I guess a little of both. We're used to working together in close quarters for long periods of time. [Translation: they don't get out much.]
Unlike the one that Lacus has, and I think one of the ones she built, he's not just a companion; he's my partner. He can perform maintenance on a number of vehicles from my world, and learn to fix anything else in a small bit of time, with his limited dexterity. Haro's pretty much always with me, or Feldt, or Ian -- our head mechanic, back home.