http://www.remontech.com The Construction Industry Podcast presents interviews, tips, trends, and other content relevant to businesses and professionals in the construction sector. Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:23:41 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 The Construction Industry Podcast presents interviews, tips, trends, and other content relevant to businesses and professionals in the construction sector. Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc. no Fresh Ideas for Today's Construction Professional http://constructionindustrypodcast.comhttp://remontech.com/images/ConstructionIndustryPodcast144x144.jpg construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,securityBusiness/Management & Marketingfeedback@constructionindustrypodcast.comCesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/014-construction-industry-podcast-the-buildipedia-episode/ http://www.remontech.com/014-construction-industry-podcast-the-buildipedia-episode/#comments Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:23:41 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=975 http://www.remontech.com/014-construction-industry-podcast-the-buildipedia-episode/feed/ 0 Buildipedia is one of my favourite web resources for the construction sector.  I've been a subscriber of their articles for a while now and I was waiting for an opportunity to share this resource with our community. - Buildipedia is one of my favourite web resources for the construction sector.  I've been a subscriber of their articles for a while now and I was waiting for an opportunity to share this resource with our community. In the 14th episode of the Constr... Remontech no 28:50 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/013-construction-industry-podcast-using-youtube-videos-for-marketing-construction-services-and-products/ http://www.remontech.com/013-construction-industry-podcast-using-youtube-videos-for-marketing-construction-services-and-products/#comments Thu, 02 Feb 2012 19:12:48 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=964 http://www.remontech.com/013-construction-industry-podcast-using-youtube-videos-for-marketing-construction-services-and-products/feed/ 0 On episode 13 of the Construction Industry Podcast I share with you the audio portion of a fantastic webcast put out by the Construction Marketing Association on the topic of using YouTube to promote your services and products to the construction indus... On episode 13 of the Construction Industry Podcast I share with you the audio portion of a fantastic webcast put out by the Construction Marketing Association on the topic of using YouTube to promote your services and products to the construction industry. In this webcast, they had both Neil Brown, the founder of the Construction Marketing Association (CMA), Brian Reuhl, Social Media Manager for CMA, and Brian Stokoe, Social Media Program Manager for Caterpillar. If you've listened to previous episodes of the podcast, you will see that I really like the work that the guys over at the Construction Marketing Association are doing.  They were very generous in letting me share this audio with you.  This is the audio-only portion of the webcast, so if you get a chance, use the links below and watch the video portion of the webcast as well. Take a listen by clicking the orange "play" button above. Episode Links Construction Marketing Association Purchase the full webcast here Caterpillar YouTube "YouTube Killed the TV Star" article on socialmediatoday.com Vertetek's "Coat of Silence" Listen to the entire episode by clicking the orange "play" button above. Or you can check out the entire text transcription of the discussion by clicking here: [spoiler]Neil Brown: Let’s go into the benefits of video marketing. First is video supports search engine results, build search authority. YouTube is owned by Google and there’s no surprise that that has an impact on search results. There’s significant sharing of videos via Facebook embedding and Twitter and other social platforms. It’s well-known that video has the highest clickthrough rates or CTRs so it’s very appealing and very inviting for users to click on a video. I think demographically if we looked at that, we would see some differences there. So video is highly interactive. Next, video supports customer service with training, demos, installation, et cetera. So I think we saw this in the polling questions that video is an important part of customer service that in theory, could eliminate customer service calls and such. Video supports one of the fastest-growing mediums that is mobile marketing and one example of this is your cell phone screen, your very small cell phone screen whereas sometimes it might be difficult to view but then mobile-optimized website easily through a video. Finally, video helps lead generation with all of the above, the SEO aspect, the clickthrough aspect, the registrations to view videos, et cetera. So, those are some of the benefits and with that, we wanted to give you some indication of what are the channels that are driving video. So Brian found this piece of information. Is this from Nielsen? No, this is comScore. Brian Reuhl: This is comScore. Neil Brown: Yes. So there are a couple of things here. There’s total unique visitors which I think is a little obtuse but viewing sessions and minutes per view or when we look at Google sites which is primarily YouTube. That also includes some of the Google article sites and such but we see that YouTube is pretty dominant, close to 40 percent in viewing sessions and close to over 30 percent for minutes per viewer and then we see some other – some Facebook – as Brian pointed out to me the other day, Facebook is going to have a lot of embedded YouTube videos out. You’ve seen a lot of the network and publishing companies that have videos and Hulu as some of you may know is really more geared around TV shows, films and that kind of thing. So I don’t know if this is really apples to apples when you see you got a lot of Turner clearly as CNN and news versus social platforms like Facebook and then Google and YouTube. So I don’t know if this is really apples to apples per se but at least it gives you some perspective here. So, as we mentioned, video is extremely high-growth [0:08:43] [Phonetic]. One of the things that we pointed out in our