[Smilliam]

The facility was likely at the end of a long road with nothing else on it. It would be seen as suspicious behavior to drive towards it and then turn around without making contact at the gate, to say nothing of scheduling delays.

No idea on equipment costs; it's likely that OPs company had an overhead disbursement for mistakes.

The gate itself was probably a good ways away from the actual facility. If they weren't driven all the way from hotel to site by a driver, then they almost certainly stopped and parked at the gate and were driven the rest of the way under escort and blindfold.