Exploring the 2022 construction materials market (Part 1)

The following transcript was edited from one of two concurrent Jan. 25 discussions at the 2023 Pit & Quarry Roundtable & Conference. Part two of this discussion can be found here. The conversation was edited for brevity and clarity.

PIT & QUARRY: For the producers here, tell us about your construction materials sales in 2022 and how they compared with the previous year. For equipment suppliers and others, share your observations of the 2022 construction materials market, and tell us about your sales in the last year.

JEFF SIKORA (HAZEMAG): I can probably speak for most suppliers in this room that we ended 2022 with the thought of: ‘What the heck just happened?’ It was an unbelievable year. We entered it optimistic but also realistic, taking into account the many things our industry and country was facing.

This is the first time our company talked about component surcharges and quotations, reducing how long quotes will be valid for.

But despite of all of that, it was a record year. Despite all the difficulties our industry faced, we proved how resilient the industry is and how strong the individuals who make it up are.

TODD IRWIN (TECWEIGH): We also had a banner year in 2022. For us, lead times and electronic components were the biggest challenges because of the shipping requirements and trying to get [them] in. But other than those challenges, 2022 was the best year Tecweigh’s had.

ALEX KANARIS (VDG): We had an increase of about 20 percent in 2022 over 2021, so that was good. But it didn’t come without challenges. We work with steel mills and, of course, we saw raw material pricing going up anywhere from 30 to 40 percent.

Transportation has become an issue. We estimated [those charges] to be at least double what they were in 2021. Nevertheless, we had a banner year. We didn’t pass to our customers the full cost of what we absorbed, but we’re optimistic maybe in 2023 we’re going to make up the difference.

JAMEN MCDERMOTT (SENSATA TECHNOLOGIES/PREVIEW RADAR): 2022 was a struggle. Of course, everybody dealt with supply chain issues. We weren’t the exception. However, we are seeing an increase in demand for safety products on vehicles in construction and mining. That drove a decent increase (5 percent) in 2022 over 2021, and we’re expecting to see an even bigger increase in 2023.

JONATHAN KOLBE (ALLEGHENY MINERAL CORP.): We’re a very localized producer in Pennsylvania. We did see some moderate growth in 2022, but it was certainly not the banner year that producers in some other states had. In terms of the bottom line, we did see some growth. We had a lot of gross margin pressure. It was because of the supply chain and our input costs rising throughout the year.

DAVID CISZCZON (POLYDECK): One of the big challenges for us is making sure we retain our employees. That’s the big challenge in the very [high-]growth area where we’re located. But it’s not just compensation. Health care is up. There are a lot of different increases across the board. Those are all challenges. It was a great year, but [increased costs] did affect the bottom line.

VINCENT ROCCO (AMCAST): The year really highlighted the importance of planning. When we were last at the Roundtable in June (2022), we were already showing signs of record growth in sales and revenues, but we kind of expected it to slow down a little bit toward the end of the year. Those didn’t slow, though, and that was a good thing. So, for us, planning early on – even at the end of 2020 and the end of 2021, to make sure we had the right amount of inventory and forecasted properly – was essential.

NICHOLAS SCHUR (SCHURCO SLURRY): Our growth path was just having it on the shelf, and we were able to deliver. The only issue we had was ancillary parts. But from a slurry pump position, we couldn’t keep them on the shelf. We sold over 700 units [in 2022]. In 2021, we sold 450.

RONALDO DOS SANTOS (ANDERSON COLUMBIA CO.): In terms of our shipments for Anderson Columbia, we had a mixed performance in Florida in areas where we were serviced by trucks. We were able to increase production. We had some constraints in areas where we were supported by rail between July and October, but we did great. We had a great year in Texas, especially in the San Antonio area.

DAMIAN MURPHY (PECKHAM INDUSTRIES): Volumes were down in 2022 versus 2021 because we had strained our resources – people in particular – in 2021. The trucking concerns we all heard about were a big issue for us. The supply chain presented challenges to get things up and running for the season. So, we actively reduced our activities and focused on our margins. Unfortunately, inflation came in and hit that, for sure. But, again, we’re focused back on margin exposure.

« Prev Page 1 2 Next Page »