social ebook is that in 2010, Remontech no 45:11 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/construction-industry-podcast-is-now-on-stitcher/ http://www.remontech.com/construction-industry-podcast-is-now-on-stitcher/#comments Tue, 24 Jan 2012 20:40:24 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=956 http://www.remontech.com/construction-industry-podcast-is-now-on-stitcher/feed/ 0 http://www.remontech.com/012-construction-industry-podcast-rognosis-for-the-onstruction-market-in-2012-by-canadian-construction-association/ http://www.remontech.com/012-construction-industry-podcast-rognosis-for-the-onstruction-market-in-2012-by-canadian-construction-association/#comments Thu, 19 Jan 2012 15:00:38 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=949 http://www.remontech.com/012-construction-industry-podcast-rognosis-for-the-onstruction-market-in-2012-by-canadian-construction-association/feed/ 0 Hello everyone! On episode 12 I spoke with Michael Atkinson, president of the Canadian Construction Association.  In this conversation he puts the recent recession into context and gives us a great overview of what's ahead for the construction market i... Hello everyone! On episode 12 I spoke with Michael Atkinson, president of the Canadian Construction Association.  In this conversation he puts the recent recession into context and gives us a great overview of what's ahead for the construction market i... Remontech no 29:20 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/011-construction-industry-podcast-the-lowest-bid-problem/ http://www.remontech.com/011-construction-industry-podcast-the-lowest-bid-problem/#comments Thu, 12 Jan 2012 16:52:23 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=944 http://www.remontech.com/011-construction-industry-podcast-the-lowest-bid-problem/feed/ 0 There is a problem with how most construction contracts are awarded today.  In the 11th episode of the Construction Industry Podcast I spoke about this issue with Dr. Jorge Abeid, Ph.D., director of Remontech. - There is a problem with how most construction contracts are awarded today.  In the 11th episode of the Construction Industry Podcast I spoke about this issue with Dr. Jorge Abeid, Ph.D., director of Remontech. Take a listen by clicking the orange "play" button above. Episode link: Business London Article on Remontech Listen to the entire episode by clicking the orange "play" button above. Or you can check out the outline of the discussion by clicking here: [spoiler] It is an old policy to award contract to lowest bidder. Today construction companies are much different than when this was established In the past: Contractors had their own crews They had many permanent employees Through their experience they would get better productivity by learning to work together and using less resources Productivity became part of the company's own culture Different companies had different productivity indexes. Today: Because of labour disputes, stronger unions and market uncertainties, companies' own crews are dramatically reduced They now have mostly project managers, superintendents and foremen. Labour is hired from the unions and as such productivity indexes are leveled across all contractors. Productivity is no longer an effective differentiator When pricing bids, companies have to rely on productivity indexes from publications like RSMeans, Reed or other publications. How can owners expect different prices from bidders if all of them are estimating from the same set of documents, using the same indexes, and working with labour from the same unions? Lowest bid was probably offered by a bidder that is Gambling with uncertainty Slashing profits Mistaken during the estimation process A combination of these factors How do bidders come up with their final price? Adding up quantities and multiplying by productivity indexes and subcontractor proposals Overhead costs Contingencies, usually around 10% Profit To win the contract, they have to lower their contingencies and/or profit. So if there are any small discrepancies in the estimating process, or if the original 10% of contingencies was needed, the contractor is in the red. The contractor knows of this possibility from the beginning, and its attitude reflects that. They will be ready to jump at any opportunity to find flaws in the design, tendering documents in order to place claims to reverse the risky scenario. Change orders are also a great opportunity to profit and mitigate risks. The construction site becomes a hostile battlefield as a result. It's time to rethink the lowest bidder policy and come up with new ways to choose contractors. In upcoming episodes we will discuss different ways to do so.[/spoiler] Remontech no 21:26 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/remontech-is-on-the-business-london-magazine/ http://www.remontech.com/remontech-is-on-the-business-london-magazine/#comments Wed, 11 Jan 2012 18:48:56 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=936 http://www.remontech.com/remontech-is-on-the-business-london-magazine/feed/ 0 http://www.remontech.com/010-construction-industry-podcast-blogging-for-construction-professionals/ http://www.remontech.com/010-construction-industry-podcast-blogging-for-construction-professionals/#comments Thu, 05 Jan 2012 22:12:44 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=921 http://www.remontech.com/010-construction-industry-podcast-blogging-for-construction-professionals/feed/ 0 The 10th episode of the Construction Industry Podcast brings you the topic of blogging and social media for the construction industry. - This is a follow up on our episode 1: Social Media for the Construction Industry. - The 10th episode of the Construction Industry Podcast brings you the topic of blogging and social media for the construction industry. This is a follow up on our episode 1: Social Media for the Construction Industry. This is was a great round table discussion I had with Neil Brown and Brian Reuhl from the Construction Marketing Association, Duane Craig from the Construction Informer blog, and Mark Johnson, an architech, writer, educator, speaker, and social media extraordinaire. This was a fun discussion and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did. Take a listen by clicking the orange "play" button above. Episode Links Construction Marketing Association