The Turnkey Advantage: Why Multi-Family GCs are Switching to One Cabinet Supplier for Units and Common Areas

You've got 200 units to outfit. A clubhouse. A fitness center. Maybe a mail room and a leasing office. And somehow, you're supposed to coordinate cabinets from two different suppliers: one for residential, one for commercial: and make it all come together on time.

Sound familiar?

For years, general contractors on multi-family projects have accepted this headache as standard practice. Residential cabinetry vendors handle the units. Commercial cabinet suppliers handle the common areas. Two purchase orders. Two production schedules. Two installation crews. Two points of failure.

It doesn't have to be this way.

More and more GCs are discovering the turnkey advantage: one cabinet supplier for the entire project. Units and common areas. Residential and commercial. All from a single source that understands multi-family construction inside and out.

Here's why that shift is happening: and why it matters for your next project.

The Hidden Cost of Two Suppliers

On paper, splitting your cabinet order between two vendors might seem logical. Residential specialists for the apartments. Commercial specialists for the amenity spaces.

In practice? It's a coordination nightmare.

Different lead times. Different quality standards. Different finishes that never quite match. Different crews showing up on different days, stepping on each other's toes.

And when something goes wrong: a delayed shipment, a damaged order, a color discrepancy: you're stuck playing referee between two companies that have no accountability to each other.

The result: punch list issues multiply. Schedules slip. Your team spends hours on phone calls that shouldn't be necessary.

One supplier eliminates this chaos. One point of contact. One production timeline. One quality standard across every cabinet in the building.

Design Consistency That Actually Happens

Architects and designers know this pain all too well. You spec a clean, cohesive look across the entire property. Same finish tones. Same hardware style. Same visual language from the penthouse kitchen to the lobby reception desk.

Then reality hits.

Your residential cabinet vendor uses one finish system. Your commercial vendor uses another. The "matching" samples look close enough in the design meeting. But once installed? The differences jump out.

Different sheen levels. Slightly off undertones. Edge profiles that don't quite align.

Custom RTA cabinets from a single supplier solve this problem at the source. When every cabinet: unit kitchens, bathroom vanities, clubhouse millwork, mail center casework: comes from the same CNC production line, consistency isn't a hope. It's a guarantee.

Same materials. Same finishes. Same precision. From building to building, floor to floor, space to space.

For owners and property managers, this consistency pays dividends long after construction. Easier maintenance. Simpler replacement orders down the road. A cohesive brand identity that residents notice from the moment they walk in.

Simplified Budgeting and Sourcing

Multi-family projects live and die by the budget. Every line item matters. And when you're sourcing cabinets from multiple vendors, budget management gets complicated fast.

Two quotes to compare. Two payment schedules to track. Two sets of change orders when the architect revises the plans.

Worse, you lose leverage. Splitting your order between two suppliers means neither one sees the full volume. You're not getting the pricing power that a consolidated order delivers.

A turnkey cabinet supplier sees the whole picture. Units and common areas combined into one scope. One quote. One purchase order. One relationship to manage.

That simplicity translates directly to your bottom line:

• Volume pricing across the entire project
• Reduced administrative overhead
• Fewer surprise costs from coordination gaps
• Streamlined change order management

For owners and developers, this clarity makes pro forma projections more reliable. For GCs, it means fewer budget surprises and cleaner closeouts.

Shortened Lead Times with CNC Precision

Here's where the turnkey advantage really accelerates your schedule.

Traditional cabinet manufacturing involves a lot of handoff points. Design to engineering. Engineering to cutting. Cutting to assembly. Assembly to finishing. Each step introduces potential delays.

Modern CNC-driven production compresses this timeline dramatically.

At Precision Elements, we manufacture multi family cabinets and commercial cabinets using precision CNC equipment that cuts cycle times without cutting corners. Digital files go straight from design to production. Every cut is exact. Every panel is consistent.

And because we're producing both your unit cabinets and your common area casework under one roof, we can sequence production intelligently. Unit batches staged for the floors that need them first. Amenity pieces timed to your MEP schedule.

The result: faster turnarounds, tighter coordination, and fewer bottlenecks on site.

For fast-track multi-family projects: where every week of delay costs real money: this production efficiency isn't a nice-to-have. It's essential.

Installation Made Easy with RTA Design

Speed doesn't matter if installation becomes a headache. That's why RTA cabinets (ready to assemble) have become the go-to solution for multi-family GCs who need to move fast without sacrificing quality.

Flat-pack shipping means more cabinets per truck. Lower freight costs. Easier staging on site: especially critical in urban projects with limited laydown space.

Assembly is straightforward. Our custom RTA cabinets feature AWI-certified fasteners and 3/4" thick material throughout. No cheap cam locks that strip out. Real construction that goes together fast and stays together for years.

Our crews can install more units per day. Your supers spend less time troubleshooting fit issues. And because every cabinet comes from the same production run, there's no guessing about which hardware works with which box because it is fully integrated by our CNC machinery.

Ready to assemble cabinets designed for commercial-grade durability. That's the combination that multi-family projects demand.

Quality That Holds Up to Multi-Family Life

Let's be honest. Multi-family cabinets take abuse.

Tenant turnover. Moving crews bumping into corners. Years of daily use across hundreds of units. The cabinets you install today need to perform for the long haul: not just pass the final walkthrough.

That's why material choices matter.

Our 3/4" thick cabinet construction provides the rigidity and durability that multi-family properties require. Full-depth side panels. Solid backs. Shelves that don't sag under real-world loads.

AWI-certified fastening systems with soft close hardware ensure drawers and doors stay aligned through years of use with less noise between neighboring tenants. No callback headaches. No angry property managers calling about sagging hinges.

Commercial cabinets built to commercial standards: whether they're going in a unit kitchen or a community lounge.

Who Benefits from the Turnkey Approach?

General Contractors gain streamlined coordination, faster schedules, and fewer punch list items. One supplier relationship to manage instead of two.

Architects and Designers get true design consistency across every space. Finishes that match. Details that align. A cohesive vision that actually gets built.

Owners and Developers see cleaner budgets, predictable timelines, and a finished product that holds its value. Lower total cost of ownership over the building's lifecycle.

Property Managers benefit long after the ribbon cutting. Consistent cabinet specs and modular hardware make maintenance and unit turns simpler and more cost-effective.

Ready to Simplify Your Next Multi-Family Project?

The turnkey cabinet solution isn't complicated. It's just smart.

One supplier. One production timeline. One quality standard. Units and common areas handled together, from design through installation.

At Precision Elements, we've built our operation around exactly this need. Multi family cabinets, commercial cabinets, and everything in between: manufactured with CNC precision and designed for fast, reliable installation.

Explore our project gallery to see what's possible. Or reach out to discuss your next multi-family build.

Let's make cabinet coordination one less thing on your punch list.