PDIS to examine ‘Supply Chain Revolution’
Some of the industry’s most recent research on how trading partners interact in the building materials channel will be featured on Friday, Oct. 3, at the 2008 ProDealer Industry Summit in Chantilly, Va. Jointly sponsored by the National Lumber and Building Materials Dealers Association (NLBMDA) and Home Channel News, the “Supply Chain Revolution” will feature presentations from Ed Hudson from the NAHB Research Center and William Whiddon from Building Technology.
Hudson will share the results of his 2008 survey of U.S. home builders on how the downturn has changed their attitudes and expectations toward pricing, products and relationships with trade partners. Whiddon, working with the NLBMDA and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), has identified 45 supply chain processes that have, for better or worse, become a part of how manufacturers, distributors and builders do business with each other. He will reveal some of the more surprising findings of his two-year study, as well as a few recommendations.
The Supply Chain Revolution panel will also include a presentation on a value engineering pilot project being conducted at Beazer Homes to reduce costs, construction waste, trips to the job site and other redundancies. Two participants in the pilot, Tony Callahan, senior vp-national purchasing, planning and design for Beazer, and Paul Hylbert, CEO of ProBuild Holdings, will each give their perspectives on the project.
All speakers will be followed by a question and answer session with audience members.
Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich will kick off the three-day event at the Westfields Marriott. Ivy Zelman, one of the building industry’s most widely recognized analysts, will deliver her housing outlook and also moderate a panel of industry experts.
Other educational sessions will include strategies for running a tight credit operation and “Energy Star: What’s Next?” presented by Sam Rashkin, national director of the Energy Star for Homes program. A golf tournament benefiting the City of Hope will round out the social networking events and tabletop exhibits. For more information about the conference, visit www.prodealer.com.
