Sleep and I have a precarious relationship. On the one hand, it’s a necessity. But the downtime can feel wasted, like I could have been getting more accomplished.
I’ve heard it said that the uninspired sleep late, while those perusing a passion naturally wake up early. I can relate. I relish the quiet hours before the rest of world is awake, to focus and breeze through important tasks that require concentration. It sets the tone of productivity for my entire day. A few arguments for rising early:
You may not be smarter than the others in your field, but you can outwork them. Waking up early puts you on track.
Quick replies and early morning notes send a message to customers about your commitment.
By knocking out a to-do list early, I have time to invest in people later. It may be my family, customers or the community, but I can use the daylight hours to focus on people rather than tasks.
Maybe it’s time to stop setting an alarm, and let your enthusiasm wake you up early. You’ll be amazed at what you gain by using those pre-dawn hours.
In the last few days, I was talking with our CFO about what distinguishes between a good hire and an average one. He said something like this:
By watching how someone handles their personal life, we get a good glimpse of how valuable they can be to the company. Character, values and good judgment sometimes make up for a lack of skill. We can teach skill, but not necessarily good judgment.
I agreed. Skill is easy to learn compared to values taught once an adult. Ideally, we make the right hires across the platform, but the first benchmark is character.
To me and our company, character, values and good judgment make up for a lack of skill in the beginning.
Attention to detail, dedication and love of the craft: these are just a few qualities of the skilled tradesmen that keep our industry going. But with busy jobsite schedules and an ever-changing economy, the high-quality work that they produce sometimes goes unnoticed in favor of moving on to the next project. CBO recently caught up with Dave Schneider, chief marketing officer at Red Wing, to talk about the company's new initiative, America Working, that aims to shine a light on the hard work of our industry craft workers. See our conversation below.
In recent years, companies have begun to raise concerns about the increase in costs for their major construction projects, looking for clarity as to why costs have doubled from what they were 20 years ago. Industry analysis confirms that project costs have grown about 200 percent in the last 2 decades, but only approximately 60 percent of that growth can be accounted for with inflation.
Spartans, samurai, Green Berets, Navy SEALs. These are the best of the best in the military world. Countless stories have been told about their selection process, training, death-defying missions and pure heroism. In particular, SEALs serve as the premier unit within the United States Navy, operating on sea, air and land. Much of what the public knows is shared through the amazing stories of heroes, such as Marcus Luttrell, Chris Kyle and Rob O’Neill.
A portion of the ULI 2018 Look Ahead keyed in on retail. Their commentary may best be summarized, “Retail isn’t dead, it’s just changing. Give it some time to adjust.”
In 2016, total retail sales approached $5 trillion, broken down:
$4.3 trillion from traditional, or maybe not so traditional, bricks and mortar transactions
$.5 trillion from Internet
$62 billion from the web, but being fulfilled by the bricks and mortar stores
So about 10% of the total was Internet sales, which will rightly continue to grow. Simultaneously, we’ll see an enhanced experience and entertainment value of bricks and mortar stores in the U.S. Going forward, the Internet and physical stores will continue to compete and complement each other, including the “last mile.”
As most of us know, the U.S. has the largest ratio of gross leasable retail per capita of any country in the world, at just under 24 sf per person. (Australia has 11 sf per person and Germany, being at the other extreme, is about 2.5 ft.) Maybe we are “over-retailed” a bit, which is some of the transformational aspect facing those in the industry.
On our radar, we have several retail redevelopments transforming existing bricks and mortar to the other types of retail, entertainment and commercial offices, all intermixed. The image above shows us razing a circa ‘60 a department store to be replaced by a cinema with full food and beverage offerings that will reposition the experience of this mall as a shopping and entertainment destination. As the markets change, so will we.
In December 2015, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) published the final version of the anticipated Electronic Logging Device (ELD) mandate, providing a two-year window for organizations to become compliant. As of December 18, 2017, that two-year window will come to a close, and it’s time for drivers and fleet owners to embrace compliance with the new ELD mandate.
Employees pay attention and watch more closely than they are sometimes given credit for. Indifference, lackluster communications and lethargic efforts are often more conspicuous than appreciated. When change is at hand and the future seems unstable, a leader’s performance can either diminish chaos or enflame it. In the backdrop of uncertainty, the smallest spark of ambiguity or apathy can ignite the pervading fuel of resistance among your workforce.
