💡 Why OPEX Mistakes Are More Pardonable Than CAPEX Mistakes
In projects, not all mistakes are created equal.
When you make an OPEX (Operational Expenditure) mistake — say, higher maintenance cost, staffing inefficiency, or process delay — it hurts the bottom line, but it’s still fixable.
You can adjust, learn, and recover in the next cycle.
But when you make a CAPEX (Capital Expenditure) mistake — a wrong technology choice, an underdesigned system, or an overbuilt facility — it’s etched in concrete and steel.
No amount of operational excellence can fully undo a poor capital decision.
🔹OPEX errors → recurring costs, can be optimized over time
🔹CAPEX errors → structural costs, locked in for decades
That’s why smart project leaders obsess over the front-end:
✅ Early feasibility
✅ Concept validation
✅ Design discipline
✅ Risk-based decision making
Because fixing an OPEX issue is like patching a leak while fixing a CAPEX blunder is like rebuilding the dam.
💬 What’s the worst CAPEX mistake you’ve seen — one that kept haunting operations for years?
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