One of our members implemented a great takeaway from our recent Virtual Purchasing Forum that they’ve put into practice with their vendors. Rocket Omiatek with Intech Mechanical shared that when sending over a material list for pricing and availability, they asked vendors to take two extra steps if items will not be available by the needed date:
- Call the foreman to see if the part can be bushed, fabricated or substituted with an alternate.
- If not, provide the freight cost needed to meet the deadline. While overnighting or second-day shipping won’t always be the chosen option, having the information up front allows for better decision-making when jobs are in a crunch.
By framing these expectations clearly, they’ve shown vendors the value of providing complete information up front. Since many vendors carry the same products at nearly the same price, the ones who step up and add this level of service stand out as true partners. This also strengthens vendor–field relationships through more proactive communication and problem-solving.