On some construction jobsites today, machine-control systems are just as prevalent as smartphones, excavators or even hardhats, while on other jobsites, you may only see stringlines and grade stakes. Often, construction business owners who are hesitant to adopt machine-control systems are intimidated by the technology, or they just don’t know where to start. However, if this describes you, your business could be missing out on a significant opportunity to improve grading accuracy and optimize productivity.
This week I attended our annual ULI Chapter meeting here, where Anita Kramer of ULI’s Washington headquarters presented ULI’s “Emerging Trends in Real estate 2018,” a real estate lookahead produced jointly with PWC. They interview several thousand in the industry, gathering thoughts and opinions combined with data from the field. A few summary takeaways:
The “What inning are we in?” question keeps coming up, as if to say cycles have to end after a preset time has elapsed. Right now, the general feeling is that the market is steady as we go. Steady.
This is a long cycle, not in boom/bust. One key to success in the next few years will be to expand horizons, market by market, property type by property type, over time.
Current expansion is slow by comparison, but seems to be more sustainable–74 months, thus far.
Most people interviewed felt all property types are on the upswing. 62% of respondents say business will be good next year and about 19% responded “excellent.”
This is just a start to the solid information we were given. More information to come on real estate facility trends, how generations are affecting the market, and more…
As more technology infiltrates the construction industry, physical borders are no longer enough to protect a site from potential costly damages. Construction Business Owner recently spoke with Pete Wilcox, inland marine director at Travelers Insurance, to understand the implications of new technology and the concept of the “borderless jobsite.”
Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos spent his summers doing gritty work on a remote ranch with his grandfather, according to Brad Stone in his biography, The Everything Store; Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon. Together, they repaired windmills, graded dirt roads and even built a crane to move the parts of a Caterpillar D6 Dozer. Sound familiar? Bezos took a similar, hands-on approach to marketing as he steered Amazon.com to a position of dominance.
If you are currently making time to browse LinkedIn, online publications and business emails, you will see an overwhelming volume of advice on how to improve your marketing approach: get better SEO, how to use social media, send better emails with more opens and more. Everyone has some advice or a strategy to offer. But until we understand why these changes are in demand, it can be difficult to prioritize making those commitments over the other daily business fires.
The field of marketing has the perceived image of being fun. People tend to think of viral YouTube videos and Super Bowl ads. But when business executives get into the weeds of marketing, they quickly discover it’s not as fun or easy as it might seem. When efforts are guided by misconceptions about marketing, the result is often disappearing dollars with little to show for it. If you suspect you are harboring some misguided notions about marketing, take comfort in the fact that you’re in good company.
As a CEO, president or business owner, your business day goes by rather quickly, doesn’t it? You start your day early in the morning, sometimes before dawn. You hardly have time to think about what is for lunch. The next time you look up, it’s near dusk and time for you to call it a day. You bring work home to review before going to sleep.
Many business owners tell me their businesses don’t deliver the results they want and have taken control of their lives. They work too many hours, don’t make enough money and never have enough time to spend with family and friends. They have become trapped in their web of overcommitment. When this happens, stressed, unfulfilled business owners reach a point where they finally realize their priorities have to change.
When I am faced with a problem to solve and there is not a clear path at the time, it has been my experience that consciously filing it in my mind for further processing is the best temporary solution. It is amazing the way this works. Over the next few days, it will surface from time to time, and generally the right course of action becomes clear a little while later.
From what I have read on the subject, our subconscious mind continues to work on a problem after we have moved on to another thought. And a “gut feeling” really does mean something.
So when do we trust our instincts and when do we listen to logic? Gut vs. Head.
My gut tends to lead me to the right decision when there is a large amount of information to consider and making the decision feels overwhelming. I then try to step away, take a walk and get a good night’s sleep.
I’m not sure about you, but the right choice for that time often comes to me when I’m not actively thinking about the problem, and when I am least expecting.
For 37 years, the International Risk Management Institute Inc. (IRMI) has hosted its national Construction Risk Conference (CRC), which brings project owners, general contractors, subcontractors, developers, insurers and insurance agents and brokers together to explore breakthrough strategies and techniques for improving insurance coverages, controlling costs and fine-tuning risk-management programs. This year, the annual CRC was held at the JW Marriott in Indianapolis, Indiana, November 6-8, and hosted nearly 1,800 attendees.
A couple of weeks ago, I was on one of our projects in Tennessee which, fortunately for us, is a rock job. As luck would have it for us as well, the cut material is below optimum moisture content. We have the best of both worlds for a winter grading project. This, combined with our grading contractor hitting it hard in the recent good weather, translates to success.