Construction Informer by Duane Craig Mark Johnson on LinkedIn Mark Johnson on Twitter Slideshares presentations by Mark Johnson Google Doc on Twitter chats TweetChat Listen to the entire episode by clicking the orange "play" button above. Or you can check out the entire text transcription of the discussion by clicking here: [spoiler]Cesar: OK. Hello, everybody. This is Cesar Abeid from the Construction Industry Podcast and this is episode 10 of the show. I’m recording this one from Brazil and I apologize in advance for the call quality here. It’s not the best and you might hear a hiccup here and there on my voice especially. I have on the line with today a wonderful group of individuals here that are heavily involved with social media and blogging for the construction industry and I will introduce them to you in a second and you can check the show notes later on for contacts for all these guys and how to get in touch with them. So again my name is Cesar Abeid and I have on the line Mark Johnson from MARKITECT. He’s very heavily involved with the social media. I follow his tweets a lot and he goes to conferences. He blogs and I will provide everybody with a short bio on everybody here. I also have Brian who’s the Social Media Manager for the Construction Marketing Association and also Neil Brown who is the Chairman of the Construction Marketing Association. I also have Duane Craig. He’s well-known in the blogosphere. He blogs about construction topics. So, hello everybody. Duane: Hello, Cesar. Mark: Hi, Cesar. Thanks for having us on. Cesar: No problem. My pleasure and had a bit of a problem here getting started so we’re a little late and I’m a little flustered here with the internet. We’re used to North American standards for high speed internet and I’m here in the countryside of Brazil. I’m amazed that I could get everybody on the line at all. So I apologize in advance but anyway, so the questions that I would like to get started with is when I think of social medial and the construction industry, it’s construction industry is probably the oldest – one of the oldest, if not the oldest industry and I’ve been in it long enough to know that it’s very old school. People are usually reluctant or just resistant to change but we came to a point in the technology world that it’s inevitable and it’s interesting to see how this is affecting the industry. So I would like to start with Neil and Brian and ask them how they got started blogging and engaging social media in the construction industry. Neil: All right. Well Brian and I worked day to day at a marketing agency called Construction Marketing Advisors and so we run about a dozen blogs for different clients, mostly manufacturers but some construction firms as well; and so we’ve been big proponents of blogging from the beginning. So, you know, the advantages of blogging are certainly thought leadership but the other advantages are – well, there are lots of advantages but it ends up helping SEO extraordinarily well and some of the freeware like WordPress had a lot of built-in SEOs. So [Indiscernible] blog when it’s linked properly to your primary website. Not linked but also the domain structure. When it’s clear and simple to a search engine, Remontech no 51:03 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/no-episode-this-week/ http://www.remontech.com/no-episode-this-week/#comments Fri, 28 Oct 2011 15:13:49 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=918 http://www.remontech.com/no-episode-this-week/feed/ 0 http://www.remontech.com/1000-downloads-for-the-construction-industry-podcast/ http://www.remontech.com/1000-downloads-for-the-construction-industry-podcast/#comments Sun, 23 Oct 2011 20:44:35 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=916 http://www.remontech.com/1000-downloads-for-the-construction-industry-podcast/feed/ 2 http://www.remontech.com/009-construction-industry-podcast-creating-a-great-construction-project-schedule/ http://www.remontech.com/009-construction-industry-podcast-creating-a-great-construction-project-schedule/#comments Thu, 20 Oct 2011 21:08:26 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=907 http://www.remontech.com/009-construction-industry-podcast-creating-a-great-construction-project-schedule/feed/ 0 In the 9th episode of the Construction Industry Podcast I spoke with Dr. Jorge Abeid, Ph.D., director of Remontech (he's also my father). - This is a follow up on an article he wrote for our blog called "10 Things You Must Do To Create a Great Project... In the 9th episode of the Construction Industry Podcast I spoke with Dr. Jorge Abeid, Ph.D., director of Remontech (he's also my father). This is a follow up on an article he wrote for our blog called "10 Things You Must Do To Create a Great Project Schedule." Take a listen by clicking the orange "play" button above. Episode Links Remontech 10 Things you Must Do to Create a Great Project Schedule (Blog post) RSMeans Building Construction Cost Data 2011 Listen to the entire episode by clicking the orange "play" button above. Enjoy! Remontech no 35:15 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/008-construction-industry-podcast-monitoring-and-controlling-construction-projects-with-time-lapse-photography/ http://www.remontech.com/008-construction-industry-podcast-monitoring-and-controlling-construction-projects-with-time-lapse-photography/#comments Thu, 13 Oct 2011 20:09:56 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=901 http://www.remontech.com/008-construction-industry-podcast-monitoring-and-controlling-construction-projects-with-time-lapse-photography/feed/ 0 On the eighth episode of the Construction Industry Podcast I share with you the power of using time-lapse videos as a tool for project management. - Take a listen by clicking the orange "play" button above. Episode Links Remontech On the eighth episode of the Construction Industry Podcast I share with you the power of using time-lapse videos as a tool for project management. Take a listen by clicking the orange "play" button above. Episode Links Remontech Dynamic Scheduling Time Lapse Recording Episode Notes What's Time-Lapse Photography? Regular movies are recorded by taking around 30 shots - or frames - every second.  The video is also played back on the same frame rate. Time-lapsed videos record less frames per unit of time, but are played back at a faster rate.  