Not long ago, shared workspaces provided collaborative environments for travelers, entrepreneurs and people who need a place to meet or work as they conduct business around the world. The coronavirus pandemic left such sites...
Do you live on a dirt road? I doubt it. Most of us live on paved streets off wide avenues and not too far from an expressway that connects us to the far corners of the country. If you have to drive down a dirt road to get...
Employment at Candor Electric, Chicago, depends on the season and ranges between 50 and 100 people. “On the low-voltage side, it depends on the number of projects we have, which can vary significantly from year to year,” said...
There’s no getting around it. Cybersecurity is a necessary component of a security contractor’s business and a must-have for customers looking for complete, turnkey service. With fluidly changing threats to connected internet...
Facial recognition has been a biometric technology under development for years. In the past, confidence in the technology waned as it presented risk of inaccuracy and even racial bias. The National Institutes of Standards and...
Opportunity knocks for electrical contractors involved in low-voltage, security and integrated systems contracting. You’re in demand. Offer your customers a litany of services using these six ideas to expand your offerings...
Handling a range of power and low-voltage work, Jamerson & Bauwens Electrical Contractors is based in Northbrook, Ill., with a second office in Urbana, Ill. “We have about 165 steady employees with about 17 on the low-voltage...
Mistreating fiver optic cable I’ve said it before: whenever I see a fiber optic installation in progress, I stop to watch what the installers are doing. Recently, I saw two techs pulling a cable into conduit just a couple of...
This issue of Electrical Contractor features the 2020 Construction Outlook (page 18), and I am certain you will review the information with an eye to your own 2020 business predictions. First and more important, you need to...
Are you certified in the fire alarm or life safety field? If you are, why did you do it? If not, why not? I have heard many claims about the benefits and drawbacks of getting certified. I’d like to share some of my...
With change brought about by new technology, faster computing speeds, artificial intelligence (AI), open integration and more devices entering the IP foray—2019 was momentous. As the digital transformation deepens and the...
What is happening in low-voltage work? And what do contractors expect for the future? “We are currently experiencing a couple of significant trends,” said Joe Carey, registered communications distribution designer (RCDD) and...
Way back In 2019, everybody was raving about the prospects for new technologies such as smart cities, 5G wireless, autonomous vehicles, internet of things (IoT) and numerous other applications that would disrupt the status...
It was the West Virginia scenery that pulled at John Denver’s heartstrings as he wrote the song, “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” Those vistas also inspired the artful, two-and-a-half year, $107 million renovation of the...
Whether in ASSISTED-LIVING facilities or at home, seniors are at greater risk of health incidents and falls than any other population segment. To help protect elders living in their care, assisted-living facilities have been...
If you provide fire alarm system inspection, testing and maintenance (ITM), you already know that everyone of your potential customers will be an easy sale. Why, you ask, is that premise true? The answer is simple, you don’t...
The physical security industry is running hard and fast in the in security bull market—and all signs point to continued, steady growth. According to Imperial Capital, Los Angeles, a full-service investment banking firm...
Electrical contractors can benefit from the arsenal of software tools and other technologies that help their workers perform better and their businesses’ bottom line. Apps, cloud-based applications and embedded algorithms...
Since optical fiber transmits light, it’s obvious that it could be used for illumination. Put a bright light at one end and most of that light will come out the other end. Many people are familiar with this application...
The lead architect for the newly renovated University of Chicago Keller Center aptly describes the project as a “thoughtful transformation.” Located on the university’s Hyde Park campus, the center is the permanent home for...
