Tag Archives: Construction Industry

Want to hop in the construction arena – read the essentials

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Having a business of own is every man’s dream and if one gets to set his foot in the construction industry then there is no looking back for him. But the truth is that firstly it is not so simple to get into the construction industry if you do not know much about it and secondly if at all you make your way in the sector, you may find it pretty hard to sustain. People with good financial backing find it extremely difficult to survive in the construction arena. The reasons are plenty. Right from severe competition to ever changing mood of the industry, a businessman has to battle it all in order to keep his place secure. But it has been seen that many are unable to strive the tide and they get drown. Therefore, once needs to be mentally prepared for the tough life and also with the harsh realities that they may encounter after they have made their way inside the industry.

We would be speaking in depth about the essentials that a person should have before they decide to start a construction business.

Technical know-how is a must:-

For people who do not relate to the construction industry nor knows anyone who belongs to this domain should take few lessons on how to run the business and then decide if they want to make their way in. Not knowing the technical know-how can cost him dearly and he may become the part of the larger lot who has left the business. Technical know-how does not mean that you should be well versed with all the jargons or should know how to drive or repair heavy equipment; but it certainly means that should know a bit of everything. For instance, if the heavy equipment develops a problem, you should know where to get it fixed rather than being clueless what to do next. Similarly, if you experience a strange problem in your business and are unable to know the way out, you should at least know of somebody who can get this fixed.

Know your finances well:-

People ideally become very eager with the idea of starting a new business forgetting the fact that the business need investments and if they are unable to arrange the finances then things can go awry and they may fall flat on their face. Therefore when they are struck with the idea of opening a new business, they should first check their finances. See if they have any opportunity to get any loans and estimate the time by when they can repay it off. They also need to decide if they have to buy heavy equipment or take it on rent and whether they have sufficient funds in doing either of the two options.

Hunting for projects:-

Getting work is the primary goal after you have set up the business. You should work hard to form a sales and marketing team and check who is good in selling. If you have the skill to sell, you become the head of the sales department and lead the team. However, at the end of the day, you should have few projects in hand.

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Related articles across the web

How to train the newcomers in the construction industry

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Recruiting new people in your company is a sign that your company is growing. But apart from that, it becomes the responsibility of the tenured men/women to see that the newcomers feel at ease. They do not have to struggle for petty things. Since they are new to the company they will not know the rules and regulations formed by the company for its employees and therefore they might do something that is kind of forbidden in the rulebook of that particular company.

The veterans should therefore lead the way and informed the new guys of the rules. Things that they should do and stuffs that they should refrain from doing should be explicitly communicated to them. Other than that, they should be guided with other facilities like restrooms, pantry, cafeteria etc. Most importantly, they should be guided on doing their work the right way.

Day in and day out, new people join the construction industry. Some are absolutely new to the industry and some have worked in other construction companies and have switched jobs. There is a variance among these 2 sections. For the ones who are absolutely new to the industry should be taken care quite delicately. They do not know anything about the business and hence they should be first given some training so that they understand the etiquettes of the business. Simultaneously they should also be trained on their work so that they can learn both the things at the same time. Being new to the industry, they might take some time to understand how things work here but if they are sharp, they will catch things up real soon.

For people who already have some experience in the construction industry, they only need to be updated about the etiquettes one should follow while they are a part of the company. Rest is expected to be already known to them.

One should be patient while training newbie:-

The trainer or veteran who has been assigned the responsibility to train the newbie has to be a guy with ample patience. He just can’t manage to lose his cool. The new guys will throw questions at him. Some will make sense to him and some will not. But he should not disregard any question or grumble when he gets a question that is according to him an incorrect one or make no sense. The newcomers are bound to make all sorts of question and the trainer needs to answer them patiently and by giving examples.

Practical approach is a must:-

Training on any construction related subject can’t be taught only in a classroom. They guys need to learn things on the jobsite. They need to see things happening and how others are working. They should be allowed to try while they have someone around them who will monitor their work and if correct them if they go wrong. This is perhaps the only way by which they can learn things sooner.