As a result, you can watch videos that were recorded over long periods of time in just a few minutes. The draw back of this method is that you lose content - what happened between frames is not captured. Why is Time-Lapse Photography is a great fit for Construction Projects Construction projects, typically have 5 phases: Initiation Planning Executing Monitoring/Controlling Closing There are many tools and best practices available for most of the phases, but "Monitoring and Controlling" is the phase that can benefit the most from a visual archive or record. Time-Lapse video is a great fit for many reasons: Construction projects move at a slow pace, even the quick ones. Activity duration is measured in days, sometimes months To effectively record progress, it is not needed to collect several images per second. Construction projects take a long time It is virtually impossible to watch a real-time recording of construction projects, unless you're willing to sit down for a few months. Time-lapse takes advantage of the fact that construction projects don't require several frames per second of recording, and as a result delivers a video that is only a few minutes long. Sure, it's great to watch your project being built.  But what's the value?  Pure entertainment? A simple time-lapse video of your project is not very useful.  Sure, it looks great in marketing materials, on your website, but there is so much more that can be done with it. How can TIme-Lapse videos help in monitoring and controlling? We have been producing time-lapse videos for the construction industry for 10 years now, and I can give you countless examples of how it can be useful. A simple Time-lapse video: Provides a visual record of everything that went on your project It helps settle claims It helps with security concerns Time lapse videos really show their true purpose when you associate it with your project schedule. By associating your time-lapse video to the gantt chart of your project, you enrich both your visual record AND your scheduling experience. Most projects will have a schedule that is created as part of the planning phase. During execution, measurements are usually taken in order to gauge project progress and to pay the contractor and subcontractor based on how much they've done. The power of time lapse videos is really unleashed when we can link it to the as-planned and the as-built schedule. So this is what we've been doing at Remontech.  This is a lot easier to see than it is to hear, so I suggest you go to our website at myconstructioncamera.com, and click on what we do, and then dynamic scheduling. By using the time lapse video, the schedule, and the as-built information, we create a visual tool for keeping track of your project. There you can easily see when you start falling behind on your delivery.  You can then easily assess which activity is to blame for the delay or cost overrun.  Then you can use the video to go back in time to the day said activity was supposed to take place and investigate the issue All of a sudden your time-lapse video becomes a powerful tool for making sure your project is being delivered on time and on budget. The examples I have to share are numerous. Some of our clients use the project schedule and time lapse video, or DYNAMIC SCHEDULE to settle claims and disputes. Remontech no 25:23 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/007-construction-industry-podcast-linkedin-for-construction-professionals/ http://www.remontech.com/007-construction-industry-podcast-linkedin-for-construction-professionals/#comments Thu, 06 Oct 2011 21:00:35 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=869 http://www.remontech.com/007-construction-industry-podcast-linkedin-for-construction-professionals/feed/ 0 On the 7th episode of the Construction Industry Podcast I share how to unleash the power of LinkedIn, specifically for us in the construction industry. - Press the orange "play" button above to listen to the episode or click on the icons to the right ... On the 7th episode of the Construction Industry Podcast I share how to unleash the power of LinkedIn, specifically for us in the construction industry. Press the orange "play" button above to listen to the episode or click on the icons to the right to subscribe (free) via iTunes or RSS. Show Links: LinkedIn Vertetek's "Coat of Silence" The Power of LinkedIn for Construction Professionals According to their own website, "LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 120 million members and growing rapidly. LinkedIn connects you to your trusted contacts and helps you exchange knowledge, ideas, and opportunities with a broader network of professionals." In a way, it is like Facebook. It allows you to create a profile and then connect with people you know.  The main difference is that LinkedIn is solely a professional network, and you can only connect with people you've done business or went to school with.  If you'd like to connect with someone you don't know, the way to do it is to get introduced by a common contact. LinkedIn is great for a number of reasons: It helps you stay in touch with professional people you know By connecting with your contacts in LinkedIn, you can see what they have been up to, and reaching an old colleague is just a few clicks away. It facilitates networking LinkedIn really shines when it comes to ways to network.  You can network by: Connecting with people you already know: they can see what you are up to and who you are connecting with. Joining groups: find a LinkedIn group that is related to your industry and join in the conversation.  This is a great way to connect with new professionals, ask and answer questions, and establish yourself as an expert in your field. This can be done by freely sharing your knowledge with the community. Sharing good news!  Use your status update to share news with your contacts.  Let them know when your company gets an important contract, when you get a promotion, or if there are some important news related to your industry. Sharing your physical location: if you are going to be travelling, let your network know.  You might get invited to local events. It helps with market research Look into groups to see what people are talking about and get a sense of what's going on in the market.  