Jason interviews his dad, Ken Schroeder, former truck boss and driver for Service Rock Products, about developing remarkable vendor relationships, specifically with ready-mix concrete suppliers. Ken shares firsthand stories of providing world-class service: 305 yards per hour on big pours, inspectors recommending Service Rock to customers, 7-day breaks instead of 21-day breaks, spotless batch plants, and graded drivers (A through D) who competed to improve. The key insight: service equals 90% of quality. When trucks showed up late at one prison project, concrete went off, and finishers had to patch as they went. At the FCI-2 project with Service Rock, trucks arrived 15 minutes early, breaks came up in 7 days, and the mud was perfect. Ken's philosophy as truck boss: "My sole objective is to make you look good." For general contractors: over-communicate expectations, visit and vet vendors, and develop personal relationships. For vendors: clean equipment matters, total participation from drivers to dispatch, quality control testing, and continuous improvement.

What you'll learn in this episode:

• Service = 90% of quality: Personal relationships, attention to detail, and care translate directly into product quality

• Grading drivers worked: A through D grading made drivers competitive, D drivers worked up to C to avoid the low grade

• 305 yards per hour: 2700-yard pour starting at 3am, finished by 6am (top-out crew normally arrived at 9am)

• 7-day breaks vs 21-day: Service Rock's quality lab tested cylinders, breaks always came up in 7 days, not 14 or 21

• Clean = culture: Spotless batch plant, beautiful trucks, concrete-paved paths to fuel islands, customers toured the facility

• Total participation: Truck boss communicated customer needs to every driver, context matters for service

• Hot/cold water systems: Hot water tanks for winter (calcium chloride activation), refrigeration units for summer

• Front-load vs rear-load: Ken prefers rear-load, shoot man controls it, driver watches for cues, safer

• Vet your vendors: Visit batch plants, inspect equipment, talk to batch operator, check hot/cold water capacity

• Ken's philosophy: "My sole objective is to make you look good", focus on making your customer successful

Develop personal relationships with vendors. Overcommunicate. Vet your suppliers. Service equals quality.

If you like the Elevate Construction podcast, please subscribe for free, and you'll never miss an episode. And if you really like the Elevate Construction podcast, I'd appreciate you telling a friend (Maybe even two 😊).

Also, here are links to our YouTube Channels:

· Jason Schroeder YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4xpRYvrW5Op5Ckxs4vDGDg

· LeanTakt YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/leanTakt

· LeanSuper YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQDevqQP19L4LePuqma3Fg/featured

· LeanSurvey YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ztn3okFhyB_3p5nmMKnsw