March 7, 2023
It is important for all businesses in all industries to be cost-effective, but particularly for those in building and construction. Cost-effectiveness is a fundamental principle of business management, allowing companies to achieve profitability and sustainability over both the short and long term.
Prioritizing cost-effectiveness enables you to manage your finances in a way that maximizes profits and minimizes waste, two key concepts in keeping your business afloat for many years to come. By keeping costs low, you’re able to invest more resources into activities that generate revenue and improve operations, such as marketing or hiring the most talented employees.
Don’t forget that cost-effectiveness is important for you to remain competitive in a crowded marketplace. By completing your projects at a lower cost than your main competitors, you are able to bring in more clients, close more deals, and increase your market share.
Getting the most out of your budget means your construction company is able to optimize the use of your resources and improve your financial performance over time. Now, let’s take this idea and apply it to the concept of rust prevention in your metal structures. You have two options: applying ZRC cold galvanizing compounds on-site or having it hot-dipped before it arrives. As you’ll see below, ZRC is the more cost-effective approach to rust prevention.
The Cost Savings of a More Practical Shipping Process
The practicality of either brush painting or spraying ZRC rather than sending your metal out to be hot dipped galvanized can’t be overstated. With the latter option, you’re paying to ship large, bulky metal pieces from the steel mill to the plant, then to the job site. When you compare this to having the steel shipped directly to your job site, the difference is clear.
It is significantly cheaper to ship our product and have a pallet waiting at your job site to coat the steel rather than shipping large metal pieces around the country for hot dipping. The logistics costs alone speak for themselves! You’re sure to get a better price point in shipping a pallet of paint than an irregular steel structure.
Give Yourself The Peace of Mind That Comes From Control Over the Entire Project
Speaking of logistics, the best way to avoid any unforeseen hiccups during the building process is to ensure you and your crew have as much control over the project as possible. When your steel is hot dipped, you’re relinquishing control over that aspect of the project rather than having your own crew handle the corrosion protection. You’re trusting a third party, and that always comes with risks.
When you handle the corrosion protection process internally, you have better quality control, while also having the equivalent results of using a hot dipped plant. The variables in the hot dipped process will be totally out of your control as the contractor, yet you’re still responsible for it all going correctly. The project manager's main task is to keep the project at or under budget. It makes your life easier if you remove variables you’re unable to control!
At this point, you may think, “Sure- that’s why we have an inspection process”. However, it depends on the quality of the inspection process when it comes to whether or not you catch the third party galvanization plant making a mistake. An engineer could miss something, which could result in the steel structure being built without the corrosion protection it needs. The best case scenario is that the mistake is caught, but you’d ultimately have to send it back and increase the timeline of the project!
Who is going to cover the shipping costs? Who is going to pay to redo the hot dipping? While the plant should absorb the cost of redoing the work, this isn’t always what happens. They may pass the blame onto you!
Avoid Delays That Can Blow Your Timeline and Budget
Speaking of delays to your project, another way ZRC is the more cost-effective solution for corrosion protection is that it allows your crew to keep the project moving forward! It goes without saying that when you run into roadblocks, it can be detrimental to the project. It’s possible you have subcontractors who are scheduled to be onsite, and the need to ship your steel to and from the galvanization plant (maybe more than once!) changes things immensely. They may need to drop out of the project all together. Once your steel is not in your possession, the timeline is totally outside of everyone’s control – including yours.
This issue will impact labor costs as well. In the construction industry, if things slow down, it becomes more costly. You can run into overtime on payroll for labor if your crew is scheduled to put together the steel structure, but it is late or it arrives and it’s not right. Either scenario usually ends up increasing the amount of labor hours needed for the project as a whole.
Even a small increase in labor and logistics costs can blow your budget. You were hired to complete a project within a certain budget, and it is important for you to stay under this budget. First and foremost, staying under budget helps to ensure that the project is financially sustainable and profitable. If you consistently go over budget, your company may not be able to maintain profitability and may even suffer financial losses, which could impact your ability to continue operating.
Staying under budget also helps to build trust and credibility with your financial backers. If you consistently deliver projects within or under budget, lenders and clients are more likely to view you as reliable and trustworthy. On the other hand, if you’re known for frequently going over budget, those in your area may be hesitant to work with your company again or recommend you to others.
Clients are looking for contractors who can deliver quality work while also being mindful of their budget constraints. By consistently staying under budget, you are demonstrating your ability to balance cost-effectiveness with quality workmanship, which sets you apart from competitors and leads to more business opportunities. Speaking of quality workmanship…
Cost and Quality Can Both be Unquestioned
Staying under budget is crucial, as it ensures financial sustainability, builds trust and credibility, and differentiates you from competitors. By prioritizing cost-effectiveness and efficient project management, you’re able to establish your company as reliable and yourself as successful.
All of this effort to be cost effective will have the opposite effect if you achieve it by sacrificing quality. If you end up going over budget due to shipping costs and the logistics of shipping your steel away, you will need to cut costs elsewhere. Needing to make it up elsewhere can create pressure to make up those costs somewhere else.
Quality never comes into question when you use ZRC products. We are recognized by Underwriters Laboratories, a global independent safety science company with more than a century of expertise, as being equivalent to hot dipped galvanization. We’re the only zinc-rich coating that has third party verification for this! You’re able to keep costs low, without risking a less-than-perfect product.
Proper Care Now Avoids Expensive Breakdowns Later
If you’re truly in a bind, you may be tempted to skip over the rust protection steps in an effort to save money in the short-term. This is a big mistake! Proper maintenance now ensures your metal products don’t need to be repaired and replaced at a much higher price down the road.
If the metal is not regularly cleaned and dried, moisture can accumulate on the surface and lead to rust. Once it reaches a “point of no return”, you will not be able to salvage a rusty steel structure. The structure will need to be totally replaced or require costly repairs, years before it would have otherwise needed to be. Spend a little now, save a lot later on!
Achieve the Best Rust Protection
ZRC has been established within the industry for over 70 years, and our brand name is the go-to product for zinc rich rust protection. The reason we are so well known in the industry is that we only make this product, and we make it well. You don’t ever need to worry about us not being able to fulfill these types of orders or not making your project a top priority. This is what our business is, and it’s what we’re proud to do!
It’s quite possible that some of your construction or material costs end up being higher than anticipated when you submitted your proposal. With ZRC, you can substitute costly, time-consuming hot dipped galvanizing and cut costs while getting equivalent results.
Cost-effectiveness will enable your company to stay on time, while also offering more affordable prices without sacrificing quality. Improving both the results of your projects and customer satisfaction and loyalty should be your main goal. Don’t allow unforeseen costs, like a higher price of steel, to keep you from achieving this.
Using ZRC cold galvanizing products to recoup these losses from inflation on other building materials is quick, simple, and a cost-effective way to manage your project. Shop our website for the product you need, or reach out to us to ask any additional questions you may have. Order it now and we’ll ship it tomorrow!
