Professional Builder (1993) articles from July 2003

Professional Builder (1993) archives from July 2003

Letters.(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... 'Perhaps the chief factor in leveling the playing field has been, and will be, the fall in the cost of information brought to us by technology.' Mark Alvis Big Versus Small Regarding Scott Sedam's April and May columns on local...

An entrepreneur's tale. (Perspective).
July 1, 2003... Storytelling, the oldest human communication form, carries forward the learning of one generation to improve the lot of those to come. As children we paid rapt attention to the stories of our parents and grandparents and learned of our place...

Give me some modesty. (Publisher's Letter).
July 1, 2003... In the past 24 months, we've learned of business-people who abandoned a simple, humble approach to living a business life in favor of the boisterous drive for self-gratification. Cash flowed to this group, who were all about themselves. They...

The home as hive: consumer sentiment: builders should focus on delivering comfort and connections. (Outfront).
July 1, 2003... A decade ago, Faith Popcorn identified a broad consumer trend she called "cocooning." Americans wanted homes to serve as sanctuaries, retreats from the outside world. Today, new consumer research shows that much of what she identified still...

Hispanic population, home buying surges. (Demographics).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Young, on the move and 38.8 million strong, the surging Hispanic population is the nation's largest minority group, the Census Bureau reported last month. From April 1, 2000, to July 1, 2002, the Hispanic population grew by 9.8% to 38.8...

The 1st 'visit'. (The HIR Dept.).(interviewing skills)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Like in any project, the better the interview plan, the better the outcome. Try these tips for a first visit. Know the job and the success indicators. Create a specific "success profile." Look for those successes in candidates. Warm-up...

Donald Allen: in the great outdoors. (Off Hours).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Donald Allen of D.O. Allen Homes in Lynchburg, Va., gets away on as many as six full hunting trips each year. In September, he and friends will spend a week in British Columbia on the trail of stone sheep. From there he will travel directly...

Roof flashing guidelines. (Outfront_Build).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... An article in the March issue of Quality Home, a bimonthly newsletter on construction quality from IBACOS, details the water management strategy required when a sloped roof meets a vertical wall (such as the wall of a dormer window or where a...

Model illustrates building science. (Teaching Tools).(Conservation Services Group)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... A two-story Colonial in Westborough, Mass., models the system approach to home building. It showcases technologies in framing, insulation, air sealing, HVAC, water management and renewable energy. And at 2 feet tall, the ISMART House is...

Ceramic slab countertops. (Outfront_Design).(MIRAGE Granito Ceramico)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Made from kaolin (a clay), quartz and feldspar, Granito Ceramico from Mirage (wwwmirage.it) is created like any other ceramic -- all its components are amalgamated, pressed and melted at high temperatures to produce a homogenous material....

Tadian's deal with IHP a trendsetter. (Outfront_Manage).(Tadian Homes stake sold to Institutional Housing Partners)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Look for more deals in coming months that mirror Detroit-area builder Gary Tadian's sale of minority interest (he won't say how much) in Tadian Homes to California investment behemoth Institutional Housing Partners. Florida lawyer Michael...

Price to hit your velocity targets. (Bottom-Line Building).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Here each month, management consultant Chuck Shinn details how builders can hit financial ratios that lead to double-digit net profits. (The targets are in the table, right, with the range Shinn says most builders now achieve.) To reach the...

A proud moment. (NAHB Opinion).(National Association of Home Builders of the United States role in $350 billion tax cut)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... The recently enacted $350 billion tax cut will move the economy and the housing sector forward by stimulating consumer spending and capital investment. As the congressional debate on the tax plan unfolded, the NAHB remained a voice of...

Rapid transit signs key to Taylor Woodrow's marketing. (Outfont_Sell).(San Francisco suburb development)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Sophisticated San Franciscans don't often venture to Colma, Calif., just south of the city. But a new Taylor Woodrow community manages to pull some out of their city lofts and into new town-homes there. Of 10 units released at Verano on...

Toll Web site offers answers in an Instant. (Technology).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Seeing an opportunity to differentiate its Internet offering, Toll Brothers Inc. bucked up for Web technology it hopes will address one of the most bothersome traits associated with real estate Web sites: the seemingly endless stream of clicks...

Specialists offer Urban expertise. (Outfront_Land).(CitiSphere)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Competition for infill parcels grows daily. Now a new crop of brokers aims to fill that niche with services that go beyond simply finding multifamily and mixed-use sites. CitiSphere, a Dana Point, Calif., firm, provides its urban...

Online land auction unique. (Outfront_Land).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... The federal government will open bidding on 3,700 acres in Orange County, Calif., this fall, and the real estate community will pay close attention. A multiday online auction format will let anyone with an Internet connection follow the...

Fish & Wildlife calls species act 'broken'. (Legislation).(Endangered Species Act needs finance)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service recently declared the Endangered Species Act broken and in need of repair. With two-thirds of the act's annual budget going toward designating critical habitat, the agency says it will deplete the $6...

Home building meets reality TV. (Lessons Learned).
July 1, 2003... According to USA Today, the rerun season will feature mostly reality shows, and get this: Critics claim they are even worse than what's on during the regular season. How could they tell? I read this the day I heard a builder suggest that...

Your charity shouldn't be secret. (Money Matters).
July 1, 2003... On the whole, these have been good times for builders virtually all across America. New home sales, building perm its and selling prices are pointing up, and many builders have found the past few years to be among their best. But who is sharing...

The value in OVE. (Building Technology).(optimum value engineering in house framing)
July 1, 2003... Advanced framing techniques enhance the energy efficiency of homes while reducing the cost of construction. Despite this win/win proposition, they have been slow to displace traditional framing practices. As three diverse applications of these...

