E-CONSTRUCTION
 

AIA Supports 'Alliance' Assembled By Gehry Technologies

BIM Migrates to Apple Platforms

Free Common BIM Files Released 
-- see also: http://bimserver.org/
WEBSITES OF POSSIBLE USE
 

EPA's New 'Greener Products' Portal

LED Lamp Locator

Stalled Projects Database (new)

GREEN CONSTRUCTION
 

Videos From Greenbuild 2011

Walgreens Goes With Solar In Ohio (53 stores)

Why Offices Need Green Retrofits

Meritage Homes Delves Into Energy Efficiency

LEED for Data Centers
CONSTRUCTION / ECONOMIC TRENDS
 

FMI Q3 Construction Outlook (download free)

Latest Housing Forecast (11/2/11) – from NAHB

‘Work on the Boards’ Index: Up, But Still Down

Top 600 Specialty Contractors (ENR’s annual list)
Training Dates
 

Standard training classes set for our Chandler, AZ offices are scheduled for November 30- December 2, and December 7-9

Standard class dates for Columbia, MD is December 7th - 9th.

Click here for the complete list of upcoming 2012 training dates

Training can be "suit-cased" to your facility. We can tailor our training to your needs. Ask us about customized training at your site!

Call to register for any of the above classes, including those in Maryland: 1-800-444-4890.

We've posted training dates, directions to our training facilities, and registration forms on our Web page. Click the "Education" button on our home page, or go directly to this link: Education

Massive Thailand Floods Likely To Cause Widespread Hard Drive Shortage:

The monsoon-related flood waters, which Reuters said have covered about one-third of Thailand's surface, are severely impacting the country's manufacturing business, including the vital hard drive business, where it accounts for about a quarter of the world's production.

Tech firm Massive Dynamic said that the worst floods Thailand has seen in over 50 years is resulting what may be a shortage of hard disk drive supplies this quarter and the first quarter of 2012.

The biggest impact from the floods could be on a single company, Nidec, which produces about 70 percent of the world's hard drive motors in Thailand, including motors used by Western Digital, Seagate, Hitachi GST, Toshiba, and Samsung.

Visit the McCormick Website
Unsubscribe

McCormick’s New Offerings:
Get Precisely What You Want!
 

Thanks to the recent total renovation of the McCormick Systems estimating product line, previous introductions of various special offerings (with tailored databases) for specific contractor types, and upgrades of what you can get – options aplenty! – there is an awful lot to talk about in what we now offer.

As you’ll see if you start a visit to our website on our home page (www.mccormicksys.com), we’ve revamped many web pages to offer detailed looks inside the various choices now available.

Consider: We have special product lines for –

    • Electrical contractors (standard 600V-and-under building construction work)
    • Transmission & Distribution contractors (who work for or with utilities)
    • Automated Building Systems specialists
    • Plumbing & Mechanical contractors

We also have the WIN 1000, 3000, 4000, and 6000 estimating systems. Each has specific advantages – in fact, the WIN 1000 is so much of a departure from our previous offering (“PC Scale”) that you can’t even call it an upgrade. Each of the 1000, 3000, 4000, and 6000 will fit specific needs of specific contractors and estimators.

And within each of those WIN product lines, contractors can now choose single-user, Gold (multiple estimators in one location), or Platinum (many estimators in many locations) options. You can, quite literally, tailor the product to your specific networking needs.

So let’s add it up: 4 contractor types, 4 WIN products, 3 networking choices. That’s . . . 48 varieties. Yes, we’re getting close to the Heinz family!

Add to that the add-ons you are able to choose:

    • CAD Estimating        
    • On-Screen Estimating
    • Time-and-Material Billing
    • Change Order

. . . that takes us to 192. We’ve left those ketchup folks in the dust!

Don’t be confused – be choosy!

Message: When you go with McCormick Systems, you don’t need to compromise.
You can get exactly what you want, specifically what you need.

Of course, we realize you are not going to analyze 192 different options in some kind of matrix. A plumbing/mechanical contractor isn’t going to look at buying a system with an embedded T&D database; and a contracting firm that isn’t on a network can confidently choose the single-user option of the WIN 1000, 3000, 4000, or 6000.

