In a typical old-time cowboy movie, there is always a scene where the bad guy says something like, “Give me the deed to your ranch or I'll shoot you.” Without question, the rancher's signature would be obtained by duress and the transaction would be void.
A leading architecture/engineering member of the CSI revision team (who requested anonymity) described the genesis of the change to MasterFormat 2004 this way: “Division 16 was used to describe means and methods of lighting and distribution of power in buildings.
In last month’s column, we outlined the procedure for establishing a risk management plan, a checklist of ways to prevent employee-related losses and the conditions favorable for fraud to occur. Internal crimes tend to follow common patterns.
Combining technologies has allowed many systems to become part of the mainstream. One of the latest of these opportunities, is the conglomeration of power over Ethernet (PoE) with radio frequency identification (RFID).
It may come as a surprise to many electrical contractors who use vans and light trucks in their operations, but it is difficult to fully recover the costs of those vehicles under our tax rules.
Professional contractors normally develop their marketing expertise with their technical expertise. Typically, a contractor’s marketing experience comes from observation of successful marketing techniques.
In 1901, all eyes were on Buffalo, N.Y., when the city hosted the Pan-American Exposition. At this meeting, 49 electrical contractors from eight states formed the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA).
The energy consumed by residential and commercial buildings represents a significant portion of the total energy used in the United States. Energy drives the U.S. economy and demand will continue to grow along with prices and environmental concern.
For electrical contractors, maintenance means more than sweeping the warehouse floor. Service work is becoming an increasingly important and lucrative part of their business.
The electrical contracting industry is facing a fork in the road with supply-channel management. In their historical roles, distributors play the part of a wholesale/retail combination for electrical components while hoping to be profitable through speculations (currently on steel and copper).
Performing a preliminary design for a photovoltaic (PV) system is the first step in deciding how to effectively incorporate PV technology into a new or existing building.
It has been predicted that the voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) market is in the early stages of dramatic growth, but VoIP needs a compelling reason for use if its proponents expect the technology to have a lasting effect. For the home, the major advantage appears to be reduced phone cost.
Access control is nothing new. Locks on doors and windows are a rudimentary form of shutting people out. While not the most effective means of control, plenty of facilities use it as their only means of security. ID cards are nothing new either.
Ask a handful of electrical contractors how they feel about becoming active in the lighting design field and you are sure to receive a plethora of conflicting responses.
While the residential lighting market is still largely driven by new construction and retrofitting of single-family homes, emerging trends in multifamily residential dwellings are signaling new opportunities for the design and installation of indoor lighting products.
The next time you review your marketing strategy, consider expanding into the often-overlooked residential market. Many electrical contractors have chosen to concentrate on the cyclical commercial, industrial and institutional niches.
