The podcast discusses the ongoing shortage of electrical components in the US, particularly transformers and switchgears. Real estate developer Chris Hatch shares how this shortage is impacting construction projects. The episode explores the supply chain challenges and rising prices of electrical components, highlighting the struggles faced by electricians in the industry.
Read more
AI Summary
AI Chapters
Episode notes
auto_awesome
Podcast summary created with Snipd AI
Quick takeaways
Shortage of electrical components persists post-pandemic, hindering construction progress.
Supply chain constraints lead to delays in acquiring transformers, impacting project timelines and budgets.
Deep dives
Shortage of Electrical Transformers and Switch Gears
The podcast episode discusses the shortage of electrical transformers and switch gears, highlighting their crucial role in powering buildings. The speaker, Chris Hatch, shares his experience with delays in acquiring switch gears for his development projects due to supply chain issues. He explains how the scarcity of transformers and switch gears has become prevalent in the post-COVID era, leading to significant challenges in completing construction projects.
Impact on Developers and Business Operations
Chris details the financial implications of delays in acquiring electrical components, emphasizing the burden placed on developers like himself. He highlights the extensive time and financial costs incurred when essential parts, like switch gears, experience prolonged delays. The uncertainty surrounding the arrival of crucial components adds complexity to project timelines and budgeting, affecting the overall operation and completion of buildings.
Challenges in Supply Chain and Seeking Solutions
The podcast delves into the intricacies of the electrical supply chain, involving manufacturers, supply houses, and regional distributors. Chris explores the challenges faced in sourcing electrical components from a limited number of major manufacturers. He shares efforts to find alternative solutions, such as exploring manufacturing options in Mexico, to address the supply chain constraints and mitigate delays in acquiring essential electrical equipment.
In 2021 and 2022, the US economy experienced historic shortages of many different goods. All kinds of consumer, construction, and high-tech components were tough to come by. Since then, most of these shortages have eased or gone away, but there is one category that is still struggling to meet demand: electrical components. Years after the height of the pandemic squeeze, there are still complaints about missing transformers and switchgears, which are crucial for connecting new construction developments to the power grid. So what's going on and how much is this shortage messing up economic activity? On this episode, we speak with commercial real estate developer Chris Hatch, partner at Forza Development, about how the situation is hurting his business. He talks about projects that are entirely finished — except for this one necessary component. We walk through the causes of the problem and how costly the delays are proving to be.