ForConstructionPros.com

When concrete contractors think back on the jobs they've done, they can recall customers they'd like to work with again any time and others they would rather avoid, no matter how much money was offered. The same is true for ready-mix suppliers.

By learning how to be excellent ready-mix customers, concrete contractors are more likely to get prompt deliveries and perfect mixes every time and might even be offered better payment terms.

Plan your jobs

The best concrete contractor customers plan ahead. "They are the ones who realize that their time and our time is money, who are prepared when we show up on the jobs, who know the total yardage they need and who let us turn around our trucks quickly," says Ric Suzio, president of The L. Suzio Concrete Company. "They put their orders in in a timely fashion."

Suzio says other considerations that should be communicated in the planning stage are the speed of the pour, whether a buggy or pump will be used, and how far apart the concrete deliveries should be.

Timeliness for ordering might vary from one part of the country to another, depending on how busy construction work is locally and on the time of day the concrete is desired. Suzio says customers who want first-run orders, particularly during peak construction periods, should schedule their concrete a few weeks in advance. In geographic areas where construction is slow, a few days notice is probably adequate.