Contractor City Blog

Beating a lower priced competitor is something all contractors struggle with and it is a problem that will never go away. There will always be a low-ball competitor lying in the weeds waiting to steal your work.

The way to beat a lower priced competitor is to help your prospect realize your services better meet his needs. This is referred to as “selling.” You’ve probably heard of it.

Most home owners and novice developers do not have the construction experience necessary to make a fully informed buying decision. They just haven’t been burned enough times to realize that contractors come in all shapes and sizes and many will rob them blind if given half a chance.

When you’re selling to your prospect you need to help them fully grasp the vast array of problems they could run into. Help them sort through the possibilities, separate the problems that are minor annoyances from those that are unacceptable outcomes. Help them get in touch with their feelings about the construction experience. Help them understand what they care about.

Find out what they care about. Find out what their priorities are.

Help them quantify the value of meeting Continue reading ‘Hey Contractors, This Is How You Beat A Lower-Priced Competitor’ »

You’d be hard-pressed to find a construction business without a heavy loader. From breaking land to begin a construction project to loading rubble into heavy dump trucks to laying pipes, there’s hardly a step along the way in a construction project that doesn’t make use of a heavy loader. So what do you do when your heavy loader breaks down? Or when you have a big job that requires you to add to your heavy loader fleet?

You could splurge on a new heavy loader straight from the manufacturer for tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars if you need a new set of heavy loaders. Or you could save a little money and spend thousands on getting your old heavy loader repaired. But as any construction company knows, the cost of buying heavy equipment is easily the most expensive and draining part of running a construction company.

Sometimes the cost of repairing a heavy loader over and over can add up to more than buying a new heavy loader all together. Spend too much on the brand new, hot-off-the-assembly-line heavy loader, though, and you get in the habit of buying only the newest heavy equipment available. Continue reading ‘Don’t Break the Bank on New Heavy Loaders When you Can Get Quality Heavy Loaders Used!’ »

There are always new buildings being raised and no matter where we travel we will always run into them. Office buildings are expanding and as companies get bigger, they need more room in order to operate. Therefore, the construction industry is always booming along with the economy. That being said, the construction industry may also be crashing if the economy is. Nevertheless, construction is an important part of the economy and many things happen in this industry before the first hammer is nailed.

There Has To Be A Need

There is usually some kind of desire for a construction project to begin, be it a family’s need for more bedrooms to house it’s children in, or someone’s want of a bigger house. These needs steer these groups of people to act. Let me tell you how these needs are satisfied: Buy some land (or use land that you already own), find a building permit, hire a general contractor, hire subcontractors, and start to build right away.

Land

Depending on the type of project, the land that needs to be acquired will vary.. There are mainly three different kinds of land that the government has classified. First Continue reading ‘The Construction World: Construction Bidding’ »

A construction cost estimator knows that there are a lot of expenses that need to be tracked when estimating a job. Many people who have been in the industry for a long time have always relied on pen, paper and a calculator to estimate a job. They feel that their experience in estimating out weighs the convenience of the new software programs. However, what they do not realize is that using this software can save them a lot of time and headaches.

Projecting Construction Costs Is The First Step To A Successful Project

There are a lot of costs that have to be considered when estimating a job. Both the seen and unseen cost can delay a project if they are not calculated correctly. Land acquisition, as well as assembly, holding and improvement are just a few of the things that need to be taken into consideration. Others include Planning and feasibility studies of the structure; capital costs for a construction project are just a few of the costs that need to be considered.

You will also need to take into consideration the financial fees, which include filing fees and architectural and engineering design. Continue reading ‘Using Technology in Estimating Construction Costs for More Accuracy’ »

As a Professional Engineer and Project Manager, I am always on the lookout for software programs that help me with the management of large scale construction projects. Of special interest to me are estimating software programs that are easy to use, and which offer a diverse array of tools for managing a project. As such, my project management needs fall in line with the product offerings of Accubid Systems, a company whose software lines are designed for small (Bid Winner), medium (Bid Winner Plus) or large (Accubid Pro) scale construction project.

