Monthly KPI Review Checklist for Countertop Fabrication Shops
What Is a Monthly KPI Review?
A monthly KPI (Key Performance Indicator) review is a structured look at the numbers that tell you whether your fabrication shop is healthy, struggling, or growing. Instead of guessing how the business is doing based on how busy the shop feels, KPIs give you hard data - and hard data drives better decisions.
TL;DR
- Most fabrication shops track revenue but ignore the metrics that actually predict profitability
- This checklist covers 20+ KPIs across sales, production, quality, finance, and customer service
- Healthy shops review KPIs monthly and share results with the team
- Material waste rate alone can swing profitability by 5-10% - track it or lose money
- Your quote-to-close ratio tells you more about your business health than total revenue
- Comparing KPIs month-over-month reveals trends before they become problems
- Block 2-3 hours on the first Monday of each month for this review
Why Most Fabrication Shops Don't Track KPIs (And Why That's Costly)
You know your revenue. You probably know your rough material costs. But can you answer these questions right now?
- What's your quote-to-close ratio this month vs. last month?
- How many square feet did you produce per labor hour?
- What's your material waste percentage by material type?
- How many customer callbacks did you have, and what caused them?
- What's your average job profitability after all costs?
If you can't answer those without digging through paperwork for an hour, you're running your business on gut feeling. And gut feeling doesn't catch the slow bleed of rising waste, declining close rates, or creeping labor inefficiency until it's already cost you thousands.
The Complete Monthly KPI Checklist
Sales and Revenue KPIs
- Total revenue - Month vs. previous month vs. same month last year
- Number of quotes sent - Are you generating enough opportunities?
- Quote-to-close ratio - Industry average is 25-40%; below 20% signals pricing or sales issues
- Average job value - Trending up, down, or flat?
- Revenue by source - What percentage comes from builders, designers, direct consumers, commercial?
- New customer vs. repeat customer revenue - Healthy shops see 20-40% repeat/referral business
- Quote response time - How long from inquiry to quote delivery? Under 24 hours is the target; under 1 hour is the goal
| Sales KPI | Poor | Average | Strong |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quote-to-close ratio | Below 20% | 25-35% | Above 40% |
| Average job value | Below $2,500 | $3,000-$5,000 | Above $5,000 |
| Quote response time | 48+ hours | 24 hours | Under 4 hours |
| Repeat/referral rate | Below 15% | 20-30% | Above 35% |
Production KPIs
- Total square feet fabricated - Your production volume baseline
- Square feet per labor hour - Measures shop efficiency (target: 4-8 sq ft per labor hour depending on complexity)
- Jobs completed vs. jobs scheduled - On-time completion rate should be above 90%
- Average days from template to install - Industry average is 7-14 days; best shops hit 5-7
- CNC utilization rate - Percentage of available machine hours actually running; above 70% is good
- Rework rate - Pieces that needed re-fabrication; target is below 2%
- Installation callbacks - Issues reported within 30 days of install; track root causes
Material and Waste KPIs
- Material waste rate - Total material purchased vs. material installed; industry average is 20-30%, top shops hit 12-18%
- Waste by material type - Granite, quartz, marble, and porcelain each have different breakage and waste profiles
- Remnant inventory value - How much usable material is sitting in your yard?
- Remnant sales/usage rate - Are you using or selling remnants, or just stockpiling them?
- Slab yield per job - Nesting efficiency; AI nesting tools can improve this by 10-15%
| Waste KPI | Poor | Average | Strong |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall waste rate | Above 30% | 20-25% | Below 18% |
| Remake rate | Above 5% | 2-4% | Below 2% |
| Remnant utilization | Below 20% | 30-50% | Above 60% |
Financial KPIs
- Gross profit margin - Revenue minus material and direct labor costs; target 45-60%
- Net profit margin - After all expenses; target 15-25%
- Labor cost as percentage of revenue - Target 25-35%
- Material cost as percentage of revenue - Target 30-40%
- Overhead cost as percentage of revenue - Target 15-25%
- Accounts receivable aging - How much money is outstanding and for how long?
- Cash flow - Cash on hand vs. upcoming obligations
Customer Service KPIs
- Customer satisfaction score - Survey after every install (even a simple 1-5 rating)
- Google review rating - Track your average rating and number of new reviews this month
- Customer calls per job - Industry average is 8-15 calls per project; target is under 5 with a customer portal
- Response time to customer inquiries - Track average time from customer contact to your reply
- Complaint rate - Number of formal complaints per 100 jobs completed
- Referral rate - Percentage of new customers who came from an existing customer referral
How to Run Your Monthly KPI Review
Step 1: Gather the Data (Week Before)
Assign someone to pull numbers from your accounting software, job management system, and CRM. If you're still tracking everything in spreadsheets, this step alone might take 2-4 hours. Digital shop management platforms can generate most of these numbers automatically.