What’s exciting here (for us and for you) is the ability to tell us what you need, and get back answers that will work for you – in the environment in which you operate.

And that’s just the start. Talk to a McCormick Systems user, and what you’ll hear is that the system is easily adaptable to needs and readily customizable. You’re also likely to hear that our Support staff is second to none . . . a surprise to many who routinely have been forced to deal with inadequate technology vendor support staff.

 

VERSION 10 NOW OUT

Perhaps, in light of all the above, we at McCormick Systems should rest on our laurels, accept our recently won ShowStopper honor (see below) . . . and come to a complete stop.

Except for the fact that, well – we haven’t. We’ve just recently rolled out Version 10 of our basic estimating software package. Again, as in the past, we’ve responded to the specific requests of our users and customers . . . estimators and contractors.

One request resulted in two enhancements:

  1. Takeoff Conditional Formatting
  2. Labelset screen with BOLD selected labels.

. . . these changes will call out to you when you look at an estimate. When you look at the Advanced Audit Trail, for example, you’ll now see headers and adjusted takeoffs HIGHLIGHTED . . . so you can see, at a glance, what was changed (by you or by another estimator).

-- same thing goes for the BOLDING of selected labels.

Other changes in Version 10 might well be counted as “under the hood” type of enhancements and upgrades, designed to make the system you use every day more stable, faster, more responsive to your needs.

What this boils down to: Even if you have no intention of taking advantage of our new product scheme, a different networking option, an upgrade of some sort, our special offerings by contractor types, or our add-on products

. . . well, there’s something new and better for you from McCormick Systems, in V10.0.

 

ShowStoppers List Once Again
Includes McCormick Systems

Electrical Contractor magazine, on behalf of its 85,000-plus readers, honored 20 companies with “ShowStopper Awards” at this year’s NECA Show (held Oct. 23-25 in San Diego).

“Judged by a panel of electrical contractors, the magazine’s annual Showstoppers awards program recognizes the most innovative items featured in this year’s exhibition among many new products and services submitted,” according to the NECA Show blog write-up.

McCormick Systems is on the list for the 2nd straight year, for the introduction of our WIN 1000 product. The WIN 1000 really is a groundbreaking new offering for electrical contractors – ramping the inexpensive end of the estimating software experience up several levels!

At the 2010 event, McCormick was included on the list for the then-new Transmission & Distribution addition to our product line.

According to our informal count, this is the 13th “best new product” award won at a NECA Show by McCormick Systems in its 32 years of existence. Before the E.C. magazine award program was renamed as “ShowStoppers,” it was known as “Contractor’s Choice.”

For more on our product and the other winners, be sure to see the January 2012 issue of Electrical Contractor.  

Mark Your Calendar: 2012 Users Conference

May 2-5 are the dates for the 2012 McCormick Systems Users’ Conference. It’s a special event for us (and, we hope, for you) – our 30th conference.

To make it memorable for all of us, we’ll have it at the Talking Stick Resort (Scottsdale AZ) – which is only two years old. Yes, it has a golf course on the property. And it’s a four-diamond resort, an “exalted” rating according to this March press release.

Too upscale to be affordable? Not at all – the rates we’ve negotiated are right in line with what McCormick customers have worked with in previous years.

Please put this on your calendar; details (including your U.C. agenda) will be coming to you soon. See the registration form below. If you have questions, please ask!

Click here for the registration form!


2012 Preliminary Calendar

Here’s where you can see McCormick Systems in or near your hometown, or at a convention/trade show – or in Arizona!!! – in the coming year:

February 12-16 – BICSI Winter Conference, Orlando, FL

March 18-22 – MCAA 2012 Convention, Orlando, FL

April 24-26 – ABC 2012 Edcon + Expo, San Antonio, TX

April 29-May 5 – McCormick Systems’ User’s Conference, Talking Stick Resort, Scottsdale, AZ
(NOTE: Early Bird Registration Now Available!!!)

