Electical Contractor

Are you still using spreadsheets and file folders filled with project documents to manage projects and track the incredible volume of details that make up a single job?

From talking to electrical contractors lately, I know it’s still tough to get profitable work in the current economy. However, I also find most of the contractors who have prepared well for such a poor economic situation are maintaining a substantial workload.

As a contractor, there were times when I bemoaned the attitudes of employees who failed to understand our company’s cost structure and the battles we waged to make and keep a modest profit.

On average, 80 electricians are killed each year in workplace accidents, which are not limited to electrocutions. More than 10,000 electricians are injured each year with an average work time loss of 10 days per incident. These statistics are unacceptable.

Most contractors assume it is necessary to field-terminate fiber optic cabling systems as part of every installation, but they are all looking for alternatives. The first alternative most people consider is to use prepolished/splice connectors, which use a mechanical splice to terminate the fiber.

Since 1998, the national construction fatality rate declined 47 percent, and the number of recordable safety incidents dropped 38 percent since the federal government switched to a safety oversight approach known as “collaborative safety,” according to an analysis of federal safety data released by