Step 2: Calculate and Compare (Review Day)
For each KPI:
- Record the current month's number
- Compare to last month (month-over-month trend)
- Compare to same month last year (year-over-year trend)
- Compare to your target
Use a simple color system: green (meeting/exceeding target), yellow (within 10% of target), red (missing target by more than 10%).
Step 3: Identify the Top 3 Issues
You can't fix everything at once. Look at your red and yellow KPIs and pick the three that have the biggest impact on profitability. Common examples:
- Waste rate climbed 3% → investigate slab nesting process and CNC programming
- Quote-to-close ratio dropped → review pricing, sales follow-up, and competitor activity
- Installation callbacks increased → examine template verification and fabrication quality checks
Step 4: Set Action Items
For each of the top 3 issues, assign a specific action to a specific person with a specific deadline. "We need to do better on waste" isn't an action item. "John will review nesting layouts for all jobs next week and report back on optimization opportunities by the 15th" is an action item.
Step 5: Share with the Team
Your crew should know the score. Share relevant KPIs at a monthly team meeting - especially production, quality, and customer satisfaction numbers. When people see how their work connects to business results, performance improves.
KPI Tracking Tools
| Tool Type | Examples | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Spreadsheets | Google Sheets, Excel | Shops just starting to track KPIs |
| Accounting software | QuickBooks, Xero | Financial KPIs |
| Job management platforms | SlabWise, Moraware, ActionFlow | Production, sales, and customer KPIs |
| BI dashboards | Google Data Studio, Tableau | Visualizing trends (advanced) |
The ideal setup: a single platform that tracks jobs from quote through installation and generates KPI reports automatically. Manual data entry across multiple systems is where KPI tracking dies.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long should a monthly KPI review take?
2-3 hours for the review itself. Data gathering may take additional time depending on your systems. As your tracking matures and you automate data collection, the total time drops to about 1-2 hours.
Which KPIs matter most for a small shop?
Focus on five: revenue, quote-to-close ratio, material waste rate, gross profit margin, and customer satisfaction. These five indicators cover the health of your sales pipeline, production efficiency, and customer experience.
What if my KPIs look terrible when I first start tracking?
That's normal and actually good news - you now have a baseline. Most shops are surprised (negatively) by their actual waste rates and close ratios. The value is in the trend: improving 1-2% per month on key metrics adds up fast.
Should I share financial KPIs with employees?
Share production and quality KPIs with everyone. Financial KPIs (revenue, margins, profit) are a judgment call - some shop owners share openly to build ownership mentality, others keep financials among management. At minimum, your shop manager should see the financial picture.
How do I benchmark against other fabrication shops?
Industry surveys from the Fabricators Alliance and trade publications provide benchmark data. Your slab distributor may also share anonymized performance data from their customer base. The benchmarks in this article are based on industry averages.
What's the single best KPI to track if I only track one?
Gross profit margin per job. It combines your pricing effectiveness, material efficiency, and labor productivity into one number. If this is trending down, something fundamental needs attention.
How do I track KPIs if I don't have job management software?
Start with a spreadsheet. Create one row per completed job with columns for: revenue, material cost, labor hours, waste estimate, and customer satisfaction. It's manual, but it works. Upgrade to software when the spreadsheet becomes unmanageable (usually around 15-20 jobs per month).
When should I start tracking KPIs?
Now. Even if your data is imperfect, establishing baseline measurements today means you can track improvement starting next month. Waiting for perfect data is how shops go years without understanding their own numbers.
Do I need different KPIs for commercial vs. residential work?
Yes, ideally. Commercial jobs have different margins, timelines, and quality expectations. If commercial work is more than 20% of your revenue, track it separately so one segment doesn't mask problems in the other.
How often should I revisit which KPIs I'm tracking?
Annually. As your business matures, the KPIs that matter most will shift. A startup cares about volume and cash flow. A mature shop focuses on efficiency and profitability per job. Review your KPI list at the start of each year.
Stop Guessing, Start Measuring
Running a fabrication shop without KPIs is like cutting stone without measurements. You might get close, but "close" is expensive in this business. Block time on your calendar this month, pull the numbers, and start tracking.
SlabWise gives fabrication shops automatic KPI tracking across quoting, production, and customer management. See your waste rates, quote-to-close ratios, and production throughput on a single dashboard - no spreadsheets required.
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Sources
- Fabricators Alliance - Key Performance Benchmarks for Stone Fabrication Shops (2024)
- Stone World Magazine - "Metrics That Matter for Fabrication Profitability" (2023)
- National Kitchen & Bath Association - Business Management Best Practices
- Small Business Administration - Financial Ratio Analysis for Small Manufacturers
- Construction Financial Management Association - KPI Tracking for Specialty Contractors
- Harvard Business Review - "The Balanced Scorecard" Applied to Small Manufacturing