Cost Success Starts with Teamwork
A driving function of most construction projects is cost. And a key element to keeping costs within budget is teamwork. When teamwork starts early on, the project’s overall odds of cost-based success goes up. That’s just one of the reasons why the design-build methodology has become a preferred methodology for construction projects, says Construction Today blog contributor Calin Riley. You can read his post here. The blog’s home page is here.
Employee Retention Is about More than Just Paychecks
A recent AGC survey reports that construction firms are experiencing ongoing employee retention problems and new-hire deficits. Construction Today blog’s Oct. 13 write-up (here) by contributors Brian Binke and Katie Dragicevic, both of the Birmingham Group, points to five achievable ways companies can stay competitive without resorting to unsustainable across-the-board pay hikes. The blog’s home page is here.
Construction Crowdfunding: The Wave of the Future?
The passage of the JOBS Act of 2012 opened the doors to crowdfunding as a viable option for financing construction projects that would otherwise be out of reach for small business owners. In an Oct. 19 recap of a Building Design+Construction article (here), the Gordian Group enumerates the benefits that come from this innovative type of project funding. You can read the post here. The company’s home page is here.
Drones Offer Risks and Rewards for Contractors
The recent proliferation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), or drones, in the marketplace has opened up realms of opportunities for businesses. But with those opportunities come risks, especially as FAA regulations are still in their infancy. The Department of Transportation and the FAA are jointly forming a new task force to develop recommendations for UAS registration. The press release can be seen here.
In construction contracting and litigation, drone technology can be used to provide evidence for claims analysis, among other things, says construction attorney Matt DeVries of Best Practices Construction Law, but only if the construction management team has protocols in place to preserve information obtained from those aerial flyovers. You can read the post here. The blog’s home page is here.
Lean Construction Practices Yield Fat Results
When the recession hit in 2007, many construction companies had to rethink decades-old practices if they wanted to stay viable in a spiraling economy. It brought about a revival of lean construction practices. Boston-area plumbing and HVAC contractor E.M. Duggan examined how its prefabrication plumbing warehouse conducted its day-to-day business and found numerous ways to successfully trim redundancies. Old-timers were at first resistant to the changes, but have since embraced the lean best practices. Writer Justin Rice examined what E.M. Duggan did in this Oct. 19 write-up for the Build Smart Blog.
