Construction delays are the bane of any contractor. Suddenly, through no fault of your own—be it weather conditions, supply chain issues, communication issues with a client, or faulty products—your hardworking team has nothing to do but sit on their hands until the problem gets fixed and progress can resume. In the meantime, that ample head-start you had on getting your project done ahead of the deadline has dwindled away, and now you’ve got to crunch to avoid timeline overruns and stay on schedule.
One of the most frustrating sources of construction delays is valve issues. Faulty performance, late delivery for a critical part, compatibility issues, and more can create frustrating bottlenecks in your schedule.
In this blog post, we’ll examine how you can reduce or even prevent construction delays with American Stainless’ innovative valve solutions for construction contractors.
Exploring the Valve Issues That Can Clog Your Project Pipeline
Valves are essential parts of your pipelines. The right valve products impact everything from pipeline efficiency and cost-effectiveness to workplace safety. You need the appropriate types of high-quality valves available on hand when a project calls for them, or else you’ll run into issues like:
Faulty Valve Performance
If the valves you’ve purchased for your project just aren’t up to snuff, leaks and poor pressure management can disrupt the testing and commissioning phases of your projects, not to mention present safety hazards for your workers.
Supply Chain Issues
What’s more aggravating than a weak link in your supply chain? Valve solutions in the construction industry have specific—and high—standards to meet, and if a supplier sends you the wrong part by accident, it’s almost worse than if a valve was just late.
When the right valve is delivered late, at least you get the right product. When the wrong valve is delivered on time, you have to deal with the disappointment and wait for the correct product.
Maintenance and Repair Delays
Valve products that just aren’t up to snuff will malfunction frequently and require more frequent repairs. All these issues lead to:
- Higher labor costs due to extra maintenance and longer hours on-site
- Additional costs for expedited shipping of replacements
- Cascading delays that can potentially push back multiple phases of your project
- Difficulty complying with industry regulations
- Unsatisfied clients
- A hit to your professional reputation as construction contractors
There’s a lot that inadequate valve solutions for construction projects can do to both your projects and your professional relationships with your clients. Now let’s look at the strategies you can use to reduce and prevent these construction delays with better valve solutions.
Strategies for Construction Delay Prevention with Valves
Don’t let your valves be the source of your timeline woes. Here are a few strategic actions you can take to ensure you receive better, timelier valve solutions for your construction projects:
Get Your Quality Assurance Upfront
Implement rigorous testing for your valves ASAP to ensure they’ll perform under your project environment’s pressures and temperatures.
Seek Out Standardized Parts
When possible, look for standardized valve types and fittings to reduce compatibility issues. Standardized parts fit together easily enough that they’re also much easier—and faster—to replace in case of unexpected failures, mitigating construction delays.
Keep Your Own Inventory
If you know there’s a critical type of valve that you’ll need for a wide range of products, consider stocking it yourself to prevent construction delays from shortages. That way, supply chain hiccups won’t disrupt your own personal supply—or your project timelines.
Communicate Effectively, Collaborate Early
You don’t have to implement any of these strategies on your own. In fact, some of them, like quality assurance, would be hard or time-consuming to implement on your own. Collaborate with your supplier early on and talk to them about what they can do to test your valves’ performance or keep a supply of parts you need on-hand for you.
Establishing a line of clear communication with your supplier also ensures you’ll get regular updates and clear expectations for lead times on your valve orders, streamlining your procurement process and enabling you to plan ahead.
Reducing Construction Delays with American Stainless Valves
It isn’t just better valves that cut down on and prevent construction delays—it’s better service from your supplier. While high-quality, reliable valve products you can count on to meet industry standards and perform under pressure can prevent a lot of delays on its own, you also need:
- A well-stocked, reliable inventory to ensure you can have the valves your pipeline demands on hand when you need them.
- Fast shipping service that sends your order out ASAP, instead of holding onto it and waiting to ship until it can be sent out with other customers’ shipments.
- Customized valve solutions built to spec with your unique project requirements when standardized products won’t cut it.
- Expert customer support that can guide you toward the best valve solutions for your construction project and troubleshoot problems quickly.
American Stainless & Supply is the US Southeast’s number-one supplier of pipe, valve, and fitting products for mechanical contractors and pipe fabricators in the region’s major industries. Wherever you see steam rising from a smokestack, you’re likely to find valves we supplied from top manufacturers regulating the flow and pressure. With same-day service, ASAP fulfillment and delivery, and competitive and on-time quoting, we’re here to keep all your projects on track.
Get started on a quote for superior valve solutions and keep your project timelines on track—and your construction team and clients happy.
Request a Quote Now to get started and give your next project the support it needs.