Each of these database management systems feature easy to use interface screens which give the Project Manager the ability to set up project specific assemblies on the fly. More important, the software helps breakdown a construction project into manageable sub-categories from which cost analysis can be produced for each phase of a project.

Such breakdowns are also helpful in producing construction schedules or even bills of material for the project being managed. The information produced can be further employed in the billing requirements for each project.

Equally helpful when trying to put together a proposal, is the ability to combine different takeoff breakdowns, to put together multiple bid summaries Continue reading ‘Software reviews: Accubid (construction estimating software)’ »

Over the last ten or so years, construction and home improvement has changed in a big way. The construction supplies industry has streamlined its operations to make it easier and overall, more affordable to do pretty much any kind of construction project that you need. This is all thanks to the mega discount stores that have opened in the past ten years and they have made a tremendous impact on the world around.

The new stores that sell construction supplies are nothing shy of amazing to say the least. Instead of specializing in one area of construction, like lumber for instance, these stores carry a full line of products to make sure that you have all that you need for any project. This is the appeal for these kind of stores as they are billed as one stop shopping areas, bent on making sure that they can meet the needs of their customers. This is true of the many contracting companies out there. They have switched to using the large stores because they can get a better deal on the supplies and have a higher profit margin.

You can save at least twenty percent over the cost that Continue reading ‘Shopping For Construction Supplies’ »

In the construction world projects are done in the quickest time possibly using the cheapest resources that will get the job done. No matter what type of project it is, a sky riser or a business park the goals of a construction site are to complete the task in the quickest manner with the least amount of capital being spent on outgoing costs. These outgoing costs include raw materials, labor, and equipments. These three aspects of construction are essential to the successful completion of a project but they are also outing going expenses. A project manager?s job is to reduce the amount of outgoing expenses so that the construction company receives a higher profit. However, at this goal comes the safety of construction workers. Already are worksites a danger to construction workers due to extreme elements, dangerous tools, and haphazard sites. For a construction project to be completed successfully and safely all of the elements must put together while complying with all of the safety standards.

Have you ever tried to put together a piece of furniture with little success? Did you just figure out your own way to piece it together, leaving many pieces left over? Have you Continue reading ‘Risky Stakes Causes Connecticut Construction Accident Lawyer?s to Take Action’ »

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!’ »

At some point or another in your life, you will want to construct something, be it a small shed or a treehouse all the way up to your very own custom built home. Many construction companies are required for larger projects and the contracts they can throw at you seem like they’re written in latin. This article will help you to make sense of construction contracts.

1.Construction contract

Home construction projects usually require signed contracts.A construction contract will not only protect the contractor, but it will also protect you. In today?s day and age it is critical that a contract is signed for almost any undertaking. Contracts can help to solve numerous disputes.

2. Comprehending construction contracts

Without legal knowledge, reading your first construction contract can be a challenge.But the good thing about most of these contracts it that they are written so that the buyer can understand them. Even though there may be some terminology that you are not familiar with, you should not have too difficult of a time deciphering a construction contract.

3. Prices and hidden fees

The first thing that most people check for is the price. There is nothing Continue reading ‘How To Read A Construction Contract’ »

Construction is a complicated process. Heated discussions, miscommunication and filing of charges are common scenes in a construction site in Iowa City. Efforts to ensure an open communication line and a tight business relationship should come from both the contractor and client to avoid problems and maintain a clear project execution.

Starting a construction project without a written agreement between you and a construction Iowa City (IA) contractor spells trouble. Before you commit to a project, lay down your cards so that you can be certain youll get what you paid for.

Beware of frauds! Hire only a licensed and professional contractor for your home construction in Iowa. This way, you wont wind up misusing a large amount of money. A contractor will oversee the entire construction project, and carry out the house completion at the agreed time and budget. Subcontractors, on the other hand, come from independent businesses that range from roofing, siding and electrical, to mention a few.

When planning a construction, hire a contractor who is apt and fit for the job. If your friend, neighbor or relative might know of a good one, it is advisable to get referrals from them. After getting Continue reading ‘Solving Construction Cases In Iowa City’ »