According to a recent NRCA Town Hall, “The current supply shortage squeezing the roofing industry is the culmination of several factors, and not likely to end anytime soon.”
There are a number of speculative reasons for the global supply chain issues. While the causes might differ slightly from one list to another, the following are commonly found on just about every list.
- The pandemic seems to be at the top of most lists. It’s no surprise that the pandemic has had a negative effect on supply and demand of so many materials and finished products. Earlier in the pandemic, it seemed overall there was supply with little demand, and now a few years later, there is demand with little supply.
- The chip shortage is another common fault for the supply shortage. With many people hunkering down at home during the pandemic, there was a big increase in demand for technology items, so purchases soared. Closed factories—also because of the pandemic—decreased output, and the combination of the two started the downward slide. This shortage was even further exasperated by additional challenges with weather and shipping.
- The fire at an International Terminals Company (ITC) plant in Texas was bad enough, but the ensuing spill of fuel, water and fire-smothering material into a shipping canal leading to the Gulf of Mexico ended up closing a port and making the supply shortage even worse.
- Many industries are experiencing a workforce shortage, including the transportation industry. The American Trucking Associations (ATA), which represents the industry’s largest carriers, recently reported a shortage of 80,000 truck drivers in the United States.
- Port congestion is another culprit. A lack of movement of goods in and out of U.S. ports has created record numbers of shipping vessels to be halted in the water. Furthermore, port terminals are extremely overcrowded with shipping containers with nowhere for them to go because of a lack of available warehouse space.
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What is the Impact on Roofing?
The supply chain issues have negatively impacted many industries, including the roofing industry. Contractors are feeling the effects with delayed shipments of roofing products, such as adhesives, ISO boards, plates, fasteners, screws and various roofing membranes.
Insulation, one of the main materials used in roofing, is common in both new roof construction and re-roofing. Insulation is used in achieving thermal resistance and in some cases a recovery board for the new roof system. R-values may range from R-20 to R-40, depending upon the geographic area and usage of the facility. Multiple layers of insulation are often used to meet these R-values. New energy codes, found especially in new roof construction, many times require the insulation to finish the project. These requirements …….
Source: https://www.buildings.com/articles/43477/supply-chain-strain-roofing-industry