From pilot to contractor: (16) Why I canned 'The Man of Steel'

I contacted ‘The Man of Steel’ in January. He was part of planning meetings at my architect’s office as far back as February. The sleek, horizontal steel siding he was to install was to be an integral part of the house’s very modern look. I booked him in March to start in late July (later moved to the 3^rd week of August after the weather delayed our ground-breaking.) I was pleased. I called him the ‘Man of Steel’ because his team were the most sought-after installers of this type of product in the region. I knew had the right man for this unusual, complex job, and had him confirmed, or so I thought.

We were in fact ready for him in August, but he begged off, claiming he was a bit behind with other work due to the weather. He said he could start just after Labour Day. Then, the next week he changed that to the third week of September. Then last week, we had this conversation:

“I can’t start this month. In fact, I have no idea when I can start the siding.”

“So October then?”

“I have no idea. My brother has his leg in a cast and he operates the steel break.”

“How about before the winter sets in?”

“I can’t give you any date this calendar year.”

“Remember; I booked you for August way back in March.”

“Yeah, but I’ve got guys who need roofs. I have to get their roofs installed.”

This was totally unacceptable. I felt jerked around. So I canned ‘The Man of Steel’.

How can people act like this and maintain a decent reputation? Why do they mislead a customer with whom they made a long-standing commitment by tossing around start dates they probably know are unrealistic? And what about the other trades that were impacted by his delays, like the soffit, facia and parapet capping installers?

It threw the week into a frenzy of activity and re-grouping, resulting in a whole new exterior look for the house. As much as I wanted the steel siding and the clean horizontal lines it offered, there was no choice but to move to Plan B: Concrete Sheeting.

By sheer luck, on the day I was wrestling with this issue I bumped into my stone mason at the contractor desk of a local retailer. I was pricing out concrete sheeting and he was getting supplies to start my exterior stonework the next week. Hearing my dilemma and proposed solution, he not only agreed with the direction I was taking but quickly suggested someone he had worked with for years with plenty of concrete sheet experience. After a few phone calls to check out his credentials, we were on site developing a sheet layout and seam reveal design that would maintain the modern appearance I sought. We also finalised a start date, one that he assured could be accepted as accurate.

I felt badly for the local agent for the steel siding manufacturer though. He had been generous with his experience and advice; now he would not get the nice order he had worked so hard towards. So I dropped into his office to give him the bad news personally. He took it well and understood completely my decision to move on. My next call was to inform ”The Man of Steel’ of his cancellation; he simply shrugged it off with the remark: “No hard feelings I hope.”

Yeah, right!