Contractor City Blog

Modular home construction has proven to exceed the standards that many people have placed on the traditional home construction process. The modular process is one that is so much faster than homes built on-site, making it better for the customer. If one is interested in modular homes, then knowing about them can help to make any decision easier for a potential client.

One of the first things about modular home construction that should be understood is how these homes are built. They are, in fact, factory built homes, which means they are built indoors and are never subjected to any type of weather conditions. The foundations, however, are laid on-site by a local builder. The homes are assembled via an assembly line, and each piece is thoroughly checked over and over to ensure that all codes and standards are up to date. The finished products are then completely covered and transported to the home site to be put together piece by piece. This construction method ensures that the modular home is not subjected to any conditions that may warp beams and consequently destroy the frame in years to come, unlike conventional site built homes.

In comparison to Continue reading ‘Information on Modern Modular Home Construction’ »

Here's how you know you are talking about work too much at home...my wife (who is in the financial software industry) and I were talking about the problem of punts hitting the giant overhead scoreboard in the new Cowboys Stadium. Her first reaction: Would using BIM to design the stadium have stopped that from happening?

I am not 100% sure about this, but given that the stadium's designer, Dallas, TX-based HKS Inc. is one of the truly outstanding pioneers in delivering projects using BIM I would think that they probably used it. But that's not the point. The point is that HKS Inc. could have designed the building in crayon on brown paper bags - some punts are still going to hit that scoreboard.

The next question, this one from my 16 year old son: Isn't this the architect's fault? And the answer is no and yes. No because the scoreboard was built to the client's specification - it's 90 feet above the field of play (the NFL requires 85 feet). Yes because all it would have taken is for the designer to have an out-of-work NFL-caliber kicker start jacking balls into the air and figuring out how high the scoreboard really needs to be. Maybe this happened...but I have not heard.

Continue reading ‘How ’bout that Cowboys scoreboard?’ »

Workplace safety should be the at the top of the priority list for every industry, but the construction industry should give it even more importance because of the often times dangerous nature of the business. Worker protection is a worthy goal in and of itself, but there are, of course, other advantages to injury prevention. Lower insurance premiums, fewer missed work days (and hence, increased productivity), and employee morale are all side benefits of a safe workplace.

And so is OSHA compliance. OSHA has recently increased the number of inspectors in Texas in an effort to bolster construction site safety compliance. To do so, it has brought in inspectors from outside of Texas.

Continue reading ‘OSHA Keeps an Eagle Eye on Texas’ »

Just what can construction companies learn from “churn?” The term is often used to describe the customer revolving door in subscriber-based service models like cable TV and mobile phones. It could however, just as easily relate to a construction business that gets regular work from the same clients, time and time again.

A firm that has worked for a particular owner on a succession of projects, or one that has a stream of new work from the same architectural firms, would be wise to at least think a little bit about churn. That’s because, at its very root, churn is really all about knowing your customers and knowing when they are happy with your product or service, and when they are not.

Continue reading ‘Do You Have Regular Clients Who Are Ready To Churn?’ »

Continue reading ‘Could the recession be a good thing for construction?’ »

Charities know that during recession the general population tightens its collective belt and gives less; even ?middle income? individuals who fare comparatively well during financial downturn are inclined to ?feel? less wealthy and therefore become less generous. As a result, charities see income and funding cut whilst services ? which are often directed towards sectors hardest hit by recession ? are needed even more. This paradox is not new to fund-raisers and is compounded further by the fact that return on investments drops as interest rates and stock markets fall.

It?s all about using limited funds wisely ? but with charities that is always the case! Marketing the brand is as important to this sector as to any commercial organisation. The benefits of maintaining marketing spend in a downturn are well documented and reap many benefits as recession ends. Brand awareness campaigns need to be effective without being ostentatious, bringing the charity?s aims to the forefront of people?s minds and reminding them that support is still required.

