First, Let’s Look At How Many Other ICF Products are Manufactured
Many ICF products are manufactured using the contract-molding model. With contract molding, ICFs are produced in the following fashion:
- The ICF brand contracts third-party injection molders and EPS shape molders to manufacture their ICFs.
- The third-party injection molder produces the webs and ships them to the EPS molder.
- The third-part EPS molder then produces the blocks on behalf of the ICF brand.
- The ICF brand pays the contract molder at a wholesales pricing level and each take their share of the available margin.
Despite the lower margins, the third-party molders usually agree to such an arrangement in order to fill up excess capacity or to help cover their overheads.
In this case, the ICF brand is not directly involved in the manufacturing of their product, nor in its quality control at the different plants. Essentially, the ICF brands supply the design and molds, while the contract-molders do the rest.
It’s also important to note that usually each contract molder typically only makes a narrow range of the ICF brand’s SKUs. The other SKUs (especially accessory or specialty blocks) are made at other plants. Often SKUs from different plants have to be combined together to complete an order for a home or building.