Hello to all valued customers-
Let me start by saying that I hope you, your families, and all your employees are doing well and staying healthy throughout this winter season!
The reason I am reaching out to you today is to inform you that lumber, windows, doors and many other building materials are becoming much more difficult to source- some items are on allocation and have greatly extended lead times. The cost of lumber, plywood and millwork has, once again, been on an alarming upward trajectory.
Several factors appear to be driving these cost increases, as our largest producers in the industry cannot keep pace with increased demand and are troubled with unprecedented transportation issues. The producers in North America simply cannot get their products to market. Finally, as with all industries it seems, the mills are also having difficulty maintaining a complete work force.
In the face of all these challenges, my staff and I are here to assure you that we will continue to do our best at maintaining sufficient inventory levels of the premium quality lumber and building materials we have become known for.
Please understand that, given all this volatility, we can only hold our quoted pricing for five business days (as indicated on the quotation form), as lack of available product and rapidly changing input costs make it difficult for us to move out further. If you have a larger project that won’t immediately begin but you KNOW you will be moving forward in the next month or two we strongly suggest adding an escalation clause regarding building material costs. At this point in time we can only confirm pricing when your job is ready to ship. We can however discuss with you a process to ensure your materials will be available when you need them and to lock in pricing on projects. In this instance, we’d be asking the customer to submit the signed proposal as well as payment in full when placing the order. This would allow us to purchase all the items on your material list at the current market level and store them for up to 60 days, which would ensure coverage once the job begins to ship.
I want to sincerely thank you and your associates for the opportunity to serve you, and to relay to you how much we are looking forward to working with you in the future. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions.
Best regards,
Robert M. Fisher
President