of the equipment to the customer in real time.

So, for any return, we thank you for following the steps below:
• Request the BR document at 0563935000 and provide an email address
• Complete the BR request document (this does not yet provide the return authorization!)
• Send the completed BR request document to the email address provided by telephone
• We will THEN send you the return authorization document entitled "Return voucher number" completed to be stuck on the box clearly visible to avoid any refusal upon receipt
• Pack and send the equipment carefully to avoid any additional damage during transport

The outward shipping costs are systematically your responsibility (unless the product is under warranty). Return costs are free from €1000 excluding tax.

Archean implements a repair strategy rather than product replacement (where possible). The diagnostic process determines the cause(s) of the breakdown and identifies the repairs and/or replacements to be carried out to restore the equipment to working order.

Once the product is received, the after-sales service team performs a repair diagnosis and shares a quote, if the equipment is out of warranty.

If the quote is accepted, the product is repaired (subject to other issues during the repair), tested and returned according to the instructions given in the order.

If the quote is not accepted, we keep the returned items for a period of 12 weeks from the date of sending our repair quote, pending confirmation of a valid purchase order or pro forma payment.
If Archean Technologies is unable to carry out a repair quoted (e.g. due to obsolescence of the product or component, water damage, etc.), we will endeavour to return it to the owner, subject to an administrative fee, and provide a quote for equivalent equipment where possible.
If, after 12 weeks from the date of the quote, we have not received confirmation of payment or valid return information, we reserve the right to safely dispose of unwanted items in accordance with the WEEE Directive.

10 - Disputes

By express agreement, exclusive jurisdiction is granted for all disputes that may arise between the parties in connection with their commercial relations to the Commercial Court of Montauban, regardless of the place of delivery, the method of payment, and even in the event of a warranty claim or multiple defendants. Only French law is applicable.

11 - Intellectual property

We expressly reserve ownership of all our intellectual property rights, including patents, trademarks, trade names, copyrights, designs, software, models and know-how. All intellectual property rights are and remain our exclusive property. We may prohibit the use and/or display of its intellectual property at any time.
Any programming and/or computer creation is made available to the Customer on the basis of a right of use.
The Customer is prohibited from copying or making public the software, programming, creation, know-how and documentation obtained or from authorizing third parties to copy or make public the programming, directly or indirectly, to transfer them to third parties or to make them available. The provision of the programming and/or computer creation to the customer does not result in the transfer of an intellectual right or property right.

12 - Force majeure

We disclaim our liability for any failure to fulfill our contractual obligations in the event of force majeure or fortuitous events, including, but not limited to, disasters, fires, internal or external strikes, internal or external failures or breakdowns, and in general any event preventing the proper execution of orders.

13 - Anti-corruption provisions

The Client undertakes to comply with all laws, regulations and international standards relating to the fight against corruption, in France and in all countries of execution of the contract, order, service or supply orders or any form of commitment.

This commitment includes in particular for the Client, the obligation to comply with all legislation aimed at criminalizing acts of corruption, influence peddling, bribery, illegal taking of interest, misappropriation of public funds, favoritism or any other breach of probity in the countries in which it carries out its activities as well as with all international legislation on the subject.

The Client undertakes to comply, and will remain so, strictly with this article and with the law known as “Sapin II” on transparency, the fight against corruption and the modernization of economic life, as well as the laws and regulations applicable in the case of the execution of all or part of the contract outside France (hereinafter collectively referred to as the “Laws relating to the fight against illicit payments”):

- The prohibition for the Client or one of its employees, shareholders, representatives, or any person acting in its name and on its behalf, by action or omission in the context of commercial relations, both with actors in the private and public sectors, to accept, offer, give or agree to agree, offer or give payment, gift or advantage of any kind that would violate the provisions of the Laws relating to the fight against illicit payments.

- The prohibition for the Client to seek, by action or omission in an inappropriate or corrupt manner, to influence or attempt to influence a public official, a party associated with a client, or a potential client, so that he acts in the exclusive interest of one of these parties or a third party, and in general, not to perform his obligations in an inappropriate manner.

Any person employed by Archean faced with a contentious situation may initiate a confidential meeting with the human resources department or with a member of management.

14 - Obligation to inform

For the entire duration of the order or contract between the Customer and Archean Technologies, the Customer undertakes to demonstrate complete transparency by expressly informing Archean Technologies in writing in the event of the occurrence of one of the following situations, whether it concerns the Customer directly or one of the persons associated with it in the context of the contract or order (in particular associate, employee, shareholder, supplier, intermediary, subcontractor), in France or abroad:

- Proven or suspected commission of one or more of the aforementioned acts;

- Conviction or opening of an administrative or judicial investigation for one or more of the aforementioned acts;

And more generally of any other breach of probity, suspected or proven, involving the Customer or one of the persons associated with it.