CFA Plans For The Future
The Concrete Foundations Association spent an entire day last month locked in a room brainstorming about the future of the CFA (actually we were free to come and go as needed). Some great ideas were put forth and we feel the initiatives will help invigorate the Association while preparing it and the members, for future […]
Crisis Communication Plan Crucial to Successfully Surviving the “What Ifs” in Today’s Marketplace
One element of a communications plan that is often overlooked is the all important crisis communication plan. While the construction industry is accustomed to having a written plan for a jobsite accident, such documents also are essential to guide your firm should the media call you and put you in a reactive position for a variety of other scenarios, ranging from layoffs to a disgruntled employee or a […]
GPS Management Tools That Work
The costs of running a business, any business, are rising. Talk with any owner and you are not likely to find any argument to that statement. So as the rising costs of operation tighten the hold on profitability—what are the options to fight back? What are proven means you can employ to improve your chance of maintaining margins or possibly […]
CFA Company Certification Program Nears “Roll-Out”
The Concrete Foundations Association company certification program is in its final stages of review before anticipated “rollout” early in 2008. An overview and solicitation for input was presented at the summer meeting and committee members are planning to submit the program to the full Board of Directors for possible action at the fall meeting in […]
WHAT IS YOUR VISION FOR CFA?
When commenting on any CFA Summer Meeting, I feel that it is almost obligatory for me to tell everyone what a huge success it was and that anyone who could not attend really missed out on a great experience. However, in the case of this year’s meeting that was held in Stowe, Vermont, those comments […]
Planning Our Future
Planning for the future is an important part of running a business. Successful companies, whether they have 10 employees or 10,000; whether they are trade associations or residential foundation companies; and regardless of economic conditions all have one thing in common: They convene periodically to assess their companies, the industry, and the future. The world […]
Now Is The Time For Training!
The fall rush is almost upon you. You hope. Wow, residential construction is down. Down a lot. Earlier this year, the Portland Cement Association (PCA) predicted that residential construction would drop 20.5% in 2007 vs 2006. This is quite a dramatic loss of potential work and its associated profits. Everyone knows work would be down. […]
Trends in Information Technology
There is a common saying “Work smarter, not harder”. This saying was never more true than in the use of computers (or Information Technology) in your everyday business. The title of this article could be named “Trends in Information Technology Which You Can Use to Improve Your Business”. This article is not so much about […]
Code Corner — ICC Final Hearings
IRC ANCHOR BOLT PROVISIONS REJECTED The CFA and its industry partners were successful on a major code change at the International Code Council hearings in Rochester, New York this past May. The change, #RB149, repealed the new provisions for closer anchor bolt spacing that were inserted into the 2006 IRC during (literally) a late night […]
CERTAINTEED CORPORATION NOW OFFERING V-Buck® Vinyl Blocking System
To offer our foundations customers an increasingly broader range of products, CertainTeed Corporation now offers the VBuck(R) vinyl blocking system, a product manufactured by Vinyl Technologies Inc., (VTI) that helps building professionals simplify the process of creating window cut-outs in poured concrete basement walls. The V-Buck vinyl blocking system consists of vinyl window blockouts that […]
