STEVENS What is the most important class not taught in college? Or, to put it another way, what is the most important skill a construction professional should have? Answer: Managing construction’s craft labor. The labor component of any construction project is the largest opportunity to increase speed, lower cost, and improve quality and safety. It is the line item on any job-cost or profit-and-loss statement. It determines if you will meet, beat or fail to attain your goals. But the subject of managing craft labor is not taught as a focused course in most college construction programs. Without a course
SCHMIDT A key principle of virtually every engineering licensure law, standard of professional conduct and code of ethics is that engineers should always and only practice in the technical areas in which they are competent. The licensing process uses education, experience and examination to identify those who have presumably acquired sufficient competence. However, there is a loophole of sorts: In most jurisdictions, once engineers become licensed, it is entirely up to them to define their own areas of competence within the profession as a whole. Engineers typically feel like they have a pretty good handle on this. We think that
ARCURI My father, Vince Arcuri Jr., spent his 40-year career literally and figuratively climbing the ladder of corporate success. He walked the beams framing New York City skyscrapers and then served as an executive at well-known contractors based in the city, such as Turner and Tishman and AMEC. Family photo shows Vincent James Arcuri at a Manhattan building site. He retired several years ago with the title of senior vice president. We share the same name. And like most fathers, mine dreamed that his young and only son would grow up to follow in his footsteps. My dad and I
INDERLIED A lot has been said about Hispanic workers in the construction industry and their higher rate of injuries and fatalities. Getting these workers the information they need to work safely is complicated because six out of 10 speak little or no English. I’ve been on jobsites with many of these workers, and I have a different way of addressing the issue. Photo: Sam Barnes Employers should ask Hispanic workers to demonstrate safe practices to show that they understand them. My system is based on simple visual cues and non-verbal communication. I also think that keeping some professional distance and
The Republican triumph in the midterm elections has given the GOP control of the House of Representatives. While many people think some parts of President Obama’s health-care reform legislation may be changed, no one believes it will be scrapped completely in the next two years. So a new world of costs and care is here, and the million-dollar question is, can providers survive it? ALLAMBY Signed into law in March, the reform measure’s main goal is to cover the uninsured and expand access. But it is also going to change the way health care is delivered because it concentrates on
With Sarah Palin as cheerleader and activists in Revolutionary War-era garb, the Tea Party has stirred the imagination of the electorate. It has shaken up the humdrum two-party political landscape and excited many who are dissatisfied with the status quo. Photo: Haley/Sip Via AP Images A small-government activist at the foot of the Washington Monument. SCHWARTZ No matter what your political affiliation, it’s hard to deny that the Tea Party has offered great political theater for the 2010 midterm election cycle. But let’s forget about the drama for a moment and think about the Tea Party’s smaller-government mantra. It should
What is a construction professional? This is a difficult question for industry and educators to answer, but it shouldn’t be. That’s why construction professionals are long overdue to develop a set of plans and specifications—for themselves. Without a clear definition of our role today, we can’t develop the professionals of tomorrow. BERRYMAN Everyone knows that you cannot properly construct a building without such documentation; likewise, an individual cannot be an effective manager of construction projects today without a base of specific skills, experience and knowledge. The role of a construction professional is changing and being defined by many different factions
This time of year many of us in engineering and construction are receiving phone calls from politicians looking for campaign contributions. The rules cap the amount of money a firm can give a candidate, and provide guidelines on gifts and services offered to government employees. SCHWARTZ They remind me how much I love pay-to-play rules. There was a time when these calls would be cause for all sorts of handwringing. If we didn’t give, we all felt we would be on the losers list. I can’t tell you what a great relief it is to be able to tell a
The campaign by the Portland Cement Association and the Institute for Building and Home Safety to promote proposed building code changes included in the High Performance Building Requirements for Sustainability 2.0 is not new: The majority of these proposals have been put forward by PCA and the Masonry Alliance, an umbrella group repre-senting all masonry-related trade associations, in each code development cycle since the International Building Code (IBC) was first published in 2000. The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) has and will continue to vigorously oppose this effort. BURTON Each and every year, PCA proposals have been soundly rejected
Some clients have been asking contractors to take on unnecessary risks without providing a significant reward for the risks taken. However, during these economically challenged times, I believe it is in the best interest of the construction industry to stand up for itself and refuse to sign contracts that assign risk without any benefits. SIEGEL Life is full of uncertainties, and we readily take on risk every day the for benefits we receive. For example, driving a car is very risky, and every year more than 40,000 people are killed in car accidents—that’s one person every 13 minutes. Nevertheless, we
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