End games: for many builders, finding a tolerable path into retirement is the toughest management challenge of all. Here's how to get started. .(Cover Story)
July 1, 2003... Most American home building companies are personal businesses. The owner's name is on the sign out front -- often first name as well as last. And inside you usually find a middle-age, workaholic male chewing a pencil over a land purchase or an...

Termite tech: a new breed of termite control technologies enlarges builders' arsenal. (Build).
July 1, 2003... Termites have survived millions of years and can be found in every state except Alaska. Unfortunately, hot housing markets, especially in the Sun Belt, happen to be the same places huge numbers of termites call home. A new crop of...

Economic forecast and data report. (Special Advertising Section).(mortgages and real estate)
July 1, 2003... Mortgage Rate Decline to Keep Housing Nearly Steady Through 2004 Housing peaked around year-end for this business cycle, but the Federal Reserve's aggressive cheap-credit policy means only a marginal decline in activity through 2004. Within...

Job growth steady, consumer confidence up. (Special Advertising Section: Economic Forecast And Data Report).
July 1, 2003... Employment Steady for Three Months After of loss of 342,000 jobs from November, employment has been steady since March but is still 2.4 million below the December 2001 peak. As many as 200,000 jobs were lost because military reservists were...

Beyond the kitchen and bath: cabinets open the door to greater design flexibility in any room in the house. (Design).
July 1, 2003... Ask home buyers what tops their list of priorities, and among the brand-name items and other specifics, most builders probably will hear the same general desires: style, storage, convenience and space. Extending cabinetry beyond its usual realm...

Sales and marketing metrics. (Metrics).(Plaskoff Construction; measuring marketing success)
July 1, 2003... Your business begins with sales and marketing. With out clients and business, you do not have a business. This makes measuring sales and marketing success one of your business's most important and critical functions. How many of us have...

Building technology: systems & interior finishes: Part I. (Learn).
July 1, 2003... I started looking for a job 24 years ago after a tour in the Air Force. Like many employee candidates at that age, I was not particular about the career field as long as it was fun and paid well. Coincidentally, at the same time, the cover of...

Framing revolution: some builders have discovered that Zone Framing is helping them find more margin in every house they build. (Special Advertising Section).
July 1, 2003... Builders are looking everywhere to gain an advantage. For the first time in years the place many are finding an edge is in their framing. Today more builders are framing with a calculated blend of sawn lumber and TimberStrand[R] LSL. ...

Weyerhaeuser. (Products).
July 1, 2003... FiberFior panels are designed to provide a smooth, uniform surface for many floor coverings, minimizing irregularities in subfloors and existing floors. One-piece construction eliminates callbacks resulting from veneer delamination or core...

Multiquip. (Products).
July 1, 2003... Made for cutting ceramics, stone and masonry, Tile Pro tile saws come in three models -- the TP1024, TP1020 and TP7. All three have a portable frame assembly and come standard with a removable water tray, an aluminum conveyor cart with injected...

Target. (Products).
July 1, 2003... The MG-10 green concrete saw features a blade control system that lets the operator use a single lever to engage and disengage the blade to a preset cutting depth. The blade capacity is 10 inches, and the maximum cutting depth is 3 inches....

CertainTeed. (Products).
July 1, 2003... Monogram 46L siding panels are 16 feet, 8 inches for double 4-inch clapboard and 16 feet for double 5-inch Dutch lap. A .046-inch gauge is designed to provide rigidity and handling ease. Additional features include the STUDFinder installation...

Klein tools. (Products).
July 1, 2003... Two new stubby nut drivers are made for use with 1/4- and 5/16-inch hex nut and hex screws in tight spaces. Shafts are 1 1/2 inches long, with the overall tool length at 3 1/2 inches. Suggested applications include recessed can lights and...

Potlatch. (Products).
July 1, 2003... A specialty oriented strand board designed to resist surface mold and prevent termites and fungal rot, OXTerminator structural wood panels incorporate a copper complex treatment approved by the Environmental Protection Agency. The panels absorb...

The stanley works. (Products).
July 1, 2003... Mirrored doors for swing and pocket applications have solid-wood stile and rail construction. Each door has a full-length mirror on front and back, giving a room the illusion of more space with the door opened or closed. Choose a pre-primed...

Tawa flooring. (Products).
July 1, 2003... A three-layer system made by Barlinek of Poland and distributed by Tawa, the Barkiet Floating Floor System is offered in northern European woods as well as exotic African species. Pictured are 3/4-inch red oak panels in butterscotch laid over a...

A perfect complement to standard insulation packages. (Web Connection).
July 1, 2003... "An Energy Efficient option that sells itself". "Profits and performance!" "See for yourself." Reduces attic temperatures up to 30 degrees. Reduces utility bills, improves comfort. Improves duct performance up to 50%. Improves ceiling...

The Noble Company. (Web Connection).
July 1, 2003... The Noble Company produces NobleSeal[R] Sheet Membranes for waterproofing, sound control and crack isolation. Use over all common substrates including gypsum concrete, radiant heat and many wood subfloors. Applications under tile, marble and...

E/One Sewer. (Web Connection).
July 1, 2003... E/One Sewer Systems are powered by grinder pumps, which provide residential wastewater storage, grinding and pumping functions. The E/One system utilizes small-diameter sewer pipes (11/4" to 3" versus 8" to 24" for gravity systems) that are...

We know saunas! (Web Connection).
July 1, 2003... Since 1964, Finlandia Sauna has been nationally recognized as a manufacturer of Saunas without equal. We design and build custom, precut, and prefabricated rooms of any size and shape. Our pre-planning assistance and customer service is...