Helping the trade craft – Pt. 2
So, we’ve gone through the first half of the 20th century and built a mighty powerhouse of an economy on the backs of the trades.
The new and improved
Journeymen and masters in the pipe trades are notoriously skeptical when it comes to leaving the tried-and-true and jumping on the “newest thing around” bandwagon. The old adage about “once burned” has significant documentation in our trade. I don’t know if there is a book somewhere which lists all the new and improved products marketed to the pipe trades, and construction trades in general, which have failed to live up to their advertising, but there should be. It would make for interesting reading.
Protect yourself
On many occasions and in many articles, the inherent dangers of contracting have been enumerated by a lot of other people who have experienced them first hand.
Movin’ on up — Part 2
So you’ve gone and scored that first big project. Congratulations are in order … assuming you’ve done it right. What’s that? What do I mean by, “done it right?”
Movin’ on up
Being in the contracting business today is a little like playing Russian roulette. You never really know when the end is going to come up.
Keeping the trades alive
Recent columns about trade craft, trade education and the new paradigm in businesses that purport to have “techs” as opposed to plumbers have garnered quite a few comments from readers of Contractor. In fact, the numbers of letters commenting on and lamenting the state of the trade were the most I’ve received on any columns.
Sales and salesmanship
What good does it do you to struggle along picking up a little work here and there when a sound sales program could bring in more work than you could do? Starting a sales program doesn’t have to be a large investment, but it can certainly pay large dividends.
Skills and the training required to get them
Although it is easy to point the finger of blame for the decline of trade craft at the lack of educational opportunities and available programs, we in the industry are not immune from criticism either.
Business in the 21st century
It’s interesting to note that 50 or so years back, getting into the trades was the thing most desired for high school seniors. Then, trade craft was respected and wages were in the upper echelon of the day. Getting into an apprenticeship program was difficult, and father/son/uncle/relative referral was common. How things have changed.
Increasing income through diversification
How do you make your money these days? Are you a service shop? Are you a commercial, residential or industrial contractor? How about a retrofitter or a remodeler? While it is difficult to pigeonhole what we all do into one of these groups, it is also true that many companies categorize themselves in this way.
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