Beginning this time of year, the construction process is at the mercy of weather. Winter grading, for example, is more time consuming and labor intensive. Moisture is the enemy, and there are fewer hours of daylight–thus less drying time–with soils above optimum, not to mention the increase in rain and/or snow. A few things we do:
Phase the grading. Grade with a crown 2 feet higher than the proposed subgrade to protect the site from construction equipment, which will have more impact when the soil moisture is higher. At slab construction time, you can trim the damaged layer back, landing at the proper height and avoiding undercutting. This is generally referred to as “safe-ing up the site.”
Direct Traffic. Establishing construction roads can restrict traffic from weaker areas of the site and protect compacted soils.
Fight the Weather. You can place soil over a large area and seal it with a drum roller to protect the base layer from moisture, or use lightweight placement and compaction equipment to “work the soil.”
Cheat, if you have to. Chemical stabilization be used to weatherproof soils.
Recruiting top talent can be difficult in any competitive industry. Just as job seekers compete to stand out to recruiters and potential employers, firms also need to make an impression on qualified candidates to avoid losing them to competitors. Acquiring talent that has the credentials and experience, as well as the desire to stay with a company long-term, is fundamental in successfully reaching and expanding your business goals, but doing so is often much easier said than done.
With technology being constantly integrated into every aspect of our daily lives—vehicles, wristwatches, TV remotes, refrigerators—it was only a matter of time before it reached the construction jobsite. The “internet of things” (IoT) and its capability to send and receive information to and from objects and device is on the rise across a number of industries, and has forged its way to construction alongside support from younger generations of construction professionals.
Over time, we all move through life cycles. Friends and customer relationships may change jobs, and their personal circumstances are in flux as well. It is always easier to reach out to those who have something we need, but what about other times, when there is a rough patch or someone is out of work? I will offer up that most folks remember those who extend a hand when the ox is in the ditch, rather than those who show up on a clear day.
On a recent trip, I made a point to visit a contact who had moved from one company to another and was a bit down on her luck. She was our ally in her former position, but moreover, she is a good person we don’t want to fall off the radar.
One never knows where a short note, email or phone call will lead, or the impact it could have on someone else, especially when they have nothing to offer. The right time and style is more an art form than a science, learned over time.
Interestingly, it seems that staying top-of-mind takes little effort and is a rewarding process, both personally and professionally, for everyone involved. Maybe now is the time to get in the practice of keeping the radar turned on.
There is no cookie-cutter approach to selecting the right machine for a concrete drilling job. A number of factors come into play, including working conditions, drill weight, number of holes needed and more. With the following quick recommendations, you’ll soon be ready for concrete drilling with the right machine for the job.
Every construction business owner and executive’s plate is overflowing on a daily basis. That’s just the way it is. The last thing any of them need to add to their neverending to-do list is switch law firms. But every vendor is crucial to the company’s success. Sub-par performance is simply not acceptable, whether you’re talking about the company’s legal counsel, its accountant, IT consultant or the company responsible for cleaning the offices.
For the last 25 years or so, I have taken some time each fall to head out to Buffalo Gap, South Dakota, to chase those multicolored birds around the prairie, the swamps and the millet. In reality, hunting is just the excuse. The real trip is to visit with my long time rancher friends, enjoy some good wine and see some wonderful vistas and beautiful sunsets. I always try to visit a new place or two.
This year we took a side trip to Wall Drug located next to what is now Interstate 90. The drugstore opened in 1931, in a town that would give most of us a new definition of rural. The Hustead family waited five long years, hoping the customer base would pick up, but it never did. About that time, Mt. Rushmore was opened and cars started streaming westward to view, all in the sweltering summer heat. Dr. Hulstead’s wife came up with a last ditch effort to save the business: Why not offer free ice water to anyone who stopped? Thanks to some clever signs, the initiative worked. The store has since become a landmark of its own, the ice water all but forgotten.
These days, the Wall folks may have found a new “ice water.” Rumor is that Tesla is considering a charging station at Wall Drug to reduce “range anxiety,” which is the fear of traveling too far away from an electric charging station. So while we live in a world of increasing change, sometimes we are just looping back around to serve the needs of our customers in ever better ways.
Analyzing vehicle and equipment costs often gets swept under the rug. However, tracking asset costs can help companies optimize maintenance costs, prevent underutilization, dispose of equipment at the right time and more.
The True Cost of an Asset
First, it is important to understand what costs to include. The following items make up the fully burdened cost of an asset.
