The last time I wrote about the supply chain issues, prices across the board were rising and lead times were extremely long. For the most part, pricing has stabilized somewhat. Tariffs have caused some items’ costs to increase, but not nearly as much as I feared. Lead times have also stabilized. Distributors have also had time to replenish their inventories, which really helps reduce lead times on the items we use daily, like bolts, crossarms, and poles.
Actually, wood poles are a bright spot in our industry. Pricing of poles has come down since the pandemic, and availability has drastically improved. We can get some poles in a matter of days instead of months, which was a blessing this past year.
With the two major storms this past year, the storm in March and then again in August, the District has needed approximately 1,500 poles. In a normal year, the District uses around 400 poles.
Prior to the pandemic, a manufacture lead time of 8 weeks was considered a long time. However, new bucket trucks and digger trucks still have as much as a three year lead time.
All in all, lead times have improved, and pricing is stabilizing for the most part. To help elevate the situation, Perennial has increased its own inventory considerably over the past several years. It is still very important for customers to plan well ahead for new services or upgrades, so we can make sure we have the material for your project.
