Notes from PCBC 2011
SAN FRANCISCO – This annual conference and trade show for builders hosted by the California Building Industry Association for more than 40 years has certainly seen frothier times. In 2004 and 2005, exhibits sprawled across three large show floors. This year, it fits neatly into one hall anchored by a bedrock stable...
Last month, the Professional Builder editorial team hosted judges for our annual National Housing Quality Awards program, which for the past 18 years has honored the best of the best home builders, remodelers, and trade contractors for their quality management systems and processes.
As past NHQA applicants and winners can attest to, this program is not just about winning an award — it’s about a journey...
Congratulations go out to Iris Harrell and her Mountain View, Calif., remodeling company.
Harrell Remodeling was recently named by Inc. magazine as one of the top workplaces in the country. The editors recognized Iris and her company for the Employee Stock Ownership Plan they have in place, amongst other successes.
You can read more at Inc.'s website.
I've written many...
The 2011 Housing Giants Ranking Report shows that the Housing Giants are taking advantage of this slow period to focus on what they see is the top opportunity, working on improving operational efficiencies to boost profit margins. (Professional Builder Magazine, May 2011, p 28-44)
Of course the problem is how to actually find the right opportunities and how achieve these improvements. In earlier blogs I have discussed which quality tools can be used to identify areas for improvement,...
So I don't know what to make of this one, posted earlier today on HousingZone:
BuildFax Remodeling Index Shows Top April on Record.
I'd love to believe it's true -- that we're really seeing remodeling activity hit it's highest mark since 2004. Everybody else seems to be projecting a slowdown, although the anecdotal evidence I...
The impact of quality management on home builders is dramatic. For example of builders that used the National Housing Quality Award criteria to help drive their business performance and went on to win NHQA recognition, 94% are still in business despite the recession.
The use of Quality Management Systems (QMS) has also shown significant impact. A study conducted by Duncan Prahl of IBACOS, Serge Ogranovitch of The Potomack Group and Denis Leonard of Business Excellence Consulting,...
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. -- This spring offered the opportunity for Professional Builder editors to make educational presentations in 30 markets around the country. We supplied the builder-segment education for the series of Pro Expos sponsored by a coalition of building industry partners. We chose our two topics carefully, and ended up with one designed to help builders take waste out of their...
Got to spend some time over at the Bosch headquarters yesterday. To show off the toughness of their new line of drills, they dropped two of them 532 feet from a hovering helicopter.
It may not have been a practical application, but I was pretty impressed. You can see video I shot of the demo below.
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A tool referred to as the “Quality Life Cycle” provides a strategic mechanism to chart and sustain quality while proactively countering shortcomings of its implementation, such as stagnation and limited application, which can ultimately result in failure. The quality life cycle was developed as part of a UK and US research study, allows for the characterization and visualization of the various complex stages and dynamics of quality. It allows charting of not only the current status of...
All the remodelers out there who thought that the EPA RRP lead paint rules weren’t going to be enforced may want to think again.
The EPA announced in May it would be pursuing action against a Rockland, Maine, remodeler for alleged violation of the RRP rules. The EPA has said that Colin Wentworth is facing fines of at least $150,000 for multiple violations.
It’s the first punitive action the EPA has taken for violation of the new rules, although the agency has cited...
