I'm working out in the shop today

Harvey Ramer

and I just got done packing away all my uponor fittings and tools. None of my local suppliers will carry their product anymore. They say it is to expensive and there is not good customer service, or representation. In my mind as the contractor there has never been any doubt as to the quality of their product. Still I am at the mercy of the local supply houses. I prefer not to buy off of the internet.



I was wondering if this has happened elsewhere?

kcopp

you must be....

outside of New England..... Urell has great supprt for Uponor.

SWEI

Uponor PEX

Here in our little corner of NM, we have great rep support but patchy distributor stock on Uponor.  What there is comes from suppliers 2 hours away who deliver weekly, but no hePEX thanks to low demand in the southern latitudes.  Net result?  We work with about five wholesalers that are one day UPS away.



Price-wise, we have found the EP fittings competitive (and a good fit for our hard water.)

Harvey Ramer

I am in

South central PA.

Mark Eatherton

Sounds like your supplier is in a race to the bottom...

with his competition, and is dragging you along for the ride.



I've never purchased Uponor because it is cheap. I buy it because they have THE best "system" which includes rep and factory support. But then again, I have never strived to be the least expensive contractor, but have always prided myself in providing a COMPLETE bid package that fits the consumers needs, and do my best to convey quality over price objections, as taught to me by the current holder of the CHIAOE award, none other than John Barba himself, who taught me this through the halls of Uponor.



If I were you, I'd convey your thoughts on this to the manufacturer. Talk to Ingrid Mattson, and she will tell you who you need to speak with. Uponor does listen to its customer base.



ME

Harvey Ramer

Thanks for the

advice Mark. I will talk with Ingrid and see what I can arrange. In the meantime I am buying Uponor product off the internet, though I am loathe to do so. I decided if my suppliers won't sell me the product I want, they don't need my business. I don't beleive in sacrificing quality for a cheap price either. I did use Viega for a while. While their products are decent, in my opinion, niether their plumbing or heating systems are as complete and as high quality as Uponor.

RobG

Uponor

Harvey, are you in an area of Pa. that Thos. Somerville services? They USED to be great Uponor distributors. I haven't dealt with them lately.

Rob

Harvey Ramer

Thos. Sommerville

is actually my preferred distributer but they along with all my other suppliers in this area have dropped Uponor.

JohnHenry_2

I'm curious,

why are you "loathe" to buy from the internet? Support? Warranty? Quicker access to parts?

Harvey Ramer

There are many different reasons.

Perhaps the most important one is that I like nothing better than walking into my local supply house, grab a cup of coffee that they always have out for us, and have a freindly conversation with the people in there. Call me petty or selfish, but I really enjoy those little things.

LenP

Owner

looking for someone to service my uponor climate control system.....

my installer had been very unreliable and frankly I don't think he knows the system very well.

I have it controlling my geo system for AC and Heating...

I'm in Avon by the Sea, NJ.... Jersey shore

SWEI

System help

Is this an Uponor CCN control system?  You'll get more eyeballs on it if you start a new post in the Controls forum.

Tom_133

Small town feel

Harvey,



I as well like to grab a coffee and tell hyperbole filled stories of human strengths I don't have but sometimes in business you need to break the mold. For instance, when I was first starting out I used only one wholesaler, they treated me ok and I felt loyalty to them was important, and I knew everyone and I felt good when I stopped in. After a while though I needed a charge account and they kept saying no, they are corporate and I didn't own anything of value for them to go after if I didn't pay. I got a little annoyed (maybe a lot) and I went down the road. Turns out the competitor had things I had never seen, nice stuff like Caleffi and Viessmann, they also did many more training classes, gave me an account up front, provided incentives for buying, and all in all gave twice as much support not to mention much better pricing! Turns out the first guy found out and wanted my wimpy 100K a year in sales back so he changed his ways gave me my account and lowered his prices because I saw the difference with the new guy.



Moral of the story is: I hear you on the internet sales, my preference is face to face over a hot coffee but if you jump ship on tubing and manifold stuff only maybe the lack of sales will force your wholesaler to bring it back or get creative and find ways to keep you happy. It worked for me. Who knows you may save a lot of money buying online, I don't know I never have had to do it.

JohnNY

?

"Prefer" (his word) is not "loathe" (your word). Let's not question people for misquotes.



I feel the same way. I like dealing with my suppliers.

Tinman

I'm a huge fan of Uponor

Everything from their quality and diverse product line, some of the best factory training and facilities I've ever visited, my local supply house who serves them well, to the local manufacturer's rep, and the contacts of "go to" guys and gals I've made at Uponor themselves. Top notch company from soup to nuts.