Charities have a duty to explain to their donors how funds are spent; this is never more so than in an economic downturn when Continue reading ‘The construction industry and charities-00-1121’ »

Enclosed Trailer Construction: Wall Construction

This is the first article of a ten-part series discussing the various individual components of enclosed trailers and how they will relate to the long-term stability of your trailer.

One of the most important components of enclosed trailers is their wall construction. Wall constructions come in a variety of combinations. Most enclosed trailers will use aluminum, steel, galvanized steel sometimes referred to as Galvaneal; or FRP. For wall cross members, steel or aluminum is used. Attached to the cross members is plywood, luan, aluminum or a combination of these.

Exterior

Most commonly used is the aluminum exterior. Normally ranging in thickness from .024 – .050, aluminum is the most common form of exterior. It is durable, lasts long, and does not rust. It is the lightest materials used for the exterior of an enclosed trailer. These are applied in panels using screws, rivets, 3M adhesive tape or an industrial epoxy. Using thicker exterior aluminum will generally increase trailer stability and preserve the aesthetics of the trailer longer. FRP (Fiberglass Reinforced Plastics) is a fiberglass based wall than lasts long and Continue reading ‘Enclosed Trailer Wall Construction’ »

When we think of a sales career, we think of selling products like electronic goods or even those pesky telemarketers who are always happy to give you a “fantastic, only for today, only for you” offer. But looking at it in a broader sense, sales play a crucial part in every industry, and in every walk of life; there is always sales involved, and this is how a business is built.

However, coming to think of construction industry, people have the image of an engineer going through his blue prints, or skilled craftsmen religiously making sure that the bathroom flooring slopes in the right direction. But one of the most crucial components of the construction industry, which is more often than not neglected, is the sales. Someone might build swanky office complex, a gigantic mall, or a pent house. But all these structures hold no meaning if there are no people interested in buying them. Moreover, these are costly structures to build, and you need to sell all the space, and the facilities that you have created in order to run the business.

Even the infrastructure projects, like bridges, sewer systems etc. need to find takers Continue reading ‘Sales Careers In The Construction Industry’ »

I hear from contractors on a daily basis that tell be that they have no home life, they are working 80 to 100 hours per week and they do not remember the last time that they had a vacation. They are having the same problem; data overload. Sadly, with a little bit of planning, setup and implementation of some good construction software, most of their problems would vanish.

Today, contractors can employ large numbers of craftsmen, which creates a complex and time-consuming payroll process. Accurate project estimates, schedules, and cost and time control activities require significant amounts of data for maximum results, and cannot possibly processed properly without effective construction software.

Without construction software to assist them in their daily activities, many contractors are small businesses that might be overwhelmed by the task of data information management. These businesses tend to focus more on marketing, sales, and production rather than record keeping and data information processing. Tragic financial loss or even financial devastation can result for the company if this issue is not addressed.

However, computers and the proper accompanying estimating, project management and construction software allows the contractor the opportunity to manage this information stream. Construction Continue reading ‘Are You in Data Overload? Don’t Despair…construction Software is Here!’ »

Construction sites are places where accidents commonly occur because of the presence of people and equipment. In most cases accidents resulted to injuries.
Some of the most serious construction liabilities are blindness, amputation, head injuries, fractured bones, scarring and disfigurement.

The employees working in the construction sites have the right to work in a safe environment free from all the hazards mentioned above. They should increase the amount of safety measure to ensure protection for the workers.

If your one of the workers who suffered from injury on the construction site, you are entitled to report a personal injury claim against your employee.

The presumed negligence on their part will give you a change to recover monetary compensation for your injuries, loss wages and other related expenses.

Types of Construction Site Accidents

Negligence of employers and contractors to ensure protective measures in construction sites created a hazard for the employees. Construction accidents come out in different forms.

Following are construction related accidents

? Fire and explosion
? Technical error
? Electrocution
? Negligence
? Lack of safety gear and equipment
? Unsafe ladder breakage
? Faulty machines
? Workers hit by falling debris
Continue reading ‘Common Liabilities Determined by Construction Liability Lawyers’ »