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Loyalty of employees is important in the construction industry

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It is perhaps the human resource that defines the future of any company and as far as the overall industry is concerned, human resources play a significant role in shaping it up. It is the talent that every man and woman possesses that defines the destiny of the company and simultaneously of the industry. There are people who change jobs to get a hike in their package. The other company who hires them finds their credentials suiting the needs of the company and therefore they pick them by giving a higher package. But it is certainly not a wise thing to lose your efficient men to others. They are leaving your company for a reason and it is important to understand that reason do every possible thing to retain them. Now you can’t force them to quit but you can certainly offer them something that they can’t refuse. It simply does not make any sense to lose your employees who have been in the company for the last many years.

The importance of employees is largely felt in the construction sector. Competent employees are paid real well and if one gets a chance to work for a big construction house then he can definitely expect a better package. In this entire situation, there is someone who is at a loss and it is the construction company who is losing an employee. They call it attrition. There are some construction companies whose attrition rate is really high. This means that the company is either not doing well which is why people look for other prospects or they do not take good care of the employee.

Every construction company should value their employees. The loyalty of the employees really matter and if you do not give them their worth then they will search for it at some other place. You have to understand that if an employee is there with the company for many years then he has also set some expectation and it is the duty of the employer to fulfill those expectations. Don’t take their loyalty for granted. Do not ever think that they are with you because they do not have anywhere else to go. If you think this then it will only hurt you in the long run.

Treat your employees with dignity. Try to at least offer your smile and if someone wishes you reply to him. By this you are respecting them and treating them with dignity. Make them feel that they are important to the company. They should be excited to come to work every day. The day the excitement ends, they will start looking for other options.

When you have an employee who have been with you for the many years and has now offered his resignation, you should probably sit with him and try to know the reasons why he wants to quit. If he wants to start his own business, you should probably wish him all the best but if he is intending to switch to some other construction house then you should try to know what you can do to retain his loyalty. You never know he may stay with you if you offer him something wonderful.

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Employment option for a programmer in the construction industry

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A computer programmer has a lot to do when it comes to programming software for different companies across various sectors. They are people who are in huge demand and have to cater to people of different industries keeping into consideration their varying wants. So you have a team of software programmer who has designed new software for a retail store and now they are been approached by someone who belongs to the pharmaceutical industry and who wants them to work on his specific requirements. So the same team will now focus on a different industry and will try to build software that especially suits their needs. This shows that a software developer can work across industries and is not constraint to one particular genre of business. Similarly, their services can also be used in the construction business. As a matter of fact, there are construction companies that are ready to pay software developers good sum of money but in return they want something that is nothing less exceptional.

Not all construction company can afford to hire software developer to design unique software for their company. Some companies may even find it difficult to buy expensive software. But they all have to use one and therefore there are different levels of software developers and programmers in the market. Not all are expensive. There are some newbie who have ideas but do not have relevant experience for which they are not hired by the giants. However, they can prove to be very useful for small construction companies. The small companies can check the software they have developed and if they feel that it suits their requirements they can go for it. These new guys may not charge a bomb from the companies and are also ready to provide support if in case the program stops working.

This suggests that there is ample of opportunity for software programmers in the construction industry. You will not find the employment getting dried up. Businesses will always flow in some way or the other. Most of the time it comes in the form of upgrading the existing software. You can’t keep on working with the same version for many years. Everything has an expiration date and so does software. So it is imperative for a construction company to keep the software that they are using updated. This can be done with the help of the programmers who have designed the program in the first place or some other programmer who knows about the software and how to upgrade it.

The programmers who are associated to the construction industry should first understand the various needs that a construction company can have. This will give them an idea of the possibilities that they should work on and offer the best to the industry. Many of the time, it has been observed that after doing a in-depth study of the subject, the programmers approach the construction company and place a solution to them. If the company likes the idea they will buy the design and give the contract to service them for a couple of years. It has been therefore termed to be a rewarding business.

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Being in the company of good people is crucial in construction industry

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We generally meet all kinds of people when we are associated with an industry like construction. Generally people are tends to be good but some may not have that good intention. Hence, it is very crucial that you pick the people whom you feel that you can be compatible with. This does not mean that you will not have any relation with guys whom you feel does not fall in your compatibility zone. You will maintain your relationship with everyone but will restrict yourself to few people rather than getting open to everyone. If you make yourself available to everyone, there are chances that people might take undue advantage which will not be in anyway healthy for you. However, if you are in the company of people whom you trust, there are lesser chances that they will ever cheat on you.

