Contractual responsibility does not itself provide US work permission.
Check status before operational activity
A qualifying E spouse may work incident to appropriate status with required evidence. The family should assess the actual installation activity and authorization rather than treat a pending E-2 case as permission.
Separate contract authority from immigration permission. Identify who will unpack, wire, calibrate, and test equipment, whether those tasks are productive work, and what status each family member will hold. A qualifying E spouse may be employment-authorized incident to proper spousal status, but signing a purchase agreement or having a pending application does not activate permission. The principal must possess treaty nationality, place lawful funds irrevocably at risk in a substantial investment, and develop and direct a qualifying treaty-owned enterprise by holding half of it or exercising operational control. That business must be genuine and more than marginal. Family planning should recognize that E-2 creates no automatic direct route to permanent residence.
Hypothetical example: a North Hatley designer of bakery-proofing equipment buys machinery for a new maintenance business and asks her husband to supervise installation before visa appointments. His skill and guarantor signature do not permit American work. They should retain a local installer or wait until he holds appropriate E-spouse status and evidence. Meanwhile, the investor can document her payments, ownership, operating authority, contracts, and staffing forecast. Keeping those records distinct prevents an equipment schedule from being mistaken for family work authorization.