APPLE VALLEY, MN — For the third year in a row, Uponor North America (Uponor) is a Partners of Choice award recipient from Houston-based David Weekley Homes, the nation’s largest privately held homebuilder and the first builder in the United States to be awarded the Triple Crown of American Home Building.
This year, Uponor received an A ranking for service through participating in the builder’s world-class supplier feedback platform. The process is rigorous; approximately 1,000 team members from all over the organization participate. Then, through a series of conference calls, individual discussions, sessions and data analysis, both parties work together to seek excellence. Of the 200 companies evaluated in the survey, only 25 were awarded with an A ranking in service, quality or both.
Uponor, who received an A,A ranking in both quality and service along with an A ranking in quality in 2014 and 2015, respectively, is one of only 10 companies to be awarded three years in a row.
"To be a world-class homebuilder, you need to source from the top suppliers in the industry," says Bill Justus, vice president of Supply Chain Services for David Weekley Homes and author of the innovative program. "Our program is a practical way of measuring world-class performance. With ambitious growth plans in front of us, we will rely heavily on our award winners to help us deliver a superior experience to our homebuyers. With approximately 1,000 rating opportunities, our team members have said Uponor is world-class in delivering service to our company."
Justus created the supplier-assessment platform in 2004 to improve the relationship and interaction between the builder and its suppliers. Since then, the homebuilding giant has continued to raise the bar in its expectations from suppliers to ensure the quality of their homes remain at peak levels.
"The benefits of the survey feedback go beyond our relationship with David Weekley Homes," says Carl Hines, national builder sales manager at Uponor. "The feedback we receive helps us advance our business as well, allowing us to continually improve our processes to ensure all partners in our value chain are confident doing business with us."