In my opinion, there are some common errors customers make when they are shopping and/or buying a Steel Building.  I talk to a lot of “new” potential clients every day and I hear the same things over and over from them.  I want to share some of the most popular recurring themes I encounter, so that you can avoid making costly mistakes.

#1 Mistake: 

Believing the “Cancelled Building Pitch”

When a consumer shops for a Steel Building they will usually speak to at least 3-5 different companies to compare quality and prices.  If you fall within that range you will be “Cancelled Building Pitched” at least 2 to 3 times.  The “Cancelled Building Sales Pitch” will have some version of these key points:

1. Someone else bought a building close to the size you are looking for
2. They had to cancel their order for (fill in the blank) reason
3. They lost their 30% deposit
4. If you can take it, you can save 30% on your building price
5. The building’s frames have been made but the building’s sheeting has not been cut yet so you can still pick your framed opening sizes and locations as well as the building’s color
6. There are 3 other people looking at this building and the first person to put a deposit down on this “cancelled building” wins the deal

There are so many different ways to say the same thing.  Another version of this tactic is the “In Stock Building”, in which the sales rep uses the same tactics but refers to the building as being “In Stock” vs. being a “Cancelled Building”.

The Truth:

Each and every “Pre-Engineered” building is hardly pre-engineered at all.  Each building is custom-engineered to your State Codes, Local Codes, insulation thickness, your personal specification, your color choices, etc.

If I designed (2) 50’x100’x16’ buildings with the exact framed openings but, one of those buildings was going to New York and the other was going to Texas, they would both have to be engineered separately because they have different snow, wind, seismic, etc. loads.  Even though they look exactly the same from the outside, they are very different in weight and complexity based on the Building’s Codes.

So please don’t be duped by this “Cancelled Building” or “In Stock Building” nonsense.  It’s a pitch designed to trigger the Fear of Loss that is inside everyone.  Its’ goal is to push you to put a deposit down before you are ready or have had a chance to talk to other Steel Building Companies by asking you if you want to lose out on a heck of deal and let someone else get the 30% savings.

#2 Mistake:

Not Discussing Both Your Short & Long Term Plans for the Building With Your Building Consultant

When you are discussing your building with your “Sales Rep” you will be asked questions like, what size building are you looking for?  What size doors?  Insulation? Gutters and Downspouts?  But, your Rep should also be asking you what will you be doing inside the building?  What do you plan to be doing with this building in 5 years?  In 10 years?

Why should your Rep ask those questions?  Because what you are doing inside the building could directly affect the price of the building.

For example if you are manufacturing and the materials are corrosive, there are coatings that can be put on all the interior members of the building to protect the steel from corroding.  That coating has a cost associated with it but, a Rep who cares about your end product isn’t worried about having the “cheapest” price but delivering you the best value and that coating is of extreme value under certain scenarios.

Another example is an Agricultural building that will be housing livestock.  The minimum pitch on a livestock building should be a 3:12 pitch so that the building has a “chimney” effect in which the gases will be pushed out of the ridge vents naturally without the need for fans.  A 3:12 pitch costs more than a 1:12 but, it saves the farmer money because he can eliminate the need for expensive fans.  But, for a Rep to make the proper suggestions to you, they must first know what you are using the building for.  Sadly, most Sales Reps don’t care.

The reason to ask about your 5 and 10 year plan is because there are things we can engineer into a building today for future use.  If it is not engineered into the building in the beginning there is no way to add it later without adding great cost.  Only work with a Rep who cares about your building long-term.  Never buy from someone who is trying to sell a building fast.

Mistake #3

Not Preparing for the Total Project Cost & Only Focusing on the Cost of the Steel Building

The steel building “kit” costs roughly $5.00-$7.00/ square foot (sf) depending on you building loads, framed openings, extras like gutters and downspouts, etc.  Steel is a commodity, it does not matter who you buy from, that is the price range.  Some companies give you more dollar for dollar but unfortunately most companies give you less for your money.

That said, the building cost is just one expense in a project that has at least 3 more types of expenses before the project can be considered “finalized”.  Some of the expenses can be self-performed and you can save a lot of money if you DIY.  But, if you need to hire someone else, you will need to price 1. Site-Work 2. Concrete Foundation 3. Erection 4. Mechanicals; to name a few.

At SOLID Steel Buildings our wheelhouse is engineering your building and foundation, manufacturing your steel building, delivering your building to your site, installing your concrete foundation, and erecting your building on your job-site.  There are many factors that affect your sf price when we are pricing the entire wheelhouse.  All things considered for a rough estimate, you can use the range of $20 – 25.00/sf for your engineered building drawings, your actual steel building, delivery, concrete and erection.

Even if you don’t use SOLID to perform all the work, if you use that sf price you will be realistic about the real TOTAL cost of your project.  I do strongly suggest that you use one company to do all the work.  Which leads me to Mistake #4.

Mistake #4

Hiring Different Companies & Subcontractors for Different Parts of the Job

This mistake costs my clients more money than any other mistake.  You can hire SOLID to do any or all parts of your project.  We are an a la carte firm. Some hire us to just engineer, manufacture and deliver a building.  Most want us to execute our full offering of services.

Many of our clients choose to purchase both the building and erection services from us, but go elsewhere for the concrete.  In this scenario, we manufacture and deliver the building to the job site and then put the building up.  When clients choose this option, they either perform the concrete foundation work themselves or they hire a “local guy” to do the concrete.  Whichever way they get the concrete done doesn’t matter to us, we just need the concrete to be cured when we arrive on-site.

1 out of 3 times that we arrive to erect the building though, the concrete anchor bolts are in the wrong spot.  The bolts need to be placed in the precise location in the concrete, as indicated on the drawings, in order for the building to be properly erected.

Usually, when we inform our customer that the anchor bolts are in the wrong location, mayhem ensues. Our client calls their local concrete guy and says, “The anchor bolts are in the wrong location.”  And the concrete gentleman says, “No they are not!”  The client turns to us and says, “The bolts are not in the wrong location.”  So then we have to show our clients their stamped, engineered drawings and point out where the bolts should be located.

Once the client can see the bolts are not located correctly, then his real headache begins. He needs to get the concrete guy to come back ASAP and cut out the bolts and reinstall them. Even if the concrete guy comes that day and fixes his bolts, the client has lost a day of labor that he has to pay for.  Our clients have tried to get the concrete laborer to pay for the lost time but, that rarely happens.  So it ends up being an additional expense for the end-user.

Usually, the concrete guy never shows up that day, if ever.  He has already been paid in full and has no incentive to come back.    So, the end-user has to pay us to fix his concrete guy’s mistake.  We always fix it at cost but, it is still an expense our clients did not anticipate.

This kind of scenario is so common and it’s always painful to hear about.  I feel so bad for my clients who hire one person to do the concrete and another person to erect the building and yet still another person to manufacture the building.  There is always so much finger-pointing involved and the only person who loses is the customer.

Please do not make this costly, time-consuming mistake.  Hire one company to do the engineering, manufacturing, concrete and erection.  When you hire one  company, then there is a single-source of accountability should you need to address any concerns.  Plus, there is no finger-pointing.

If you are interested in hearing about some other common mistakes and how to avoid them call or email SOLID Steel today.