You can also closely monitor your competition to see what they are up to recently. It helps with lead generation You can see what people are posting about in their status updates and in their groups.  Usually projects and opportunities will be mentioned. Check out the full episode by clicking the orange "play" button at the top of this post as I go into further details on how to accomplish these tasks. And don't forget to check out this weeks tech tip at the end of the episode, when I speak with John Finn of Vertetek. Remontech no 38:19 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/006-construction-industry-podcast-market-it-right-with-the-construction-marketing-association/ http://www.remontech.com/006-construction-industry-podcast-market-it-right-with-the-construction-marketing-association/#comments Fri, 30 Sep 2011 17:57:28 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=828 http://www.remontech.com/006-construction-industry-podcast-market-it-right-with-the-construction-marketing-association/feed/ 1 Today's episode we will cover a topic that is very close to my heart: marketing for the construction industry. - As the marketing person for Remontech, I was really excited to talk to Neil Brown, chairman of the Construction Association of America. - Today's episode we will cover a topic that is very close to my heart: marketing for the construction industry. As the marketing person for Remontech, I was really excited to talk to Neil Brown, chairman of the Construction Association of America. Take a listen to this great interview by clicking "play" above or by subscribing to the Construction Industry Podcast on iTunes or RSS by using the links above. Episode Links: Construction Marketing Association CMA Awards CMA Certification Program: CCMP Program Construction Marketing Blog A/E/C Best practices summary Get your free Marketing Report Card from the CMA  Websitegrader.com Interview (Transcript) with Neil Brown, chairman of the Construction Marketing Association: [spoiler]Cesar: Hello, Neil. How are you? Neil: Good. How are you, Cesar? Nice to meet you. Cesar: Nice to meet you too. Thanks for talking to me today. You’re from Chicago, right? Neil: Correct. Yes, the Construction Marketing Association is based in Naperville, Illinois which is west of Chicago. Cesar: Well, let’s start with that then. Can you tell me what the CMA is and what’s your role in it? Neil: Sure, absolutely. Well, the Construction Marketing Association is a non-profit member organization that works with primarily marketing managers and executives that would work either in construction firms and related like architectural and engineering firms or they would work for manufacturers or brands that sell to construction firms or engineering firms. Marketing managers and executives in the construction industry would be our members and what we do is provide a lot of marketing resources, information and training for that type of manager. There’s probably no other industry like construction that has so many different types of associations whether they’re unions or trade associations, what have you. I know there’s a lot in management and finances and that kind of thing so we really focus on the marketing aspect of it. To that end, we have a monthly webcast program. Last month was a webcast, A/E/C Marketing Best Practices, and that is in our archive on the website. By the way, the website is ConstructionMarketingAssociation.org. Cesar: OK. Neil: There you will find a list of our webcast and training events and then beyond that, we have a monthly marketing e-newsletter. So it is a membership organization and there’s a modest fee for an annual membership and if you become a member, you have access to what we call our databank or our resource databank. That will have a lot of white papers and articles and research in the construction industry and how to market better. Then we’ll also have lists of editors and construction publications at trade shows in the construction industry, all kinds of different lists and such. So there are a lot of resources from again all marketing with a marketing focus to that and then we have a couple of other things I want to bring to your attention. We have an annual marketing awards program that actually for this year goes through this Friday, today that is, and so today is the deadline. Cesar: OK. Neil: Here you can enter your marketing projects and programs whether it’s an advertisement or a brochure or website and all the different functional types of marketing. So we have this annual awards program and so there’s recognition involved as well. We got training, we got the resources, we got the awards and then our other big initiative is a professional certification program. So again, those doing marketing in the construction industry can get certified for their skills and their experience through what’s called the Certified Construction Marketing Professional or CCMP Program and by registering for this. There’s a handbook study guide and then a web-based examination. If you pass the test which is an 80 percent grade, you are then able to use that designation after your name and be recognized for that as well. Remontech no 46:28 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/guest-post-it-is-easy-being-green-how-austin-can-increase-its-energy-efficiency/ http://www.remontech.com/guest-post-it-is-easy-being-green-how-austin-can-increase-its-energy-efficiency/#comments Wed, 28 Sep 2011 18:04:14 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=834 http://www.remontech.com/guest-post-it-is-easy-being-green-how-austin-can-increase-its-energy-efficiency/feed/ 0 http://www.remontech.com/005-construction-industry-podcast-the-one-sector-of-the-construction-industry-that-is-growing/ http://www.remontech.com/005-construction-industry-podcast-the-one-sector-of-the-construction-industry-that-is-growing/#comments Fri, 23 Sep 2011 18:49:46 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=812 http://www.remontech.com/005-construction-industry-podcast-the-one-sector-of-the-construction-industry-that-is-growing/feed/ 0 Hello once again and thanks for listening to the Construction Industry Podcast. - A lot of people have been coming to the show notes and actually reading the entire episode transcription, not knowing that you can actually listen to the episode. - Hello once again and thanks for listening to the Construction Industry Podcast. A lot of people have been coming to the show notes and actually reading the entire episode transcription, not knowing that you can actually listen to the episode. Right under the title of this post you will see a little player image.  