Making sure employees know their safety requirements is critical not just for the success of the business, but also for the safety of employees and the environment. If every person in an organization was fully engaged and committed to creating a safe environment, the number of safety incidents and near misses would be almost nonexistent.
Tax planning is imperative if your business has new or planned construction projects for the next year. Successful tax planning requires a keen interest in the details of your business, as well as a proactive approach to available federal and state tax incentives. Fortunately, construction firms can potentially qualify for many tax incentives. The following three incentives might be worth a closer look as you plan for 2018.
Several years ago we started using PlanGrid (a cloud-based system) and we now use it on every job. Our project managers upload plans/specs, reports and schedules on their particular projects, and the mobile app syncs with online document management software, allowing us to access all our files from anywhere that has WiFi.
Prior to PlanGrid, the PM’s tendency was to pile every printed version of the plans into the car before heading to the job site. Superintendents had all this info stacked in job trailer, taking up space and confusing folks trying to determine the most current set. Now everything they need is filed neatly on the iPad. I asked them to share a few advantages of this paperless system:
Plans are always updated and in once place, and all users can have access.
Specifications, geotechnical/environmental reports, submittals and product data are easily accessible.
Current plans can be layered over previous versions to see the changes easily.
Hyperlinks and photos can be attached to the exact location, along with redline comments, for a clear explanation of issues and updates.
Keyword searchable.
For site walks with owners and architects, we can tag the exact location of the problem.
Beyond the data for the project itself, we can also access every drawing for every project that the company and has worked on in the last couple of years. As one PM eloquently said, “And I can do all of this while standing in the mud at a job site.” Priceless. Maybe something to consider for others in the real estate business.
Whether you are a veteran business owner or a newbie, now is more important than ever to understand emerging compact equipment technologies. If you have not researched or previously purchased compact loaders or excavators, you may be surprised at the amount of innovation and smart technologies available in today’s machines. Depth guidance systems for compact excavators, grading systems for compact loaders and continued refinements to the instrument panels are three technologies that have helped make these machines considerably more and productive.
On Thursday evening, I was invited to a dinner with Raphael Bostic at the Birmingham Branch of the Atlanta Federal Reserve. In June, Raphael took over the reins as president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, after a professorship at USC and distinguished career.
As Raphael began his remarks, he offered an antidotal story about teaching a class at USC. A portion of his students were listening to his talk and the rest were either focused on smart phones or wished they were elsewhere. Raphael contrasted this to speaking at his first FOMC this summer where every governor listened intently to what he had to say, as they did with one another.
I was impressed with his openness and transparency as he talked about his job goals, ambitions and the initiatives he would like to put in place for the region. A few thoughts shared:
We will be investigating how housing is contributing to or hampering people’s quality of life.
Meeting the Reserve’s “dual mandate” of low unemployment and 2% inflation is an ongoing challenge, as it’s easier to do one or the other, a balancing act. We are at historic unemployment lows, and yet there’s not upward wage pressure and rising prices.
As employment evolves, our education system will need to reciprocate. The example he gave was the driverless tractor-trailer, which will impact 3 million truck drivers. The bottom line we need to reimagine from fear to hope, and work on mismatches in schools.
Irma was a wind-driven hurricane, resulting in a faster recovery, and Harvey was primarily a rain event, which is harder to recover from. The Fed believes it will impact the 3rd quarter GDP anywhere from ½ -1%. We should be back to normal by the fourth quarter.
While these are changing times–full of fear, world disruption and a zillion other things–our parents and grandparents during the Depression and a World War would have gladly changed places with us.
On Thursday evening, I was invited to a dinner with Raphael Bostic at the Birmingham Branch of the Atlanta Federal Reserve. In June, Raphael took over the reins as president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, after a professorship at USC and distinguished career.
As Raphael began his remarks, he offered an antidotal story about teaching a class at USC. A portion of his students were listening to his talk and the rest were either focused on smart phones or wished they were elsewhere. Raphael contrasted this to speaking at his first FOMC this summer where every governor listened intently to what he had to say, as they did with one another.
I was impressed with his openness and transparency as he talked about his job goals, ambitions and the initiatives he would like to put in place for the region. A few thoughts shared:
We will be investigating how housing is contributing to or hampering people’s quality of life.
Meeting the Reserve’s “dual mandate” of low unemployment and 2% inflation is an ongoing challenge, as it’s easier to do one or the other, a balancing act. We are at historic unemployment lows, and yet there’s not upward wage pressure and rising prices.
