Slide from Builders FirstSource's Nov. 4, 2016, presentation to analysts showing how it expects to save money from its merger with ProBuild

Builders FirstSource (BFS) talks a lot in its third-quarter earnings report about how it is generating cost savings as a result of its megamerger last year with ProBuild. In today's presentation to analysts, BFS includes this slide showing how it intends to get $100 million to $120 million worth of benefits from combining the two companies. In fact, it says it already has generated $70 million worth of savings.

There are lots of studies that indicate most mergers don't generate the savings predicted, so we'd like your opinion on how BFS is doing here. We have two particular questions:

  • When both companies being merged had multi-billion dollar buying power, how hard is it to generate up to $12 million a year in procurement savings?
  • BFS says it's consolidating 18 redundant sites. Where are they, and have they closed yet?

Please let us know by using the comment box below. Or, if you prefer to make your contributions anonymously, write to me at [email protected].