Threat of losing project/client:-

If you get yourself in the company of wrong guys who may pose well to you, they might try to get info of your work and you never know when they will snatch away your project and start working on it. There have been numerous such cases where contractors have lost their project after they came into contact with someone they hardly knew and gave too much space to them. They on the other hand took as much info as they can to snatch away the project or just the client. They established their contact with the clients and ensured that the future projects are given to them. By the time the contractor came to know about this, he has already lost the client.

You will grow in the company of good people:-

Construction sector can often show you turbulent times. This being a dynamic industry, we can face any sort of threat from any corner. Therefore, it is important that you be in the company of people you know and whom you can trust. They might come for your help during your bad phase and bail you out. Alternatively, they can also give you valuable advice that you may hardly get from people in this circle. At times, this advice helps you a great deal. You might have taken a stand on the basis of certain information which may or may not be correct. However, you have a slight confusion on this and want to take a second opinion. Therefore, you decide to discuss it with your guys and you get to know more insights that you were complete unaware of. This eventually clears your thoughts and you are able to take a wise decision thus having a positive impact on your company.

Be in touch with them even if they are not your employees:-

We feel sad when we lose men who served our company for years and now want to retire. Even if they retire, they are very much a part of the company as they have served it for years. Therefore, being in touch with such people can always be beneficial for the company. They can guide you in difficult times and help you come out of a crooked situation.

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What is the Construction Forecast for 2017?

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The year 2016 is almost at its end and business honchos across various industries are trying to find out how the year 2016 was for them. This year may have been great for few industries and for the rest not that great. So since this year is about to end market pundits are busy contemplating how the year 2017 will be for them and what it will bring along with it. As far as the construction industry is concerned it was a busy year for this industry and is also expected to continue its legacy in the forthcoming year. Construction industry across various sectors has seen phenomenal growth in the past year particularly the commercial construction sectors which is considered to be in the most profitable zone and is also expected to growth at the rate of 6 percent per annum.

Well there are some industry experts who feel otherwise and they predict a slight fall in the commercial construction sector but will remain steady. So we will not have to fear about any job cuts and things like that. They also believe that the institutional sectors will fare better than last year. These estimates are coming from experts who have been studying the market for years and on the basis of some research they put their rationale. It is not always that they have to be correct with what they say about the market but construction industry far and wide likes to go with their study and follow their suggestions. The year 2015 was an excellent one as far as the US market is concerned. The demand of hotels, amusement parks, commercial spaces and stuff has only increased its demand further. This demand is not going to die down anytime soon and therefore we can expect a bright 2017.

More so, after Donald Trump becoming the President of the United States, the chances of the growth of the construction industry has grown to be brighter. Many believe that since the President has its hand in the real estate business, he will probably not let it go down by any means. Keeping the influence of politicians in the construction industry aside, there are still number of reasons why one should believe that the year 2017 will be a better one for newcomers as well as for the ones who have been in this industry for years. According to Dodge Data and Analytics it is presumed that the overall industry will grow from 5% to 713 billion dollar which will be an overall gain of 11%as compared to 2015 and 2% as compared to 2016.

It was the statistics of Dodge Data and Analytics that had also forecasted for 2016 and said the beginning will be a bit sluggish followed by a rise in the sector post the mid of 2016. Things were more or less correct as per their assumption and we saw some real big projects which includes the liquefied natural gas export terminal that has been set up in Texas. More projects like this followed real quickly and it shaped the size of the construction industry for better.

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The first few years decides your future in the construction industry

Worldwide, construction industry shows an enormous growth potential. It is a good career option for those looking for job satisfaction and lifelong learning opportunities. It involves variations in jobs such as constructing a residential apartment/house, institutional and commercial constructions, heavy industrial construction and civil engineering such as building of bridges, dams and highways. The construction process can be summarized as comprising of design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation and demolition. It is important to understand that construction industry is very different and complex as compared to other industries since it has a number of variables. Each project is unique with different nature of work, placed on different locations, involves different types of skilled and unskilled labours, and produce different types of products. In the modern era, the large scale projects make use of increased automation and more complex processes. Due to its extremely challenging nature of work, there is existence of hazard during every project. Thus, construction industry is regarded as a high risk work environment as compared to others.

