Site services: what a job buys before the building starts

A commercial job has needs long before it has walls. The stretch between the first clearing and the first foundation is when a bare lot becomes a working site, and nearly everything that makes it one is rented, delivered or serviced by somebody.

What goes on the ground first

• Erosion and sediment controls: silt fence, inlet protection and a stabilized construction entrance, normally in place before the ground is opened up.
• Perimeter fence and gates, often with screening and signs.
• Portable toilets and hand wash stations, from the day a crew is on site.
• An office trailer, and storage containers for tools and materials.
• Temporary power and water.
• Dumpsters and debris hauling.
• Fuel delivery and rented equipment for the site work itself.

Why the window is short

Most of these are set up once and then serviced for the life of the job. Whoever supplies the fence on day one usually keeps it until the job closes out, and the same holds for toilets, trailers and containers. The decision is made early and rarely reopened, so a rep who shows up after the fence is standing is mostly selling against an incumbent.

Who decides

On most commercial jobs the general contractor or the site contractor orders these services, and often the same project manager or superintendent orders several of them at once. That is good news for a seller. One conversation with the right person, at the right time, covers a lot of ground.

The signal to watch

The useful moment is after a job is real and before it is set up. Early filings such as a land disturbance permit give you the first half of that.

The ground gives you the second half. A site that is permitted but still wooded is ahead of you, and one with a trailer and a fence is behind you.