Your Business

Industry Fighting Back Against Job-Site Drug Use

Posted Feb 2019

Industry Fighting Back Against Job-Site Drug Use

William Atkinson

Drug use in the construction industry is a concern for all contractors. According to “Occupational Patterns in Unintentional and Undetermined Drug-Involved and Opioid-Involved Overdose Deaths” study released by the Centers...

IBM, Oncor Team Up for Predictive Utility Maintenance

Posted Feb 2019

IBM, Oncor Team Up for Predictive Utility Maintenance

Katie Kuehner-Hebert

Information technology company IBM has launched a predictive analytics tool that—combined with artificial intelligence—helps utilities better spot which trees and other vegetation within their service territory need to be trimmed...

Hurricane Maria damage

Posted Feb 2019

Puerto Rico Proposal Calls for the Largest U.S. Solar Battery Storage Capacity

Hannah Fullmer

Puerto Rico’s publicly owned electric utility Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) released a draft of its 2019 integrated resource plan (IRP), which outlines the utility’s strategy continued post-Hurricane Maria...

Recent Stories

Feb 2019

Becoming an Estimator: The Keys to Making It a Career

Stephen Carr

In keeping with this month’s theme of workforce development, I was asked to write about electricians becoming estimators. No problem. Electrical estimating has been a great career for me. Anyone with field experience as an...

Becoming an Estimator: The Keys to Making It a Career

Feb 2019

Moving the Needle: Amid Nationwide Shortages of Skilled Labor, Experts Share Tips for Attracting Young Talent to the Electrical Construction Industry

Susan Bloom

With more electricians currently exiting the workforce than joining, the electrical construction industry faces a well-documented shortage of skilled labor—to the tune of an estimated 85,000-plus unfilled positions by 2024,...

Moving the Needle: Amid Nationwide Shortages of Skilled Labor, Experts Share Tips for Attracting Young Talent to the Electrical Construction Industry

Feb 2019

The Elephants in the Room: Three Issues Every Exit Plan Must Address

Kevin Kennedy

There are no guarantees in business except for one: you will eventually exit your business, voluntarily or involuntarily. As the average owner has over 70 percent of their wealth trapped inside their illiquid business,...

Shutterstock image of stacked elephants The Elephants in the Room: Three Issues Every Exit Plan Must Address

Feb 2019

Invest in Your People: Education and Training Yield Big Dividends and Attract Talent

Andrew McCoy,

Fred Sargent

Try this tomorrow morning: When you’re ready to take a break, go outside your office building. Face the side of the building with the signage bearing the company name and logo. Now try as hard as you can to crank up your...

Invest in Your People: Education and Training Yield Big Dividends and Attract Talent

Feb 2019

The Untapped Resource: Diversity as a Solution to Workforce Shortages

Ben Bigelow

The construction industry as a whole faces a shortage in labor supply that is expected to get worse. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) predicts a 13 percent overall increase in construction jobs through 2024 and a 5...

The Untapped Resource: Diversity as a Solution to Workforce Shortages

Feb 2019

Sell, Promote and Be Proud: Commonwealth Electric Co. of the Midwest

Jeff Griffin

Commonwealth Electric Co. of the Midwest in Omaha, Neb., is heavily involved in an industrial project to upgrade electrical, instrumentation and control systems for one of the Metropolitan Utility District (MUD) water...

Sell, Promote and Be Proud: Commonwealth Electric Co. of the Midwest

Feb 2019

The Industry Strikes Back: A Conversation on the Workforce Shortage and What Can Be Done About It

Andrew McCoy,

Fred Sargent

Many electrical contractors are plagued by a short-sighted view of workforce development, thinking that employee education and training falls outside their responsibility. They expect field electricians and office staff to...

The Industry Strikes Back: A Conversation on the Workforce Shortage and What Can Be Done About It

Feb 2019

Safe Haven: Sierra Electric's Work on a Local Boys & Girls Club

Claire Swedberg

Sometimes, the most rewarding jobs do much more than add to a company’s bottom line. A team of contractors recently demonstrated this by donating their time, money and services to the construction of a new Boys & Girls Club...

Safe Haven: Sierra Electric's Work on a Local Boys & Girls Club

Feb 2019

Choose Your Own Pathway: Should You Get a Financial Planner?

Rae Hamilton

Let’s say you are shopping for a car. Would you buy one without first closely examining it for fit, performance and affordability? Of course not. Want to go big? The Astin Martin AM-RB001 goes for a nose-bleed-inducing price...

Choose Your Own Pathway: Should You Get a Financial Planner?

Feb 2019

Cool Tools: Insulated Tools 2019

Jeff Griffin

Working around or on live electric circuits exposes electricians to serious risks, and few today would disagree that power should be deactivated before performing any type of work. Even so, electricians often must work in...

Cementex offers a wide range of insulated tools.

Do you miss seeing ELECTRICALCONTRACTOR in the mail?

Renew your Subscription now! It's free!

Renew or Subscribe Now