 

Although this being the case, in last few decades construction industry has shown a speedy growth. The initial years are very important for ‘a beginner/starter’ in order to have good future. Since it directly impacts life of people, hence building strong and reliable structures becomes necessary to gain life-long confidence and trust of people. This leads to increase in number of customers and thereby generation of a brand name. However, this journey may not be easy due to number of variables.

The following are some of the important variables which need to be considered for gaining initial success in the construction industry:

  1. Good and ample financial resources.
  2. Study of the location and the climate conditions. Be aware of the potential dangers.
  3. Employing professionals with construction management degrees: they have knowledge about building a structure. They are analytical and have good problem solving abilities.
  4. Employing educated and skilled laborers with an aim to retain them permanently rather than on contract.
  5. Due to rapid evolution of technologies training needs to be imparted to the workforce (labor, professionals and management).
  6. Encouraging good partnership, leadership, and teamwork
  7. Investing in R&D activities to enable high quality construction
  8. Good planning and effective execution so that work progresses in a smooth way.
  9. Health and safety of construction workforce is important to avoid fatal injuries/deaths. This will benefit in terms of time, cost and daily operation. Hence, it is essential to set up a safety culture for good working environment.
  10. Affordability, delivery on time and few occupant related illness and injuries.
  11. Constructions should be environmentally safe, healthy and fulfilling human needs.

Among these, the construction quality and occupational safety and health are fundamental issues to be given priority. When all these variables are considered and accordingly work is planned, it will lead to 90% success in the construction activities and lead to safe and healthy constructions. This enables to win customer’s trust and will guarantee success in future of construction industry.

Innovation in the construction industry

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It is said that necessity is the mother of all inventions. When we feel the need of a thing we start working out to find new solutions and alternatives. This is perhaps the reason why we are able to evolve as a human being and the urge to bring something new has given rise to a new dimension. Human wants compels us to bring creativity into picture. We always want something new and this want of us compels the provider to think out of the box and come out with something that no one else has ever thought before. It is something that has been envisaged for the first time and now the people have the final product in front of them. The practice to keep innovating and experimenting with things will take any industry further and so it is considered one of the most important factors in today’s’ times.

Construction business is a huge one and the need of innovation has been frequently felt in this industry as well. This is the reason why there are so many construction companies trying to compete with each other by coming up with a new idea and executing it on the ground. Right from raw materials to architectural designs all play a significant role in executing innovative ideas? The architect has to come up with new designs that will give a new shape and life to the construction. In order to work on the design, you may need special type of materials. The old traditional ones may not be of much use if you want to work on the new designs. Other than that we today make use to high end technology in the construction industry to check the work-in-progress. For instance, we use statistical data to study the deficiency or drawbacks in materials and then we can work on our shortcomings to put back things in place.

Similarly, we have different sort of equipment to ensure the safety of workers on the site. Right from heavy equipment operator to the construction worker all are instructed to follow the safety guidelines and use safety accessories that are prepared by keeping into consideration the innovative equipment the company has for its workers. The construction workers by wearing the safety accessories have minimized the risk to their lives to a greater extent. Special gloves, glasses and boots are given to the operators so that they can have better control on the machine and do not end up in an accident. Heavy equipment operators have to be extra careful while they are on the machine. A single mistake can have huge repercussion on the company as well as on the project.

Heavy equipment are been installed with GPS to prevent heavy equipment thefts. There are numerous incidents where heavy equipment were getting stolen overnight and no one had a clue who was doing it. This has given rise to purchase of GPS and cameras that can be installed on the site. The moment the system identifies any suspicious activity with the heavy equipment, it will start alerting. This has definitely brought down the number of heavy equipment thefts to a larger extent.