Click on the play button and enjoy the Construction Industry Podcast through your speakers. You can also listen to it on your iPod or mp3 player using the links to the right. Today we bring you the one sector of the construction industry that is actually experiencing growth despite the economic turmoil.  Listen in to find out more. Enjoy! Episode Links: NARI: National Association of the Remodeling Industry Morrison Remodeling Gary Morrison's Blog Lead paint law resources (US) Interview with Gary Morrison (Transcription) [spoiler] Cesar: Hello, Garry. How are you? Gary: Fine, Cesar. How are you? Cesar: Good, good, good. How is the weather there in the East Coast? Gary: It has been very good. The last few days have been beautiful. Cesar: Are you anywhere near to where the hurricanes have stricken? Gary: Yes. Cesar: Oh, OK. Gary: Yes, it came right near us. I had some damage from it. As a matter of fact, one of the few around that had damage but I did have some. Cesar: Everybody OK? Gary: Everyone is fine. Yes, damaged  but we’ll live. Cesar: We had a tornado touchdown here and we’re nowhere near the East Coast and this never happens here. Just a couple of weeks ago in a town here called Goderich and just destroyed the place. Gary: Really? Cesar:  It’s crazy, yes. We never have that here. Gary: I’ll take a hurricane any day. Cesar: Yes. Gary: Yes, yes. Cesar: Yes. It’s just a bad storm. A tornado is a different story. Gary: Oh, I know. Yes. Cesar: OK. So how about we talk about the remodeling industry? Gary: Sure. Cesar: OK. So what kind of trends are you seeing in it? I decided to do this interview because it seems like the remodeling industry is one of the few sectors within the construction industry at large that is actually seeing some growth despite the economy. So what kind of trends do you see? Gary: Well, I mean if I go back three, four years, we had pretty steady backlog of about three months worth of work. It was pretty consistent. I don’t do huge jobs but a good job for me is if I get a whole house remodeled, that’s wonderful but quite typically, it’s like a kitchen is a good job for me. I do lots of bathrooms and I found that when we were going through that economic downturn there over the last couple of years, there actually was one full year where I did not do a complete gut kitchen. We kind of changed our approach to things and offering people kind of minor kitchen remodels, facelifts where we went and painted the cabinets, changed the countertops, new floor, do a tile backsplash, that sort of thing and it kind of really freshens the kitchen up. So we were doing a lot of those and in general, the jobs that we were getting in were smaller. We do smaller jobs anyhow so we’re kind of geared for that so it didn’t like horribly impact us. I would say at one point during that economic downturn, I might have gotten to a month and a half’s backlog and that was the worst. I’ll tell you, about a year ago, all of a sudden it just really picked up on me and I’ll tell you I had four and five months backlog. Cesar: Wow. Gary: Which is better than I had even before the downturn and it has been going that way all year for me until about three weeks ago or four weeks ago on that federal bond rating that downgraded from a triple A to a double A plus. Cesar: Oh, yes. Gary: All of a sudden I lost two jobs which might not sound like much but those two jobs were three months worth of work. The reason I lost them is one of them, the gentleman was going for a loan at the bank and everything was fine. Remontech no 41:38 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/004-construction-industry-podcast-construction-management-association-of-america/ http://www.remontech.com/004-construction-industry-podcast-construction-management-association-of-america/#comments Wed, 14 Sep 2011 02:10:46 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=747 http://www.remontech.com/004-construction-industry-podcast-construction-management-association-of-america/feed/ 0 Construction Management,Software Tools After a busy end of August and early September when I had to deal with many issues at work including a mice infestation at one of our Mobile Monitoring Stations, episode 4 is finally here. - On the latest episode of the Construction Industry Podcast, After a busy end of August and early September when I had to deal with many issues at work including a mice infestation at one of our Mobile Monitoring Stations, episode 4 is finally here. On the latest episode of the Construction Industry Podcast, ... Remontech no 41:20 http://www.remontech.com/003-construction-industry-podcast-universal-design-and-web-based-tools/ http://www.remontech.com/003-construction-industry-podcast-universal-design-and-web-based-tools/#comments Wed, 24 Aug 2011 17:48:19 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=685 http://www.remontech.com/003-construction-industry-podcast-universal-design-and-web-based-tools/feed/ 3 Hello once again and welcome to the construction industry podcast. Click on the player above to listen to it, or subscribe to it on iTunes or BlackBerry Podcasts. - Today we will talk about how a bad economy can be a great opportunity for your busines... Hello once again and welcome to the construction industry podcast. Click on the player above to listen to it, or subscribe to it on iTunes or BlackBerry Podcasts. Today we will talk about how a bad economy can be a great opportunity for your business and career.  We will also have an interview with Deborah Murphy on Universal Design, and on our tech tip we will bring you the advantages of web based tools.  I hope you enjoy it. Episode Links: Episode Transcription Interview (Transcription) with Deborah Murphy, from ADAMI ADA: Americans with Disability Act UD Institute Book: Building for a Lifetime: The Design and Construction of Fully Accessible Homes Book: Accessible Housing by Design: Universal Design Principles in Practice Book: Universal Design Ideas for Style, Comfort & Safety Book: The Accessible Housing Design File Shelters for Healthy Environments, Inc. Even more resources Tech Tip (Transcription) Service Task Google Docs Mozeo Episode Transcription It's no secret that the construction industry in north america and other parts of the world is taking a hit as the economy continues to stumble.  