Built For Resilience

Posted on September 30, 2021

2021 for many has been a continuation of 2020 – from product and candidate shortages, adjusting to virtual and remote work, an increase in demand and prices for building supplies, and more.  In 2020, a year that for many completely upended our idea of “normal”, the LBM community was left in a state of shock.  As an industry as a whole, that has typically been slow to change when it comes to technology, and one that relies heavily on face-to-face interactions, the pandemic continues to present many challenges for a slow-changing, but ever-essential part of our economy.

Last year, many states pressed that “Construction” and “Building Material Suppliers” be deemed essential – and were they ever! Many companies over the past year have evolved – shifts not seen in the industry in decades, now being made seemingly overnight.  Our new normal has become face masks, hand washing stations, social distancing, virtual client meetings – and yet the industry continues to thrive.  In light of all of the challenges the LBM industry has overcome, it remains to be ever-evolving and rising to meet new demands in an ever-developing market.

Across the country, construction and building material suppliers continue to persevere in support of critical infrastructure, commercial buildings, new home construction, remodeling, and the ever-growing multi-family sector. Companies across the industry have had to step up, and find new ways to operate in this “new world”.

An entire industry over the past year has started to embrace “Zoom” meetings, telecommuting, and working from home like never before.  While these changes have certainly taken time, the companies that have stepped up to the challenges the pandemic has brought and found new ways of doing business, they continue to thrive.  The changes we have seen in lumber and building supplies have opened doors to a new generation of professionals; those that are looking for a forward-thinking industry and companies that can embrace change.

Now, over a year into the pandemic – an industry that once may have seemed “antiquated”, continues to embrace the changes and challenges of this evolving landscape.  It’s those companies that continue to “roll with the punches”, “rise to the challenge” and “change with the times”, that will truly come out on top.