Local Builders Face Shortages
Tuesday, June 1, 2004
Contractors in the Cayman Islands are now facing shortages and higher prices
for certain building materials due to the increased construction in this
country, as well as external factors.
Supplies of cement, metal products and plywood are in short supply, making it
difficult for Cayman’s retailers of those goods to meet local demand.
Part of the supply problem has arisen because of the large amount of building
projects currently underway here. The Central Planning Authority recently
approved a record of more than CI$80 worth of applications in a single meeting,
indicating that construction is likely to continue at a soaring level.
Cox Lumber operations manager Charles Anderson confirmed that some building
materials are hard to keep in stock, particularly steel products. “I think steel
is linked to gasoline; when one goes up, it seems so does the other. Due to the
big demand worldwide we’re having trouble keeping steel and products made from
steel on our shelves.”
Mentioning that each day he now sees four or five blueprints for new homes,
Mr Anderson highlighted that patience and communication are critical. “I’ll look
at the blueprints and tell people that if they are really going to undertake the
project, they need to tell me now so I can get them the metal studs and cement
on a definite time table.”
AL Thompson Home Depot is also experiencing difficulty in meeting local
demand for steel. Once again steel’s scarcity is presenting problems, according
to Ken Williams, head of the sales department. “We’re low and we have no direct
access to the steel suppliers,” he said, “We’re either low or have had to raise
prices on metal studs, chain-link fencing, and nails. When we do order,
sometimes we only get half of what we ordered.”
Both Cox Lumber and AL Thompson Home Depot also reported short supplies of
plywood. “Since plywood has switched to a more environmentally-friendly chemical
in the pressure treated wood, the price and demand have gone up,” said Mr
Anderson of Cox Lumber.
Another building material shortage exists in cement. Gerson Henriquez,
General Manager of National Concrete said that his company actually ran out of
cement last week. “We’ve been out for a couple days now,” he said on Friday.
Mr Henriquez noted that this was the second time in the past two months that
National Concrete has run out of cement. “Prior to that, I can’t recall ever
running out before,” he said.
Although Mr Henriquez attributed increased demand locally to part of the
shortage, he also said that getting shipments from the supplier, the
Mexican-based Cemex, was also part of the problem. “They supply the whole
Caribbean and I believe that a couple of their boats have been out of service,”
he said. “But the boat is in today, so we’ll have cement now.”
Mr Henriquez said that Cemex has agreed to supply National Concrete with
bagged cement in addition to bulk cement to help alleviate shortages in the
future.
Mr Anderson of Cox Lumber said that Cayman was not the only place affected by
a cement shortage. “Our twenty-nine stores in Florida are even having difficulty
procuring cement. The world is demanding mortar, and we’re finding it tough to
keep cement on our shelves.”
Some contractors have begun finding other ways to buy the materials necessary
for their jobs. Talbert Tatum of Tyson Construction said he frequently
encounters shortages of dense glass board and metal studs. ‘When I check around
the States, I have success on my own, and that’s what I’ve been doing for awhile
now,” he said. “Once I have ordered it, I get a date of delivery, the invoice,
and then I send my cheque through FedEx. I can’t really believe the shortage
part because I’m still finding everything I need in the States.”
For those still doing their purchasing here, Mr Anderson of Cox Lumber has
observed that more and more contractors are getting smarter about what they need
and when they need it. “They are ordering on time and not waiting until the last
minute.”
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