We at Remontech find that unless you have an edge, or you stand out from the crowd, it is very difficult to continue to succeed in the sector.  So we are always trying to find new ways to think differently and stay ahead of the game, so when trends and fads become the norm, we will be ready.  It is that mentality that drives us to try and innovate all the time.  Besides monitoring construction projects as a project management tool, we've created new services such as our dynamic scheduling for construction projects, remote security services, or our mobile monitoring stations.  For us those were great at diversifying what we do and providing something our potential competitors were not.  You can learn more about all that we do by visiting myconstructioncamera.com. One of the things I want to do with this podcast is to bring ideas to your business and to you as a professional to help you stand out and have an edge over your competition.  On our first episode we spoke about social media for the construction industry, and that was our first time bringing you some fresh ideas on how to help you make sure you are riding the wave of change instead being crushed by it. It may seem counter intuitive, but a struggling economy can be an excellent opportunity for businesses and careers.  It's been said that people will only buy to solve a problem or fulfill a need.  I will make a point that there is no better time for finding needs to be fulfilled and problems to be solved than during economic turmoil.  Companies like HP, Hyatt hotels, Burger King, IHOP, FedEx, CNN, Google, and PayPal, all started and thrived when the economy was struggling. Here on the construction industry podcast we will bring you ideas on how to fulfill needs and solve problems in the construction sector that other people might be overlooking.  And we will also give you tips on how to do it effectively and on a budget. With that in mind, today we will be interviewing Deborah Murphy on the topic of Universal Design.  And on our tech tip, Al D'Andrea from servicetask.com will talk to me about web based tools. Enjoy the podcast! Interview with Deborah Murphy Cesar: Hello, Deborah. How are you? Deborah: Hi. I’m doing well. Thank you. Cesar: You know, in Chicago, I lived there for four years and I absolutely love that place. Deborah: It’s a wonderful town. I’ve lived on both coasts in Miami and in San Francisco and I always told everybody I was going home and that’s what Chicago always will be and I’m proud of this. We have the best skyline because this is where the skyscraper started so … Cesar: Back to that same old place. Deborah: Exactly. Sweet home Chicago. Cesar: That’s right. Yes, it’s gorgeous there. I just wish the winters weren’t as bad and … Deborah: Yes. Well, this summer is pretty hot. Remontech no 38:05 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/002-construction-industry-podcast-the-sydney-opera-house-and-project-success/ http://www.remontech.com/002-construction-industry-podcast-the-sydney-opera-house-and-project-success/#comments Tue, 16 Aug 2011 01:34:17 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=687 http://www.remontech.com/002-construction-industry-podcast-the-sydney-opera-house-and-project-success/feed/ 1 On the second episode of the Construction Industry Podcast, I interviewed Greg McTaggart of the Sydney Opera House.  We spoke about a variety of topics, including the issues that arose during construction from the revolutionary design of the Opera House, On the second episode of the Construction Industry Podcast, I interviewed Greg McTaggart of the Sydney Opera House.  We spoke about a variety of topics, including the issues that arose during construction from the revolutionary design of the Opera House, challenges of managing projects at World Heritage Sites, and what it is success in construction projects. Episode Links Episode Transcription Interview with Greg McTaggart, Director, Building Development & Maintenance for the Sydney Opera House New South Wales procurement website Pictures of the Sydney Opera House from the UNESCO website Episode Transcription Ah, construction projects.  As far as projects go, Construction projects are substantially different than other kinds.  Sure, the world of project management today covers a wide variety of types of projects, from space shuttle launches to event planning.  However, there's just something about construction projects that makes a permanent mark on the world.  Construction projects literally change the landscape that defines the background of our lives. Like mountains, they define the skyline, cast shadows, hide the sun.  Like trees, their foundations are roots that support the structures that give us shelter. Like monuments, they are a constant reminder of the people who designed them, the people who built them, the people who lived and worked in them. So what is a successful construction project? I recently posed this question on a number of LinkedIn groups related to the construction industry, and got a variety of answers.  I think it's fascinating.  During design and construction, the constraints of time, budget, and scope seem to define what success is.  But over the years, it is the history and timelessness of the project that seem to define what success really is. On LinkedIn, Eric says that "the problem is, s/he usually can't tell you (or won't) what his metrics are at the beginning - and s/he usually changes the purpose sometime during the execution (if not a couple of times). Kinda like being married; the interdependencies can be rearranged at any time when one party changes their mind on something fundamental and doesn't tell you about it - you have to spend inordinate amounts of energy trying to figure it out." There is one particular construction project that symbolizes this apparent conflict like no other. It is the Sydney Opera House.  The Sydney Opera House is at the same time one of the icons of human ingenuity and an example of poor project management.  