2006 NHQ Handbook (sponsored by JELD-WEN Windows and Door)

Learn best practices from industry leaders in HousingZone.com's "Handbook for Winning" Forum, as winners of the 2006 National Housing Quality Award share the benchmarking tips they've learned along their quality journey. As the centerpiece of the National Association of Home Builders Research Center's quality program, the NHQ Award is regarded as the highest level of quality achievement in the housing industry. From leadership and strategic planning to human resources and business results, these builders have set themselves apart, within their markets and in the profits they pull to the bottom line every day.

Ideal Homes - 2006 NHQ Gold Award Winner
Corporate Profile: Ideal Homes is a Norman, Okla.-based builder serving the Oklahoma City metro area with 16 communities for first-time and move-up buyers. The company is Oklahoma's largest home builder, and operates an in-house mortgage company that handles an average of 60 percent of the company's closing.

 

 

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Veridian Homes - 2006 NHQ Gold Award Winner
Corporate Profile: Veridian Homes of Madison, Wisc. is a semi-custom production builder of single and condominium homes. Family-owned and operated, Veridian was formed in 2003 through the merger of Don Simon Homes and Midland Builders, two of Wisconsin's oldest and most respected home builders.

 

 

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Shea Homes San Diego - 2006 NHQ Gold Award Winner
Corporate Profile: Shea Homes San Diego (SHSD) is part of the J.F. Shea Co. Inc. family of companies. Established in 1881, Shea is one of the oldest and largest privately held operations in the United States. Started in 1968, Shea Homes builds homes and develops master-planned communities throughout California, Colorado, Arizona, North Carolina and Washington.

 

 

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KB Home Nevada - 2006 NHQ Silver Award Winner
Corporate Profile: KB Home Nevada is a division of KB Home. Headquartered in Las Vegas, this division serves the Las Vegas metropolitan market—including a growing number of communities in Summerlin and Henderson—selling and building single family homes.

 

 

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Pringle Development - 2006 NHQ Silver Award Winner
Corporate Profile: Eustis, Fla.-based Pringle Development is a developer of active adult communities and builder of single family homes in Central Florida. The company has a record for more than 20 years focusing on the Florida retirement community concept, offering complete architectural design services for pre-designed and custom homes.

 

 

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C.P. Morgan - 2006 NHQ Silver Award Winner
Corporate Profile: C.P. Morgan is a residential land development and home building company serving the metropolitan Indianapolis and Lafayette markets in Indiana and Charlotte, NC. Headquartered in Indianapolis, C.P. Morgan is the first home builder in Indiana to receive the Better Business Bureau of Central Indiana's Torch Award for Business Ethics.

 

 

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Best practices: Ideal Homes
CONSTRUCTION QUALITY —
Ideal Home's rigorous construction-quality processes include: Contractor management: Agreements with contractors detail the scope of work for each completion www. Ideal associates frequently meet in the field with contractors and train crews to expectation. New practices and procedures continually flow from these meetings.

 

 

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Best practices: Ideal Homes
HUMAN RESOURCES —
Hiring Practices and Profit Sharing Plan: Ideal Homes goes to great lengths to hire right and then keeps employees with an attractive profit sharing plan.

 

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Best practices: Veridian Homes
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT —
In addition to a self assessment around the NHQ award given annually, Veridian is a NAHB certified builder in most of its 10 areas. Veridian's Builder Certification currently covers Quality, Safety and Environmental Management for the following departments: sales, construction,customer relations/warranty, land development, purchasing and estimating.

 

 

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Best practices: Veridian Homes
HUMAN RESOURCES —
Employee Feedback and Training ProgramsVeridian believes employee development is the heart of a respected company. The Madison, Wisc.-based builder is one of the few in the industry that conducts in-depth weekly one-to-one meetings with associates. The meetings cover a review of accomplishments, frustrations, issues or obstacle resolution, setting of new goals, review of goals an...

 

 

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Best Practices: Shea Homes San Diego
TRADE RELATIONSHIPS —
Trade Partner Council: To ensure these principles, SHSD manages a Trade Partner Council that meets monthly with an eye toward project improvement to discuss industry practices, solve problems and distribute information. The Council consists of principals from eight primary contractors such as framers, carpentry, HVAC and plumbing firms, as well as several SHSD staff, including...

 

 

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Best practices: C.P. Morgan
LEADERSHIP —
Close communications. C.P. Morgan uses an integrated structure around leadership which directly contributes to the company's ability to consistently meet goals. Each functional area of the company has an executive team member reporting directly to president Dan Horner. The executive team works closely to initiate action in each leader's area of responsibility involving people...

 

 

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Pringle Development
STRATEGIC PLANNING —
Tiger Teamwork. Adapting a concept originally employed by the U.S. military, Pringle's Tiger Teams typically comprise of a small number of employees representing various disciplines at the company. Like a tiger going after prey, the teams sharply focus on very specific targets — issues that arise in the course of growing the business.

 

 

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KB Home Nevada
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION —
KB Home is the first Giant to work with the NAHB Research Center to implement the National Quality Certification Program on a national level, after successfully implementing the pilot program in Las Vegas as the prototype for the company's nationwide rollout. The program requires all subcontractors to become certified via a thorough educational NAHB program.

 

 

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2006 NHQ Award: Business Results / Past Winners
These are the metrics used to score National Housing Quality award applicants. A list of winners dating back to 1993 is also included.

 

 

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NHQ Past Award Winner
A complete list, 1993 to 2006, of the past NHQ Award Winners.

 

 

Read the NHQ Past Award Winner article.

 

2006 NHQ Award Program in Review
The National Housing Quality (NHQ) Awards give the highest recognition in the housing industry for quality achievement. The NHQ Awards are sponsored by the NAHB Research Center and Professional Builder magazine. Entries are judged by panels of experts who evaluate the role that customer-focused quality plays in construction, business management, sales, design, and warranty service.

 

 

Read more on the 2006 NHQ Award Program.