As employment evolves, our education system will need to reciprocate. The example he gave was the driverless tractor-trailer, which will impact 3 million truck drivers. The bottom line we need to reimagine from fear to hope, and work on mismatches in schools.
Irma was a wind-driven hurricane, resulting in a faster recovery, and Harvey was primarily a rain event, which is harder to recover from. The Fed believes it will impact the 3rd quarter GDP anywhere from ½ -1%. We should be back to normal by the fourth quarter.
While these are changing times–full of fear, world disruption and a zillion other things–our parents and grandparents during the Depression and a World War would have gladly changed places with us.
The process of fighting winter’s wrath has changed considerably over the years. Though the basic goal remains of removing snow after it has fallen and ice after it has formed, it is how this is accomplished that has become much more sophisticated. Consider the application of liquid brine.
The latest quarterly update to the 5-year forecast for equipment rental industry revenues released by the American Rental Association (ARA) continues to call for steady gains through 2021. How does the late July outlook—a quarterly update of the ARA Rental Market Monitor by IHS Markit, the business information provider that compiles the data and analysis in partnership with ARA and Rental Management—apply to contractors across the spectrum of United States nonresidential construction sectors?
With augmented and virtual reality, drones and a host of other tech solutions becoming synonymous with the modern construction landscape, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed with options. 3-D printing has been a buzzword in the industry for a while now, but a new use for the technology is taking the architecture, engineering and construction AEC industries by storm: 3-D printed project models.
If you're planning to sell your home in the future, or you just want to make your house the best it can be, home improvements can be worthwhile and very satisfying – but it’s important that you plan them carefully.
Some improvements offer a better return on your investment, while others might not add any value to your home at all. If renovations are poorly chosen or poorly executed, they could even make your property harder to sell.
That's why you need to think about your budget and do your research before you embark on any renovation project. To help you get started, here are five tried-and-tested home improvements that could work for you, starting from basic touch-ups all the way to elaborate and costly renovations.
1. Touch up minor defects
Sometimes, a small job can make a big difference. Keeping your home in good condition through regular maintenance will prevent it from deteriorating, saving you the cost of expensive repairs. A well-maintained home can also be more appealing to buyers, who won't have to worry about fixing it up before they move in.
Peeling paint, loose flooring or cracked tiles, faulty door handles and dripping taps are all minor defects that aren't expensive to fix. Even a fresh coat of paint can go a long way towards helping your home sell for the price you want.
2. Add kerb appeal and tidy your garden
Even before they get to your front door, potential buyers might have already made up their minds based on the kerb appeal of your property. Your front garden and driveway are important for making the right first impression on visitors, but they're often forgotten in the rush to renovate the building itself.
Mowing your lawn, repainting fences and checking that paving slabs are free from cracks and weeds all boost your home's kerb appeal and help you to make the positive impression you want. Don't neglect the back garden either!
3. Modernise your kitchen
Many people consider the kitchen to be the heart of the home, so this should be a key area to focus on if you're planning more extensive remodelling.
Even if you live in an older property, your kitchen should still look modern so your buyers can trust that it's energy-efficient, a safe place to prepare food and perhaps even a place to entertain guests.
A new coat of paint on the walls and the cabinets could be all that's needed to make your kitchen look as good as new, but you should still look into replacing old appliances, especially if they're more than 10 years old, and consider the functional design of the room.
4. Add an extra room, bathroom or deck space
One of the biggest upgrades you can make to a property is adding a whole new room.
Usually, this involves converting an unused loft or basement into new living space – a child's bedroom, a mini apartment for an elderly relative or tenant, a bar or a games room. Or you can physically expand your home by adding decking or building a patio, so you'll have an outdoor dining and entertaining area in the summer.
If your home only has one bathroom, adding a second bathroom can offer the biggest return on investment. Areas under stairs and utility rooms can be suitable for a small bathroom, but if you want to include a shower or a bath, you may need to sacrifice part of your bedroom space to create an en-suite.
5. Insulate
The value insulation adds to your home cannot be overstated. Today, this is considered an absolute necessity by many homebuyers. In fact, not having insulation can create the perception of an unhealthy home.
With the EECA Energywise programme often subsidising the cost of insulation, there’s no reason not to insulate your property.
This is particularly important if your potential buyer is considering purchasing the home as an investment property to rent out, as all tenanted properties are legally required to be insulated by July 1, 2019.
On Thursday evening, I was invited to a dinner with 