What would you do if a customer wanted a specific tile that would not be available for six to ten weeks or if the tile specified is now over the customer's budget? Now you are faced with the challenge of “Value Engineering” the project. This process has been improved through technology and online search engines. The results can provide you and your client with significant cost benefits. How do you trust that the resources you have found online are reliable?
D&B’s local Architectural Representatives and Commercial Sales Representatives have the ability to “Value Engineer” your porcelain tile and installation systems with the best resources. Our relationships with top porcelain and setting material manufacturers provide you and your client with quality, value and timely logistics. D&B is constantly educating our team with company sponsored courses, industry workshops and supplier training.
Atlas Concorde, a leading manufacturer of tile products on the world scene and one of the key manufacturers for D&B Tile Distributors announced a major initiative to the “Value Engineering” process.
Atlas Concorde has developed a new program called “Spec-Saver”. Spec-Saver is Atlas Concorde’s twelve most popular porcelain tiles with guaranteed availability (up to 10,000 sq.ft. each) in the United States. This commitment will ensure commercial customers a ready supply of these popular tiles.
In addition to the Spec Saver program, Atlas has announced the NEW Atlas Concorde Solutions. ACS represents a selection of porcelain tiles designed and produced to meet the needs of a broader market segment, adhering to the traditional values of Atlas Concorde. The Block and Legend series will be stocked in Florida by D&B Tile and Atlas USA.
Contact your D&B Representative when working on your next project or “VE” solution.
History of Value Engineering
Value Engineering was conceived as a cost and value tool during World War II
by Lawrence Miles and Harry Erlicher while working at General Electric (GE).
Facing wartime shortages, they developed a process for resourcing substitutes.
Value Engineering within construction was pioneered by Mr. Alphonse Dell’
Isola in the 1960s. He focused on the same goals as Miles and Erlicher in
developing a value analysis process for construction. The Federal Government
Construction Value Engineering Law (Public Law 104-106) can be credited to
Mr. Dell’ Isola. During his career, he conducted more than 1,000 VE workshops
for various organizations that resulted in savings of $2.5 billion.
Many VE workshops are performed as contractor-driven scope removal. In this
abbreviated process, the contractor focuses only on cost removal, rather than
using VE to re-evaluate and re-establish a project’s goals by way of a value
function review and analysis. Cliff Moser, AIA, MSQA/Using Active Value Engineering for Quality Management