As a domestic manufacturer in an industry dominated by foreign providers, sourcing bollards from BollardsUSA includes inherent benefits in buying American. From shorter and more predictable lead and shipping times to sustainable production and industry-leading quality control, let’s break down why buying American-made should be the only option considered.
(But before you buy, you might need a hand thinking through product specification. This guide covers it in detail.)
Control costs and preserve timelines
While offshore production may include cost benefits due to cheaper labor and lax safety regulations, these are offset by higher shipping costs because of the distance to the end-user. An often-overlooked aspect of foreign production, sourcing internationally inherently results in slower, less predictable shipping and lead times.
Take, for example, the Suez Canal blockage of March 2021. The Ever Given, a 1,500-foot container ship, prevented the passage of over 300 vessels through the canal, temporarily halting a significant percentage of global trade. The fallout was severe, “strain(ing) supply lines already stretched by Covid,” possibly delaying international supply chains for several months and surging costs to account for lost time.
Other factors, such as recent increases on foreign steel tariffs introduced by the Trump administration, have only increased the cost of imported products, such as foreign-sourced stainless steel bollards.
Limited solely by domestic trade regulations and cushioned by the relative predictability of domestic shipping, sourcing American-made bollards removes uncertainty and adds resilience.
BollardsUSA offers a two-part delivery system designed to benefit project laborers and planners alike. With this unique system, we can have mounts and pipes delivered to project sites within a few days, allowing for early installation.
Part one – We’ll deliver mounts and pipes first — within just a few days of your order — so you can proactively install these components without delay.
Part two – Bollard sleeves arrive in a second shipment. With mounts and pipes already installed, sleeve installation is a breeze.
Two-part delivery allows you to make the most efficient use of your installation crew’s time, ultimately reducing total time on-site and, in turn, total project cost.
As an added measure of quality control, this delivery system also allows end users to identify any required replacement parts. In turn, we supply replacement parts along with the second delivery.
Ensure sustainable manufacturing
Purchasing American-made products intrinsically equates to supporting greener solutions to manufacturing. While foreign products are often cheaper, factors such as the environmental costs of ocean freight are not often accounted for in the total cost of a product.
Outside the lawful jurisdiction of any one government, global shipping has grown to produce “nearly 3% of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions…roughly the same carbon footprint as Germany.” And, although domestic providers claim sustainable foreign manufacturing of products, their claims often ignore the environmental cost of product transportation.
In truth, the least environmentally damaging procurement method is buying from a domestic manufacturer that utilizes regional raw material sources. This allows the buyer to tighten the supply chain from material source to manufacturer to end-user, minimizing environmental impact while strengthening the domestic economy as a bonus.
At BollardsUSA, we believe that sustainable manufacturing is as good for business as it is the planet. Eighty-four percent of material used to produce our cast iron bollards is recycled, meeting LEED criteria for Materials and Resources Credit 4: Recycled Content. By sourcing from regional steel mills that utilize 82 to 99% of recycled production, our steel and cast iron products ensure a full-circle sustainable approach to manufacturing.
Increase product quality
An often-overlooked consequence of sourcing foreign products is a lack of quality control from manufacturer to end-user. When you purchase BollardsUSA products, you receive a direct line to our team. Manufacturers sourcing from outside of the United States often utilize third party customer service providers or unreliable automated systems.
Simply put, talking to a human shouldn’t be such a tall order. With us, it’s not.
Further, with significantly shorter shipping distances, a domestic provider can deliver replacement parts under the possibility of initial part failure. With BollardsUSA’s two-tiered delivery system in mind, replacements can be shipped within the second shipment. Therefore, the issue can be corrected quicker than a foreign provider could even deliver its first shipment.
Support the American workforce
When you buy American, that ripples outward in support of American industries and American workers.
But it also introduces the intrinsic benefits of domestic sourcing:
- Faster lead times
- Lower shipping costs
- Better timeline predictability
- Exceptional customer service
- Environmental stewardship
If you want your project to be good for business and good for the country, let’s talk about buying American-made from BollardsUSA.