Solutions for Service and Project Management
ACCESS IS AMONG the most popular buzzwords bantered about in construction lately. Accumulating project information in a reliable and orderly fashion and...
Church Repair Job Earns Praise from the Pulpit
THE PHONE CALL: The parish administrator called to tell me how cold it was in her church. It was also noisy. This got my attention because this is the...
My New, Upside-down DHW System
IN MY DECEMBER 2001 column, I discussed the heating system that Id installed in my own live-in laboratory (Lessons Ive learned from Thistled House, pg....
Home Inspections Can Lead to Legal Tangles
THE CALL WAS routine enough, a requested estimate to repair a cracked sewer line in a recently purchased home. Upon arrival, this newly ensconced homeowner...
Courtesy Inspection Helps to Increase Sales
WANT AN HONEST way to make more sales and get fewer Some service techs are trained to walk into the call, price book in hand, do a cursory diagnosis,...
Why Business Development Plans Make Sense
HERES A QUOTE from 1956 that I jotted down during a marketing seminar earlier this month at the MCAA annual convention in Scottsdale, Ariz.: Doing business...
'Thistled House' Sees New Fuel Efficiency
IN MY DECEMBER 2001 column, I discussed the heating system that Id installed in my own live-in laboratory (Lessons Ive learned from Thistled House, pg....
Make Testing Lab Decisions Before Job Starts
WE RECENTLY HAD a situation in a concrete case that brought up an issue that I have been thinking about for some time. On a multi-prime, construction...
Design Radiant Loops; Manage Service Calls
CONTRACTORS WHO install radiant heating systems will be interested in Avenir Softwares LoopCAD Version 1.5 (www.LoopCAD.com, 888/568-0031, $395, trial...
A Second Look at Cycle-rate Controls
THE PHONE CALL: A regular customer of our supply house was on the line. I talk to him or one of his two brothers at least once a day, as they put in many...
Sorting Out a Job's Assets and Liabilities
AS IN LIFE, everything associated with project management is either an asset or a liability. Every human, material or financial resource that can or will...
Payroll Taxes Go Up, Up and Away
The news for 2005 is the same and sorry old story: Social Security taxes are in the stratosphere. Your take-home pay will be lower in 2005. First the...
Finding the Green in the Green Building Movement
WEVE SUPPORTED the green building movement since, well, before it was identified as such. That is to say, weve advocated initiatives that would save water...
Restrict Payments For Your Job To Your Job
IN MANY STATES, liens and bond claims can be filed by anyone who can prove that he contributed labor, material or services (sometimes pretty remote services)...
Two Software Products Help the Little Guy
HERE ARE TWO software solutions that tackle targeted tasks neatly and affordably. Both products are suitable for small contractors. QuickBooks Simple...
Learn How to Use Your Combustion Analyzer
TESTING EVERY FLAME-fired appliance you come into contact with is a move in the right direction. We discussed why you need to do this in last months column...
How to Negotiate a Personal Services Contract
BACK IN THE DAY, only the bigwigs, like the company CEO, were required to sign a personal services contract. Within the new forced paradigm of process...
The Lost Art of Making Lead Joints
BOOM! I STOOD transfixed as it dawned on me that no molten lead remained in the pot. Instead, thousands of steaming dots of lead were strewn about over...
Management Columnist Joe Schmitt Dies
Special to CONTRACTOR ST. CHARLES, MO. Joseph R. Schmitt Sr., who gave business management advice to CONTRACTOR readers for 20 years through his monthly...
Front Page Holds Up Mirror to the Industry
SITTING ON THE desktop of my computer is a file with all the front-page headlines that CONTRACTOR published during its first 50 years. As we celebrated...
Share Success With Employees, Community
(Editors note: Joseph Schmitt died Dec. 1, 2004. The following is the last column that he wrote for CONTRACTOR. His obituary appears on pg. 5.) EVEN IF...
Software Aids Online Bid, Project Management
ONLINE PROJECT management is an emerging trend that continues to thrive. Typically subscription-based and hosted by an outside service provider, it generally...
Do You Test Your Gas Appliances For CO?
I ASK THE QUESTION thats in the headline only because I have concerns for you and your loved ones. I didnt used to test any of our gas-fired appliances...
Pharmaceutical Jobs Have Specific Concerns
Youve spent years knocking on their door. Youve flattered them when you happened to run across them in public. Youve given their secretaries flowers and...
When the Whole Family is in on the Planning
MOST CLOSELY HELD business owners spend 10 years (often 20 years, or even longer) working on tax-related planning. You know, that not-so-easy stuff like...
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