The waterproofing industry has undergone many changes in the last twenty
years. The greatest change, is the complexity and number of potential
solutions available to address roof, wall and pavement problems. Facility
managers have been forced to seek the expertise of an independent resource to
analyze the numerous options available in today's volatile marketplace.
The first, and most important, choice to be made by the facility manager
is how to manage these complexities when approaching a roof, wall or pavement
problem. The market offers four alternatives:
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Owner/Manager: Some
companies have sufficient staff to dedicate one person's time to make
waterproofing-related decisions, without the assistance of an outside
source. However, most owners/managers must still rely on some external
source for current information.
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Contractor: Contractors
are also a source of information, easily available to facility
owners/managers. Contractors, however, have an inherent bias in relation
to their market strengths, future bidding situations, and manufacturer
affiliations when making recommendations. For these reasons, a
contractor's recommendation may not be in the best interest of the facility
owner/manager, because most often it represents a compromise between the interests of the
contractor and the interests of the facility owner/manager.
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Product Manufacturer:
Some product manufacturers have sales representatives that will provide "free"
analysis and recommendations as part of their marketing strategy. The
representative, however, is limited in their recommendations by the products
that are manufactured by their company. These products are often
significantly (200% - 400%) more expensive than competitive products
distributed on a commodity basis. This premium becomes the "free
" cost of the services provided by the sales representative.
Solutions offered by a product manufacturer often tend to be a compromise
between the interests of the product manufacturers sales
representative and the facility owner/manager.
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Consultant: The
waterproofing industry has evolved into a very complex and volatile industry.
The need for an independent source to analize and design waterproofing
systems for facility owners/managers has grown dramatically. Architects and
engineers had been a traditional resource for this type of expertise but
currently most lack the necessary expertise in this specialized field.
Most architects and engineers now rely heavily on "free
" advice derived from contractors or product manufacturer sales
representatives. The consultant has evolved in response to the
growing complexity of the industry. The consultant provides facility
owners/managers with the specialized knowledge and experience needed to guide
them to the most appropriate solution for their needs.
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Assuming independence is a key ingredient in your
decision-making process, only two of the four alternatives are
acceptable. IRS advocates a combined effort between the facility
owner/manager and its consultants. This combined effort affords
facility owners/managers with the most appropriate solution necessary to
satisfy their business goals and objectives at the lowest possible cost.
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Your roof, building exteriors and hardscape assets represent a
significant portion of your overall facility investment. Whereas the
overall facility appreciates in value, your roof, building exterior and
hardscape assets depreciate over their designed service life. Failure to
effectively manage these deteriorating assets can have a major impact on your
organizations "bottom-line."
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Industrial Roofing Services, Inc. provides all of the services necessary
to assist you in efficiently and effectively managing these complex aspects of
your overall facility investment. We appreciate your interest in our firm
and the services we provide.
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