Message from Doug “Where Have All The Trades Gone?”

What do you do with the business cards you are given throughout the year?  When I get a new business card from someone, I will usually write the date on the front of the card and any notes about the person on the back.

When I get back to the office, this information is entered into our contact database (CRM) system.  If anything needs to be done for that new contact, it gets added to the list of tasks.

The business card is then added to the stack of others I’ve collected that year (held together with a fat rubber band) and tossed into the back of the top drawer of my desk.

I was recently looking for a flatwork contractor I met years ago.  To find that person, I pulled the business cards out from my desk drawer – a stack for each of the past eight years – and began looking for that one specific card.

As I sifted through the cards and reflected on the people I had met, I realized that at least two-thirds of the cards were completely outdated and useless.  Many companies were no longer in existence.  Some of the people were in totally different industries.  It was staggering to see how the residential and commercial construction sectors have been decimated over the past five years.

In this new economy, there are few “old” Trade contractor companies left standing that have been in business for more than ten years.  Some of the “new” Trade companies around today were started by guys that are on their third company since the crash.  There are fewer Trades out there today, period.  It can be very difficult to find those people you once knew or worked with a few years ago.

Several of our builder clients have reported the same experience.  Many are starting their first new home project since ’07 or ‘08.  As they wipe the dust off their Rolodex* and begin contacting Trades, they find that many are no longer in business.

If you are reading this, then you have found a way to survive and stay relevant in this new economy.  Congratulations (I mean that).  You’ve fought through too many years of too little work.

I do believe that we are now on the road to recovery.  It may be a long road with modest, incremental growth, but it seems to be going in the right direction.  To quote the famous poster of the kitten at the end of a rope, “Hang In There.”  Better times are ahead of us.

Enjoy your summer,







* For our readers younger than age 35, a Rolodex is an ancient wheel-like contraption that held business cards for easy reference.  It never crashed and didn’t have to be backed-up in the “cloud.”

Concrete Homes Magazine

Barry Herbert’s article on the CFA Awards, is in the
July ’12 issue of Concrete Homes Magazine.
See it at the link below on pages 5-11.

http://www.concretehomesmagazine.com/digital-issue

Recent Referrals – Thank You

It seems as though everyone has been struggling with Atlanta’s recent heat wave. Even though it makes for tougher working conditions, we are so grateful for the work.  A huge THANK YOU to the following people that recently referred our company:  You are too cool!

Ray Whitaker, The Garrett Group – Homebuilder - www.garrettgroupatl.com
Donnie Spivey, Homes by Brumby – Homebuilder – www.homesbybrumby.com
Jackie Cope, Cope Builders – Homebuilder - www.copebuilders.net

CFA Project of the Year Award

In 2011, we were the proud recipient of the CFA Above-Grade Concrete Home Project of the Year Award for a 12,000 square foot Italian inspired home in New Orleans, LA. 

We are thrilled to announce that we have won an award again in 2012. Herbert Construction Company is a CFA Basement Project of the Year Award winner!

The project that earned the honor this year is the Jacklett Construction job in Alpharetta, GA. This Equestrian Estate includes a 31,000 square foot main house, a 4,600 square foot carriage house, a four stall horse barn with living quarters above, an equipment building, a pavilion, a lighted arena and a private lake and dock. Our entry consisted of the foundation for the main house.

“When the homeowners purchase an entire new subdivision to build their home, you know the house will be something special,” said Barry Herbert, Herbert Construction Company’s founder and CEO.  “We finished the carriage house, and then began the main residence, which was a little tricky because the architect was still working on it.” 

Josh Morris, who draws all of Herbert’s jobs via CAD worked tirelessly to expedite the job drawings. “Only certain portions of the foundation would be released for construction at a time,” he said, “But, even once a section had been finalized, it seemed that changes needed to be made. We adapted to the information flow and kept the project moving. A project of this magnitude was really exciting to be a part of.”

One of the most challenging aspects of the project was the 385 lineal feet of radius walls with wall heights varying from 14 to 18 feet. In several instances, circular walls intersected into other circular walls. In one instance, three circular walls intersected at the same point. Deep brick ledge in most of the curved walls made the job even more complex. 

Most residential foundations are drawn with primarily 90 degree corners which are the easiest to form, because any other angle requires special corner forms, special fillers and extra bracing.

Amanda Morris, our Vice President of Operations, schedules all the crews, and calculates and orders the concrete. “From a scheduling standpoint, this job was much more complex than most because of how extraordinary it was,” she said.  “We don’t typically see that many tall radius walls, but our guys in the field really did a great job.” In total, 935 cubic yards of concrete and 35 tons of rebar were used in the walls and footings.

“From the very beginning of the project, the General Contractor, Leonard Jacklett with Jacklett Construction, made his expectations clear regarding the level of quality and professionalism he needed from us, and the schedule that we had to hit,” said Carl Hire, who managed the job for Herbert Construction.  “He expressed a genuine level of appreciation for the job we were doing, and his sincere thanks always assured me that we were meeting his expectations.”

“It is always an honor to be recognized within your industry for a job well done, but to have received an award from the CFA two years in a row is truly something special,” says Doug Herbert. “Winning this award brings our company national attention, and separates us from other concrete contractors in our area.  It’s a project that we are very proud to have been a part of.”

Touch-a-Truck Event

Recently, we participated in the 5th Annual Sandy Springs United Methodist Church Touch-A-Truck event.  This is a community family event organized by the Church as a fundraiser for the preschool. Their goal is to build a scholarship fund to assist families who may be struggling to afford preschool for their children. 

This was Herbert Construction Company’s third year participating in the event, and was attended by over 750 people, including Doug and his children, Ella and Hage Herbert. The event was considered a huge success, and as you can see from the smiling faces, a good time was had by all!

12 Profit-Building Ideas for Home Builders

1. Publicize that unique project you just finished.
2. Set your company apart by promoting your specific area of expertise. 
3. Network with people who can provide solid leads for future projects, such as architects and realtors.
4. Value-engineer your designs as early as possible in the process.
5. Schedule your trade contractors so that there’s always someone in the house working.
6. Diversify — start an estate-management service, own and manage rental homes, or branch out into commercial construction.
7. Outsource functions such as human resources and IT.
8. Start a small-projects division. When you finish a new home, give the clients a written proposal for ongoing maintenance, repair, and remodeling.
9. Don’t just support charitable organizations, be an active participant in their activities.
10. Evaluate every aspect of your business for ways to operate more efficiently.
11. Plan ahead, stick to the schedule, and make sure everyone on the project team does the same, including the client.
12. Consider paying the architect or designer an additional fee to act as a project coordinator who will assist you and the client with scheduling and selections.
(Adapted from HousingZone.com)

The Results Are In!

In our May Newsletter, we invited our readers to place their vote for their favorite example of Redneck Creativity in our International Redneck Engineering Awards contest. Well, drum roll please ….. all the votes are finally in! Winning by an absolute landslide is photo #3. We can’t help but wonder who the REAL donkey in the photo is?!

Have you seen this?

Do you need a quick, no-hassle way to accept credit card payments from your clients?  Square turns your mobile phone into a credit- and debit-card reader.  After you’ve set up your account, just plug the simple device into your smart phone and begin swiping.  www.SquareUp.com

How Unique is YOUR password?

In a recent Technology Update from Signs of the Times magazine, Yahoo says that eight-character alphabetical passwords that use only lower case letters provide 200 billion possible combinations.  Passwords that incorporate upper and lower case letters, plus numerals and common symbols such as #, @, % can make more than seven quadrillion combinations.