Profitability Is About More Than Material Price

Imagine two suppliers quote the same siding project.

Supplier A is slightly cheaper.

Supplier B has the product in stock, helps verify the order, has accessories available, delivers the material to the jobsite and answers the phone when your installer has a question.

Which supplier actually costs less?

That is the question contractors should be asking. Material costs matter, but total project efficiency matters more. Construction materials represent a significant portion of project costs, and poor material management can create unnecessary reorders, delays and idle labor. Procore notes that having the right materials available at the right time is critical to keeping crews productive and protecting project margins.

1. Available Inventory Can Protect Your Schedule

You cannot install material that you do not have.

Material availability becomes especially important when contractors are trying to move several projects through production at the same time. A missing carton, accessory or piece of trim can create more than an inconvenience. It can interrupt the crew's workflow and potentially require another trip to the project.

Suburban Wholesale & Supply maintains a substantial local inventory for contractors, including 29 colors of .046 vinyl siding, along with siding accessories and other exterior building products.

For contractors throughout Davenport, Bettendorf, Eldridge, Le Claire, DeWitt, Moline, Rock Island and surrounding Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois communities, having material available locally can make project planning much easier.

2. Jobsite Delivery Can Save Expensive Labor Hours

Ask yourself what your installers are worth per hour.

Now ask yourself whether you want those employees installing siding or driving around picking up material.

Every material run has a cost. There is the employee's time, truck expense, fuel and the lost production that could have occurred while that employee was away from the project.

That is why jobsite delivery can become a profitability tool rather than simply a convenience.

When the right material arrives at the right project at the right time, your installation crew can concentrate on what produces revenue: installation.

3. Accurate Orders Help Reduce Waste

Material mistakes can quietly eat away at a project's gross profit.

• Too much material ties up cash.
• Too little material can stop production.
• Missing accessories can require additional trips.
• Wrong colors or profiles can create expensive reorder problems.
• Poorly planned deliveries can create unnecessary material handling.

A supplier that understands siding systems can help contractors think through the entire order — not simply the siding panels. Starter, corners, J-channel, utility trim, soffit, fascia, insulation and other accessories all need to work together.

4. Product Knowledge Can Help You Sell More Profitable Projects

A good supplier should not only help after you make the sale.

They should help you make the sale.

Contractors who understand multiple siding categories have more opportunities to build a good-better-best presentation instead of competing strictly on price.

Suburban Wholesale & Supply works with contractors across several exterior cladding categories, including:

• Gentek vinyl siding
• Gentek steel siding
• Aluminum siding
• ASCEND Composite Cladding
• Tando Stone
• Progressive Foam insulation products

That gives a contractor more ways to solve the homeowner's problem and more opportunities to move beyond a basic commodity sale.

5. Samples and Demonstration Materials Can Improve Your Sales Presentation

If you are asking a homeowner to spend thousands — or tens of thousands — of dollars on an exterior remodeling project, do not make them imagine everything from a brochure.

Show them the product.

Let the homeowner touch the siding. Show the profile. Demonstrate the thickness. Explain the insulation system. Compare colors. Show corners and accessories. Explain what makes your proposed system different from another quote.

Suburban Wholesale & Supply keeps product samples, literature and demonstration materials available to help contractors build stronger kitchen-table presentations. Contractors can also visit our showroom to see products such as ASCEND Composite Cladding and Tando Stone in person.

6. Training Can Reduce Expensive Installation Mistakes

One callback can erase a surprising amount of profit.

The labor to return to the project is only part of the cost. There can also be replacement material, additional travel, scheduling disruption and time spent communicating with the homeowner.

That is why contractor education matters.

Suburban Wholesale & Supply regularly works to connect contractors with product and installation education covering siding systems, insulation, sealants, windows, doors and other exterior products.

Training should not be viewed as time away from production. Done correctly, training can help crews install more efficiently, understand manufacturer requirements and avoid mistakes that create callbacks later.

7. A Supplier Who Answers the Phone Has Real Value

Contractors know this situation.

Your crew is standing at the project. Something unexpected comes up. You need another accessory, have an installation question or need to know whether additional material is available.

At that moment, the most important question about your supplier may be very simple:

Will somebody answer the phone?

Responsive service helps contractors make decisions faster. Faster decisions can help keep projects moving. And keeping projects moving is one of the simplest ways to protect labor efficiency and gross profit.

8. Your Supplier Can Affect Your Cash Flow

Profit on paper and cash in the bank are not always the same thing.

Excess inventory, incorrect orders, delayed projects and unfinished jobs can all keep money tied up longer than necessary.

NAHB has emphasized that project profitability depends not only on construction schedules but also on managing the timing of cash flowing through a project. When one part of the construction process gets delayed, payments, subcontractors and future projects can also be affected.

A dependable material supply chain can therefore contribute to something contractors sometimes overlook: how quickly a sold project turns into a completed and collected project.

What Should You Expect From Your Building Material Supplier?

A contractor-focused supplier should help make your company easier to operate.

At a minimum, look for a supplier that can provide:

• Reliable product inventory
• Competitive and understandable pricing
• Accurate ordering assistance
• Jobsite delivery
• Product samples and literature
• Sales demonstration support
• Installation knowledge
• Manufacturer resources
• Contractor training
• Responsive local service

Those services are not extras. For a professional contractor, they can become part of the system that protects profitability.

Your Supplier Should Help You Make Money

Contractors make money when projects move efficiently from lead to sale, sale to order, order to delivery, delivery to installation and installation to final payment.

Your building material supplier touches several of those steps.

That means choosing a supplier should not simply be a conversation about who has the lowest price per square.

The better question is: Who helps your company operate more profitably?