b'INDUSTRY ROUNDTABLEthey needed to cover themselves. Theowner and consultants and making sureCanada, so there were tariffs imposed costs have gone exponentially highertheyre on task is important. Everybodyon their products that raised the price than what we had forecasted, but at theis so busy right now, and were justfor over a year. We managed that end of the day, communication is thetrying our best to accommodate thesituation by communicating with our key to success in any line of work. Todeadlines that are best for the project.developers as soon as we got any sort just be ignorant about whats going onSometimes the timelines slip due toof information. What we learned at and think its going to go away will notproject circumstances, but as long as thethat time was when we were quoting help anybodys cause. ownership group understands that, andjobs, we quoted them based on the were doing everything we can on our[current numbers] and gave an option As well, we have worked closely with ourend to help them get to the next stage,or projected costs for what these tariffs suppliers and manufacturers to mitigatetheres less pressure and anxiety were going to be. Likewise, with those cost increases on current projectsfor everyone. any other material increases, if the by pre-ordering and storing materialsmanufacturer suppliers are talking about that we know are going to be required inTW:We have worked closely with ourincreases coming up, well give a separate the near future. suppliers and manufacturers to mitigateline item to say, Here are the current those cost increases on current projectsnumbers, and this is what we can secure. by pre-ordering and storing materialsBut if your project runs over and you WHAT LESSONS HAVE BEENthat we know are going to be required inmiss your scheduled start date, and all LEARNED IN DEALING WITHthe near future. of a sudden you fall into another quarter BOTH THE PANDEMIC ANDwhere these material increases may take THE RESULTING PRICE/SUPPLYWeve gone through something similareffect, heres the price youre potentially CHALLENGES? before; our manufacturer in the U.S.looking at. Then at least they can carry PS-T:This has allowed us to pivotwas accused of dumping products inthe costs.our business to minimize the impacts that were brought on by the crisis. The challenges presented were also opportunities for us to better understand how we can be more progressive in our innovative approach to how we do business. For instance, when COVID-19 started to intensify in March 2020, our team was able to quickly adjust to a new work landscape overnight. With our team having already gone fully digital a few months prior to the pandemic, we were able to relocate and work remotely from home effectively and efficiently. This minimized any impacts to our clients, team members and projects.DT:While just-in-time supply is a cost-effective, modern approach, it is vulnerable to a supply chain disruption. A balance between earlier planningCARPENTERand acquiring supplies in advance, compared to the increased costs, shouldELECTRICIANbe examined. A tough balancing act willPLUMBERbe not increasing costs too much [whileTIMBER FRAMINGcotr.ca/programsalso] having supply certainty [on hand] to continue work. CONSTRUCTION TRADES TRAININGVT:Were still learning on what the best strategies are for projects within Apprentices are trained to this economy, but we are trying to beRed Seal Canadian standards.more prepared for projects. Having those communication lines with the SICA CONSTRUCTION REVIEWFall 202151'