However, while its troublesome past was an issue at the time - and a great example of poor management to be used in modern project management publications today - the Sydney Opera House cannot be described as anything but a tremendous success. It stands as one of the most recognizable structures in the world and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  8.2 million people visit the site annually and it's beautiful design is a symbol of Australia - even more so than Mr. Kangaroo himself. On this episode of the Construction Industry Podcast, I spoke with Mr. Greg McTaggart, director of building development and maintenance for the Sydney Opera House.  We covered the history of the construction project, the challenges of conducting projects in a heritage site such as the Sydney Opera House, and their construction project currently underway. Greg McTaggart was appointed to his position in 2008.  He joined Sydney Opera House in 2003 and was previously the Project Director of the Building Development Group.  Since 2003 Greg has had responsibility for the planning and delivery of all major building projects at Sydney Opera House, including the Utzon Room, Western Colonnade, Western Foyers, external Lighting and the Opera Theatre Renewal Concept Design Study.  In his role as Director of Building Development and Maintenance he has responsibility for environmental sustainability, the maintenance and conservation of the building, Remontech no 41:44 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/001-construction-industry-podcast-introduction-and-social-media-for-the-construction-industry/ http://www.remontech.com/001-construction-industry-podcast-introduction-and-social-media-for-the-construction-industry/#comments Fri, 05 Aug 2011 17:50:00 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=667 http://www.remontech.com/001-construction-industry-podcast-introduction-and-social-media-for-the-construction-industry/feed/ 2 Here it is folks, our very first episode of the Construction Industry Podcast! - Pardon my "ahns" and "uhns!" - Below you will find a transcription of the show.  I would love to hear what you think of our podcast. Here it is folks, our very first episode of the Construction Industry Podcast! Pardon my "ahns" and "uhns!" Below you will find a transcription of the show.  I would love to hear what you think of our podcast.  Write me by clicking "contact" on t... Remontech no 51:59 construction,management,trends,project,management,construction,management,security http://www.remontech.com/construction-industry-podcast/ http://www.remontech.com/construction-industry-podcast/#comments Sat, 30 Jul 2011 21:22:42 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=655 http://www.remontech.com/construction-industry-podcast/feed/ 0 http://www.remontech.com/10-things-you-must-do-to-create-a-great-project-schedule/ http://www.remontech.com/10-things-you-must-do-to-create-a-great-project-schedule/#comments Mon, 20 Jun 2011 14:53:05 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://www.remontech.com/?p=553 http://www.remontech.com/10-things-you-must-do-to-create-a-great-project-schedule/feed/ 4 http://www.remontech.com/succeeding-in-construction-management-without-adhering-to-a-known-management-framework/ http://www.remontech.com/succeeding-in-construction-management-without-adhering-to-a-known-management-framework/#comments Tue, 07 Jun 2011 21:48:55 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://constructionbridge.com/?p=236 http://www.remontech.com/succeeding-in-construction-management-without-adhering-to-a-known-management-framework/feed/ 0 http://www.remontech.com/building-green-homes-great-insights-from-gnm-lohr-homes/ http://www.remontech.com/building-green-homes-great-insights-from-gnm-lohr-homes/#comments Mon, 23 May 2011 21:59:35 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://constructionbridge.com/?p=201 http://www.remontech.com/building-green-homes-great-insights-from-gnm-lohr-homes/feed/ 0 http://www.remontech.com/walking-the-walk-tri-north-leed-by-example/ http://www.remontech.com/walking-the-walk-tri-north-leed-by-example/#comments Thu, 19 May 2011 19:35:42 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://constructionbridge.com/?p=171 http://www.remontech.com/walking-the-walk-tri-north-leed-by-example/feed/ 0 http://www.remontech.com/the-challenges-of-designing-and-implementing-state-of-the-art-project-management-systems/ http://www.remontech.com/the-challenges-of-designing-and-implementing-state-of-the-art-project-management-systems/#comments Mon, 31 Jan 2011 22:58:28 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://constructionbridge.com/?p=128 http://www.remontech.com/the-challenges-of-designing-and-implementing-state-of-the-art-project-management-systems/feed/ 3 http://www.remontech.com/setting-up-bell-turbo-hub-with-dynamic-and-static-ip/ http://www.remontech.com/setting-up-bell-turbo-hub-with-dynamic-and-static-ip/#comments Fri, 24 Sep 2010 20:45:52 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://constructionbridge.com/?p=97 http://www.remontech.com/setting-up-bell-turbo-hub-with-dynamic-and-static-ip/feed/ 4 http://www.remontech.com/internet-connection-options-for-construction-sites/ http://www.remontech.com/internet-connection-options-for-construction-sites/#comments Mon, 06 Sep 2010 17:30:49 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://constructionbridge.com/?p=18 http://www.remontech.com/internet-connection-options-for-construction-sites/feed/ 5 http://www.remontech.com/green-building-projects-to-push-the-use-for-new-technologies-in-the-construction-industry/ http://www.remontech.com/green-building-projects-to-push-the-use-for-new-technologies-in-the-construction-industry/#comments Wed, 01 Sep 2010 19:40:40 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://constructionbridge.com/?p=9 http://www.remontech.com/green-building-projects-to-push-the-use-for-new-technologies-in-the-construction-industry/feed/ 4 http://www.remontech.com/photo-net-ii-system-in-the-construction-project-environment/ http://www.remontech.com/photo-net-ii-system-in-the-construction-project-environment/#comments Thu, 26 Aug 2010 02:26:17 +0000 feedback@constructionindustrypodcast.com (Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.) http://s231063283.onlinehome.us/remontech2point0/wordpress/?p=151 http://www.remontech.com/photo-net-ii-system-in-the-construction-project-environment/feed/ 0 Cesar Abeid, Remontech Inc.nonadultFresh Ideas for Today's Construction Professional