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Making of a mighty construction company

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Construction is a lucrative business. Although many entrepreneurs start this business as, yet it is only 10% who make it very big in terms business to become brand names. These construction companies do not achieve success overnight but they have done diligent business planning to become ‘Mighty’ in this field. Experts have observed some common traits among these super achievers as:

  1. Clear aims and objectives: They know what they want to achieve and have noted it down and hold onto that vision. They are aware of their mission, vision and values. This allows them to maximize resources of time, energy to achieve big monetary returns in future.
  2. Planning: Construction involves a lot of work and it has to be done with a responsibility. They understand the importance of planning, systems, and processes need to be place in business. They plan their work to perform it systematically and they also work according to their plans to be successful.
  3. Updated: They are aware about the market trends in construction and try to adjust themselves as per the situation. They also spend time with people who will support their ideas and from whom they can get suggestions. They participate in healthy discussions to be successful in their ventures.
  4. Well-qualified professionals: They hire excellent staff and managers for smooth and effective functioning of organization. They pay them well, train them in latest technologies and give them good work-life balance. They also hire the right type of people who will perform their work very dedication. They know that hiring of cheap labour will lead to mediocrity and work will suffer and will lead to loss in the future.
  5. Designing Effective Business Strategy: In order to win over rivals in business, they have make appropriate preparations and checklists. They always provide excellent and superior quality service. Further, they know strengths and weakness of their employees. Employees are informed about their weakness and are suggested to be improved.
  6. Defensive business strategy: The costs cover the equipment, vehicle, labor, registration or business licensing, surety bond, and insurance requires a lot of finance. They do not depend on loans abut have saved enough which ensures that this excess money will help them in difficult times.
  7. Effective sales and marketing: Just providing good services is not enough, as its awareness has to be created. Hence, they hire good sales people. In addition, they also get onto social media such as Facebook, Twitter, and sending text messages to get into business leads.
  8. Business Transactions: While performing different transactions, they are diligent and vigilant. They do not sign on any papers to avoid getting them into trouble.
  9. Customer satisfaction: Since they value their customers, they listen to them, reply to their queries and concerns about product. They try to modify or improve their services to please the customers. This increases their customer base. They value professionalism and empathy which makes them customer loyal and successful in business.

Overall while making a mighty construction business they are aware that is a multidimensional business which requires a lot of planning and detailing to ensure success.

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Keep yourself open to suggestions, it will help you grow

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While starting any new project, the company or any organization generally holds discussion to obtain views of its professionals and managers before it is executed. The senior management give suggestions to modify or improve the project in order to make it successful. Suggestions are always important so that the projects/tasks get executed in a planned manner and yield benefits. It is type of ‘caution’ taken before taking a major decision..

 

While embarking on any major task/project a person has to think analytically and plan well to execute it properly. A person can do it all on his own and many times suffer from failures. This is due to the ego and rigidity of one’s ideas leads to short-sightedness which fail to see the shortcomings in a project leading to failures. In case of failures of large projects, it causes permanent destruction of that organization.

 

In order to avoid this difficult situation, it is good if a person (or a company) takes suggestions for a project or task from trusted colleagues, mentors, seniors or hire a consultant. They may guide in proceeding of the project by giving their suggestions:

  1. Check if the aim and objectives of a project are clear. If they are not clear then will suggest how modify the aims so that the objectives are achieved
  2. Check for the loopholes/shortcomings of a project and suggest how to overcome them.
  3. May indicate whether the project is feasible or not. If not feasible then suggest to not go ahead
  4. May indicate about the investment to be done and if it is possible. If it is a huge investment and difficult to manage then suggest for decreasing the size of project.
  5. May show the underlying problems of a project and suggest desirable changes to be made to face or overcome those problems.
  6. May indicate the chances of success and failures of a project. To avoid failures some alternatives may be suggested.
  7. They may give strategies for proper planning and execution of projects/tasks

 

Many a time suggestions are not taken seriously due to ego problems. The person may not be confident that the suggestions will help and may yield any benefits. Although this being a case in 90% cases taking suggestions from experienced people has proved beneficial for the project work and made it successful. This ultimately has boosted one’s self confidence to perform better for the next projects. Further it leads to personal and professional growth of an individual.