We are lucky to be in the major cities in Texas. As all of the economic outlooks reveal, the business environment here, both now and in the future, are of the best in the country. It is projected that the country’s fastest return to normalcy in all of our major cities will be first in Austin and San Antonio in 2010, and shortly thereafter Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth and the Rio Grande Valley. While lucky to be where we are, the downturn in the economy has had its effect here and while Structura’s volume has stayed consistent even with the commercial construction volume down as much as 50% across the state, our profit margins have significantly decreased and our risks of loss have increased.
Competition is much fiercer, so to get a job we have to reduce fees and sometimes take risks with contractors we don’t know which invariably turns into problems. Many subcontractors are struggling to stay in business and we have experienced several on our projects who, when they could not pay their bills, forced Structura to pay their debts to keep owners’ properties free of liens and to get paid. We are finding it more difficult to cover the general conditions needed to perform the way we want: having a full time, on site superintendent and covering time needed for project managers and project engineers, not to mention estimating, accounting and administrative functions.
What can we do to flourish in these market conditions? First is to continue to outperform our competition: go the extra mile for our customers, provide quality workmanship, finish on time and complete the close out crisply. Finishing a project faster than our competition gives us a clear monetary advantage over our competition. Also, we stand out by showing our clients added value: providing them with good ideas then the data to make good decisions to help them create the most bang for their buck.
Secondly, we must try and do business with known entities. Structura has a strong solid base of contractors we have developed good working relationships with and we need to leverage these relationships to get jobs. There are times when we have to take a low bid from someone we don’t know to get the job, and when that happens the best thing we can do is get to know them quickly, keep a close eye on their performance and raise a red flag as soon as things aren’t going well. It is also of paramount importance to get lien releases and all bills paid affidavits to ensure their suppliers and subs are being paid.
Third, we all have to work a little harder than our competition with less resources and the best way to do this is become as efficient as possible and we do that by being smarter, planning carefully and creating a good team environment with the building team.
Thanks to everyone for your hard work during these challenging working conditions. Structura succeeds due to your dedication, quick thinking, experience and innovative thinking. Our team will come out of this poor economic climate with sharpened skills and a lot of great experience that will pay off in a big way when prosperity comes knocking. Keep up the good work!
Rusty Morgan, President, Structura, Inc.
Our President’s Perspective
Competition is much fiercer, so to get a job we have to reduce fees and sometimes take risks with contractors we don’t know which invariably turns into problems. Many subcontractors are struggling to stay in business and we have experienced several on our projects who, when they could not pay their bills, forced Structura to pay their debts to keep owners’ properties free of liens and to get paid. We are finding it more difficult to cover the general conditions needed to perform the way we want: having a full time, on site superintendent and covering time needed for project managers and project engineers, not to mention estimating, accounting and administrative functions.
What can we do to flourish in these market conditions? First is to continue to outperform our competition: go the extra mile for our customers, provide quality workmanship, finish on time and complete the close out crisply. Finishing a project faster than our competition gives us a clear monetary advantage over our competition. Also, we stand out by showing our clients added value: providing them with good ideas then the data to make good decisions to help them create the most bang for their buck.
Secondly, we must try and do business with known entities. Structura has a strong solid base of contractors we have developed good working relationships with and we need to leverage these relationships to get jobs. There are times when we have to take a low bid from someone we don’t know to get the job, and when that happens the best thing we can do is get to know them quickly, keep a close eye on their performance and raise a red flag as soon as things aren’t going well. It is also of paramount importance to get lien releases and all bills paid affidavits to ensure their suppliers and subs are being paid.
Third, we all have to work a little harder than our competition with less resources and the best way to do this is become as efficient as possible and we do that by being smarter, planning carefully and creating a good team environment with the building team.
Thanks to everyone for your hard work during these challenging working conditions. Structura succeeds due to your dedication, quick thinking, experience and innovative thinking. Our team will come out of this poor economic climate with sharpened skills and a lot of great experience that will pay off in a big way when prosperity comes knocking. Keep up the good work!
Rusty Morgan, President, Structura, Inc.