Case Study: Winning With Using data analytics for operational decision-making

In the building materials distribution industry, the difference between running a good business and a great one often comes down to how decisions are made. While gut instinct and experience still matter, data-driven decision-making is proving to be a game-changer—especially for distributors navigating complexity across multiple branches, product lines, and customer types.

This case study highlights how one regional distributor used data analytics to transform its operations, reduce costs, and accelerate performance—with no layoffs, no major restructuring, and no massive IT overhaul.

🏢 Company Snapshot: Titan Building Products

Annual revenue: $120M

Locations: 6 branches across three states

Focus: Residential and light commercial construction supply

Challenges: Margin erosion, inconsistent delivery performance, and siloed decision-making between departments

“We had plenty of data—we just didn’t know how to use it. Every branch had a different view of the truth, and decisions were based on anecdote more than insight.”

— CFO, Titan Building Products

🚧 The Challenge: Decisions Made on Gut, Not Data

Titan’s leadership team knew they were leaving money on the table. Despite strong sales, margins were tightening and delivery costs were creeping up. Operations and sales teams operated in silos, with different reporting tools, KPIs, and priorities.

Key issues:

Lack of real-time visibility into order fulfillment, labor productivity, and inventory

Delayed response to low-margin SKUs and inefficient routes

Difficulty identifying underperforming branches or product categories

✅ The Solution: Building a Data-Driven Operating Model

Titan’s executive team invested in a lightweight business intelligence (BI) platform integrated with their ERP. But more importantly, they changed the way they made decisions.

What They Did:

• Centralized KPI Tracking

They standardized a set of operational KPIs across all branches, such as:

Order accuracy

Delivery cost per order

Pick rate per labor hour

Gross margin by product category

Inventory days on hand

These KPIs were reviewed weekly in cross-functional leadership meetings.

• Branch-Level Dashboards

Branch managers were given dashboards to track local performance in real-time.

Before: Decisions made monthly, based on spreadsheets

After: Daily insights on labor utilization, order backlog, and customer delivery windows

• Margin Analysis by Product and Customer

Finance and sales teamed up to analyze which SKUs and customers were eroding margin.

They cut unprofitable SKUs and bundled slow movers with high-margin products

Sales teams were trained to defend value instead of defaulting to discounts

• Route Optimization Using Delivery Data

Operations used delivery analytics to optimize truck routing and reduce fuel and overtime costs.

Routes were restructured based on time-of-day traffic and delivery frequency

Large customers were offered grouped delivery days to improve fleet efficiency

📊 The Results: Real ROI From Better Decisions

In the first 12 months after rolling out their analytics strategy:

🚚 Delivery cost per order dropped by 15%

📦 Order accuracy improved by 9%

💰 Gross margin increased by 1.8%—without changing pricing

🧱 Inventory turnover improved by 22%, freeing up $500K in working capital

🧑‍💼 Employee engagement improved as teams had clearer performance visibility and goals

“We stopped flying blind. Now we make decisions faster—with confidence.”

— VP of Operations

🔑 Key Takeaways for Distributors

Data alone isn’t enough—leadership must make it actionable.

Small improvements in operational KPIs can yield big financial results.

Dashboards are more than visual tools—they’re decision-making accelerators.

Cross-functional teams make better use of data than isolated departments.

🧠 Conclusion: Operational Excellence Starts With Insight

Titan Building Products didn’t need to overhaul their business—they needed to unlock the power of the data they already had. By making data analytics central to their operational decision-making, they built a more responsive, profitable, and scalable business.