Builders FirstSource‘s decade-long strategic jag has expanded the construction giant beyond its traditional role as a building materials supplier, pitching itself as a full-service partner that can support homebuilders with planning, procurement, delivery, installation and digital project management.
In a one-on-one interview with The Builder’s Daily, CEO Peter Jackson said the company’s acquisition strategy and technology investments are designed to make BFS a more operationally integrated part of the homebuilding ecosystem – and to help builders reduce jobsite friction without adding cost.
From supplier to full-service partner
Builders FirstSource supplies structural building products, prefabricated components and off-site manufactured products, but Jackson emphasized that the company is increasingly leaning into value-add services, including turnkey installation and digital tools that support design, planning and project visualization.
“The growth of BFS and the maturity of BFS is really to try to be a partner … depending on what their challenges happen to be,” Jackson said. “We all know builders are varied, even in one market, in what they need and what they prefer.”
Installation has become a larger part of the BFS model, Jackson said. He pointed to window installation as a significant business line in the Southeast, while framing is the company’s largest installation category across multiple markets.
Builders are often willing to outsource installation if they trust the provider can control costs and execution, he said.
“The joke is, builders would far rather sell a house than build a house, because building houses is a pain,” Jackson said. “So if they can find somebody to take that hassle off of them, they like that option. The problem is, the pain doesn’t go away just because they offload it; it just gets transferred to somebody else. So we better have a really good process … the right technology, the right leadership, the right governance and the right controls.”
Consolidation strategy: frequent deals, tight integration
The distribution of building products remains fragmented, but forces driving consolidation have accelerated as large players pursue acquisitions. The Webb Analytics 2025 Deals Report found that 2025 was the busiest year this decade for M&A activity in building materials when measured by the number of facilities acquired.
Builders FirstSource has been an active consolidator, expanding its portfolio through a steady pace of deals. The company announced the acquisition of Premium Building Components in January. It also acquired roughly seven companies annually from 2023 to 2025, and last November bought modular homebuilder Pleasant Valley Homes — a move Jackson framed as a way to learn the modular model with an eye toward potential expansion.
Jackson said BFS’ strategy is not to eliminate local relationships, but to connect acquired businesses to a broader platform and shared capabilities.
“Our goal has been to try and bring it together under one umbrella, not to snuff out the entrepreneurial spirit or the local relationships … but more to access and leverage the capabilities of a combined entity,” he said.
As the company grows, Jackson said scale is also a technology advantage: Smaller competitors may adopt third-party tools, but BFS can build and iterate on integrated systems using larger datasets across markets and operations.
“The amount of data that we get to train on, the amount of learning that we can get for the best operations … I think, is a difference maker when you’re working at scale,” Jackson said.
Digital integration: from Paradigm to myBLDR
Jackson pointed to the company’s evolution following its 2015 acquisition of ProBuild, when leadership identified technology as an underdeveloped opportunity in building products distribution. That strategic direction led to BFS’ 2021 acquisition of Paradigm, a software provider focused on the building products industry.
Paradigm helped BFS develop an end-to-end digital platform that connects design, manufacturing, estimating and installation. Jackson said the company’s progress has depended on working closely with customers to improve product performance and usability – and he argued that AI will augment jobs rather than replace people.
“We’re learning, and I think we’re getting better all the time,” he said. “With the advent of even more technology, the pace is going even faster, and the quality is getting even better.”
Earlier this year, BFS rolled out a new generation of tools through its myBLDR portal. The platform allows builders to generate renderings and configurable 3D home models from plans, helping buyers visualize a home and evaluate design or upgrade options before closing.
Builders can also store community documents, data and maps in one place, generate community-level visualizations and plan phases, and then connect those details to pricing, delivery and installation in a single workflow.
Jackson said builders are adopting 3D models not only as a sales tool but as a way to streamline internal operations and meet evolving consumer expectations.
“[Builders] have seen real positive outcomes … in savings on the overhead, but also with a consumer that feels like they’re getting a more modern, more sophisticated experience for what they want in 2026,” he said.
What’s next: digital twins and fewer jobsite inefficiencies
Looking ahead, Jackson said technology is likely to reshape how homes are designed and built over the next decade, with digital models moving well beyond basic takeoffs and material tracking.
Digital twins, he said, can model factors such as heat loads based on construction details, solar angles and location data – enabling more precise decisions around energy efficiency, costs and HVAC design.
“I’m a full believer that there’s going to be substantially more technology in what we do,” Jackson said. “I think it’s going to remove a tremendous amount of waste and inefficiency.”
Because of its scale, Jackson said BFS plans to keep investing in technology that can create long-term value for builders.
“We’re able to continue to invest in things that we think will make a difference in the future and make those dollars count,” he said.
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