Issue link: http://psai.uberflip.com/i/1361593
ASSOCIATIONINSIGHT Portable Sanitation Association International News BIWEEKLY EDITION APRIL 14, 2021 Page 9 Supply Issues Create Challenges and Opportunities…continued from page 8 Karl McMichael Karl McMichael with Armal also has some prior experience in the plastics industry. He remarks: "Years ago I was VP of Operations for a company…that manufactured a product most of us use—the blue and silver five gallon buckets at Lowes and Walmart. We literally made millions of these [items] every single day and used an extraordinary amount of HDPE while doing so.… I never experienced a resin cost increase and shortage like we are experiencing now." Portable Sanitation Suppliers Respond The PSAI reached out to several suppliers in our industry to better understand the impact of the shortages on their production schedules, pricing, and adjustments they are making in response. Leaders from Armal, Ameri-Can Engineering, J&J Chemicals, PolyJohn, and Satellite Industries all replied to our questions. Here's what they said. Q: For what raw materials are you currently experiencing shortages? What are you hearing are the reasons for the shortages? A: Portable sanitation industry suppliers described a variety of issues. John Babcock from Satellite Industries summed up several comments as follows: • RESIN: Global demand for plastics is up [and the Texas] winter storm took out 1.9 billion pounds of plastic resin due to shutdowns and infrastructure damage. Resin suppliers are on allocation. The price of resin has skyrocketed this year due to this restricted supply. • STEEL: Global demand for all grades of steel is up, and demand exceeds supply right now … there are only three stainless steel mills left in the US. Import lead times have gone from eight weeks to 16–20 weeks for most grades of steel. Most mills are on allocation and even currently scheduled deliveries are running three to six weeks behind schedule. • FIBERGLASS and OTHER RESTROOM TRAILER COMPONENTS: The RV industry is at peak production records due to the shift from air travel to RVs for families. Many of the same components used in restroom trailers are used in RV production. Fiberglass is in short supply, and many plants are on allocation. Common components such as air conditioners, toilet bowls, axles, and frames are also on allocation as supply becomes available. Many of the components are made in China and have seen transit delays due to port congestion. • CHASSIS: Hino has shut down production in the US until October 2021.…[this] has created a shortfall in the market for truck chassis as everyone scrambles to get a hold of available chassis. • TRANSPORT: Many of the raw materials, feed stock, and components are imported from China and there is massive congestion at the ports. We have seen containers hit the port only to sit there two to four weeks waiting for a truck to move inland. Freight costs are high and drivers are at a premium right now. John Babcock Continued on page 10