VIEWPOINT


LOCAL SUPPLY CHAINS TO THE RESCUE


Steve Wharton, Manager at MPA Masonry


ACROSS THE UK, the building products sector continues to brace itself against an onslaught of consecutive challenges. From the Ever Given’s delay in the Suez Canal and the energy crises of late 2021 to the Ukraine- Russia war, not to mention the pandemic and aftermath of Brexit, the past two years have been relentless.


This is particularly true for builders’ merchants, who have borne the brunt and are struggling to cope with essential material and component shortages as demand remains high. These supply chain issues are also having a knock-on effect on the wider construction sector in the form of severe delays and skyrocketing costs.


Putting this in context, at the start of 2022, nearly nine out of ten large construction projects (over £100m) were reportedly behind schedule. Whilst, the latest Construction Review from market intelligence experts Glenigan offers an optimistic outlook, with data showing a rise in detailed planning approvals and main contract awards, starts remain in decline across the board.


Time marches on, and the ever- pressing need for new housing stock and critical infrastructure persists, regardless of shortages. Something’s got to give, and builders’ merchants can play a central role in helping the industry move forward.


First and foremost, it requires merchants to take a serious look at the materials they import, and assess where we can realistically use domestically produced alternatives with a small supply chain.


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Representing a category where approximately 95% of the product sold in the UK is locally sourced, produced, and distributed, I’ve directly observed the advantages these short supply chains offer in the good times. In the difficult circumstances we now find ourselves in, they can provide huge relief when other channels are squeezed.


Starting with the obvious, small supply chains are convenient. Take a concrete block. All of its components such as cement, sand, aggregate and other additives, are all readily available on our shores; this offers an immediate logistical advantage. However, it goes even further than that, as the industry looks to adopt a circular approach to the manufacture of blocks. Utilising existing materials, thereby reducing imports or virgin extraction, it’s further shrinking the supply chain.


Builders’ merchants should be encouraging


clients towards leaner construction and using higher performance


materials to deliver better value through more energy efficient low U-Value building


Following the circular model’s 5R principles (Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Repair and Recycle), the last decade has seen intensive research into recycling waste materials in concrete products, such as pulverised fuel ash (PFA) and furnace bottom ash (FBA). Both by-products of the steel industry, this not only decreases the amount of waste in industrial slagheaps, it gives them a new, useful lease of life while reducing the amount of cement used in block production, a big contributor to blocks’ carbon footprint.


This is just one example. Fundamentally, there’s a wealth of both raw and recycled materials on the home front, primed for reimagining and redeployment. Whilst the current febrile climate is challenging everyone across construction, it’s also a great catalyst for material innovation, not only in terms of composition, but design application too.


Merchants should be earnestly exploring and investigating such products, which could help alleviate shortages now, but also become commercially attractive lines in the long term. We also need to consider logistics. Rising global fuel prices over the past 6 months show no signs of reversing, with a significant impact on freight haulage. As such, builders’ merchants and distributors will no doubt be looking for those materials requiring the least amount of shipping.


The good news, again, as far as concrete blocks are concerned, is any construction site is estimated to be within approx. 40 miles of


a healthy supply. This means less transportation, a lower carbon footprint and reduced costs, which would be incurred through importing materials from abroad, such as structural timber and structural steel.


While small supply chains are an important factor, they’re only part of the wider picture in the drive to make buildings more sustainable. Builders’ merchants should be encouraging clients towards leaner construction and using higher performance materials to deliver better value through more energy efficient low U-Value buildings. This will ultimately benefit everyone, particularly owners/ occupants who will find this approach mitigates the rising cost of energy bills.


Importantly, merchants adopting a small supply chain ethos will also foster a best practice approach, helping them tangibly contribute towards Net Zero 2050, a challenge faced by the industry, and society, as a whole.


They might also reconsider existing product ranges, and look to more locally sourced materials to stem supply chain and potential stock level issues, in turn supporting other domestic businesses.


With geopolitical tensions building up to a boiling point with each passing week, merchants nationwide should be drawing up their strategies to weather a potentially even greater supply chain storm. Ultimately, sourcing locally and sustainably, will help them to meet these challenges while also playing their part in meeting upcoming emissions targets. BMJ


www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net April 2022


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