Defining and Analyzing Backlog Newark DE

Until someone invents a foolproof just-in-time marketing scheme, backlog will be something remodelers worry about and homeowners learn to live with. It's what got a lot of companies through the "Great Silence" following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, and for many it's what defined both the entry and exit points of the most recent economic dip. While it's nearly impossible to set a standard to which all remodelers should aspire, there is a surprising consistency in the way established remodeling company owners define and analyze backlog.

What is backlog? First and foremost, backlog measures production capacity -- the projected time required, usually expressed in months or weeks, for a company's production crews to complete contracted work. A longer backlog is better, but not too long -- most companies are comfortable sitting on four-to-six-month's worth of work, but rarely more than a year's worth.

It's dangerous to count your chickens before they hatch. Most remodelers add a job to their backlog only if there's a signed construction contract in hand. Design/build companies with separate contracts for each phase present a special case, but getting some commitment from the homeowner is still required. For Paul Eldrenkamp of Byggmeister Associates, a design/build remodeling company in Newton, Mass., for example, a job counts toward backlog if "some money has passed hands and the owner's signature is on something -- either a check or a contract."

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