George Thomas, founder and president of Contemporary Controls, reflects on this past year and the steps his team took to tackle supply chain issues and shortages of components required to manufacture network and control products for the building, energy, and industrial automation industries.
In my 2021 Year in Review, I ended my report by saying we were hoping that the COVID-19 pandemic was behind us, and we were looking forward to a banner 2022 year. The banner year did not occur. Thankfully, our team remained healthy, but our supply chain did not, disrupting our business and others in our industry. We always took pride in that we could deliver from stock same day orders. For some items this remains true, but for others they are on backorder.
It is not that we do not have high levels of component inventory – we do. We just do not have all the components necessary to make finished goods. While much of what we sell is manufactured in the U.S., components are sourced worldwide. It is those long lead-time critical items that create a delivery backlog that disappoints our customers and frustrates the Contemporary Controls’ staff who must provide bad news to our valued customers. I must apologize that our level of service has not kept up with your expectations. We are committed to doing better in 2023.
Our most popular products, like the BASrouter, BASpi-Edge and BASview, are now in stock and ready to ship.
The toughest part is not being able to accurately predict when we can ship. We found that we could not obtain reliable component delivery dates from some of our suppliers, and when they obtained the parts, some would not honor the quoted prices. Our purchasing department continually reconfirms delivery dates on orders placed and with the help of our engineering department, tries to source alternatives. We simply cannot accept a 2024 projected delivery date on a component. We must find alternatives even if it requires a product redesign.
Besides rising component prices, our air and surface transportation costs increased, forcing us to raise our prices as well. We also have higher energy costs, and we are still in a tight labor market. These are the times when you learn how well your team performs. I am happy to say we have many loyal and productive employees who understand the challenges and pitch in with ideas and initiatives to meet these challenges. I am proud of our team.
It was exciting to exhibit at AHR Expo once again and we are looking forward to AHR Expo 2023 in February. We will also exhibit at ISH 2023 in Frankfurt. If you are attending any of these shows, please stop by and visit with us. We will share with you our plans and hope to learn your plans as we cope during these extraordinary times. We operate in a great industry and with disruption there are opportunities.
We wish you all a healthy and prosperous new year. To learn more, visit Contemporary Controls (ccontrols.com)