Sept. 16-20 – BICSI Fall Conference, Anaheim, CA

Sept. 29-Oct. 2 – NECA Convention + Show, Las Vegas, NV

Oct. 3-5 – PHCC/Connect 2012, Philadelphia, PA

Oct. 24-27 – IEC Convention + Expo, Fort Worth, TX

 

Part 6a:

The bid summary may use a paper form, a program such as Excel, or be part of a computerized Estimating System.

Summarizing the Estimate:

  • The bid summary should contain at least the following elements:
  • The material dollars from the extension.
  • The productive labor hours from the extension.
    • The cost of labor based on the productive labor hours and the classes of labor used. Be sure to include any future increases in Labor cost.
  • Foreman
  • Journeyman
  • Apprentice
  • Helper
  • Any other productive labor
    • Any non-productive labor cost in addition to the productive labor.
      • Superintendent
      • General Foreman
      • Foreman
      • Any other non-productive labor
    • The cost of Labor should include at least the following Burden:
  • FICA (Social Security)
  • Federal & State Unemployment Tax
  • Workman’s Compensation
  • Apprentice plan costs if applicable
  • Pension Plans if applicable
  • Health Insurance if applicable
  • Vacation Plans if applicable
  • Association Dues if applicable
  • Any other costs that can be directly related to Labor
    • The quoted items needing pricing using the accepted quoted prices. A bill of material should be checked for all quotations.
      • Fixture quotes
      • Switchgear quotes
      • Fire Alarm Systems/Equipment quotes
      • Security Systems/Equipment quotes
      • UPS quotes
      • Generator quotes
      • Voice/Data Systems/Equipment quotes
    • The cost for any work to be sub contracted to others.
      • Fire Alarm
      • Concrete work
      • Saw Cutting
      • Trenching/Excavation
      • Cranes
      • Core Drilling
    • Any direct job expenses.
      • Permit Fees
      • Plan Charge
      • As Built Drawings
      • Telephone
      • Temporary Power
      • Engineering
      • Additional Insurance
      • Warranties
      • Interest
      • Trailer
      • Material Storage
      • Material Delivery
      • Any other Direct Job Expenses
    • Any equipment rental charges.
      • Trailer
      • Trencher
      • Lifts
      • Generator
      • Any other Equipment
    • Also charge for any equipment that you furnish.

Summarizing the Estimate will be continued in next months newsletter.

 

Items posted in to www.eleblog.com
 

Solar: What Happens AFTER The Installation?

One problem EVERYONE (not just me) should have with reporting, magazine articles, and even the way we all THINK about — well, just about everything in construction — is that there is an AFTER.

What happens after the installation?

Here, find an article that does some justice to thinking about solar PV after-the-install developments. The headline talks about avoiding “BoS problems” — BoS relates to “balance of systems.”

Here’s the article on just one of the top 5 problems at PV sites over a 2-year period of study — click on the link above to see Figure 2:

Unsealed Enclosures and Conduit. Left alone, unsealed enclosures and conduits can cause rust, corrosion, or ground faults that lead to future power production losses. The example below illustrates one example of how enclosure and conduit problems can negatively impact power output.
Heavy rain can cause erosion around cement pedestals and electrical junction boxes, damaging the sealing around them. Under normal conditions this would not create a significant issue. However, if the conduit in the box was improperly sealed during its installation, it would likely expose underground strings to dirt and water (Fig. 2). Having dirt and water in the conduit may lead to the ground faults, triggering the inverter to shut down. Highlighting this potential risk can help material selection and installation procedures mitigate risks caused by heavy erosion.

Pricing Changed Work

Food for thought, from Construction Claims Advisor — a very short piece, with a couple of comments posted that might be worth a think.

Specific 2012 Predictions

See the Special Report posted yesterday to tedmag.com for a table of specific 2012 predictions on larger niche markets in construction for 2012 from McGraw-Hill Construction.

The headline on it: McGraw-Hill Sees A Flat Earth (!!!)

1.38 Billion Cars On The Way

Really. See the chart below (which I finally located – on my computer, of course) and this piece written for the Energy Solutions blog

 
 

149 W Boston R> Chandler, AZ 85225
Toll Free (800) 444-4890
Phone (480) 831-8914   Fax (480) 820-2422