Author Archives: Melissa Dewey Brumback

We have beer! (Marketing Tip)

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beer  I saw this sign outside the Jacksonville, North Carolina regional airport.  For those of you who don’t know, Jacksonville is home to Camp Lejeune, a Marine Corp base.  Many of the passengers are coming from or going to the base.

Think a Marine on R&R might like a brewskie or two?  Probably so.  Thus the sign Yes We have Beer.

Like it or not, we’re all in the marketing business.  Yes, you are a design professional, and went to school for years to be a licensed architect or a registered engineer.  But, you also need to keep the clients coming in, and cash flow flowing.  So today’s marketing tip:  remember your audience!

It’s a simple thing, but something that many folks forget.  Write the proposal or your brochure copy with the client in mind, not to impress the client with your erudite vocabulary  (Yes, I’m using the word erudite — I saw the movie Divergent this weekend, so it can’t be helped!)

Your turn.  What marketing tips have you learned along the way?  What have you learned *not* to do?  Share in the comments section, below.
And, if you haven’t already signed up for the white paper and newsletter, go do that now, while you are thinking about it.  The form is on the top right of the homepage.

 

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Photo: “We Have Beer” by Melissa Brumback

 

That’s not the way we’ve always done it! (Why you should update your office practices)

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Phone boothAnyone recognize the photo to the left?  If you are of the Millennial generation, this is a quaint thing called a public pay phone.  They used to be everywhere.  Imagine, not having a cell phone to keep you in constant contact with Big Brother…………. [the good old days].

As you may be able to tell from the fact that the receiver is hanging down, this phone has seen better days.

What does this have to do with construction? Everything.  Just because something is done one way– even for years, or decades– doesn’t mean it should stay that way.  Just as you learn new technical skills and change your designs, you should also update and modernize your office practices.

What do I mean by office practices?  How you open a project.  Whether or not you get a contract in writing (you should).  How you keep and store project files both during and after project completion.  You should also modernize and update your contracts.  Still using 1997 AIA documents?  Maybe it’s time to step it up to the 2007 forms.  Have a custom “terms and conditions” contract?  When was the last time you reviewed it with your lawyer?  Laws change just as construction techniques change.

A little planning now could save you in legal fees and headaches later on, in the dreaded discovery phase of a lawsuit.  Just because you’ve always done things a certain way, doesn’t mean you should always keep them the same.  After all, when was the last time you saw a public pay phone?

Your turn.  What are your standard operating procedures?  Do you know how your project files and emails are saved by each employee?  Do you know if your employees know your SOP?  And, you do have a written contract, right?

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Phone booth in the Countryside by Melissa Brumback.

Modernist Houses Galore! [visual candy for architects]

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candyDo you like modern architecture?  Is Frank Lloyd Wright someone you wish you could have met?

If so, then you’ll want to check out the new “Masters Gallery” of the North Carolina Modernist Houses (NCMH) group.  With changes and additions announced this week, it’s Gallery is America’s largest open digital archive of Modernist houses, as well as the internationally known Modernist architects who designed them.

Currently, the Gallery showcases over 30 architects with extensive house histories and over 10,000 photos.  The Gallery is extensive and searchable and includes, among many other notables, Frank Gehry and, of course, Frank Lloyd Wright.

To view the NCMH Masters Gallery, go to http://www.ncmodernist.org/ and click on “Masters Gallery” under the Archives listing.   Be careful, though, because NCMH founder and director George Smart, you can spend many addictive hours looking around.  Hey, at least this addiction doesn’t require a trip to the gym afterwords!

 Photo courtesy WikiMedia Commons.

Cozy up with some good Construction Blogs (and a favor)

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If you haven’t already, check out some of the blogs on my Blogroll.  These are other construction law writers from around the United States.  Even if they are not writing for your jurisdiction, most of the information is relevant to readers from any state- or indeed, for readers from many other countries.

In addition to the Blogroll, you can find a plethora of well-written, topical blogs in Construction Marketing Ideas, founded by Mark Buckshon.   Mark’s company is also responsible for publication of the North Carolina Construction News, which is on my “to read” list and should be on yours.

vote signAnd yes, if you think I have ulterior motives, I do.  This blog is one of the contestants, so if you feel so inclined to vote, please consider including this blog among your votes.  (In the alphabetized list, under “C”, “Construction Law in North Carolina,” which is the 14th from the top.

You can vote for multiple blogs, and I encourage you to do so as there are many good contenders this year.  The contest is open until the end of the month.  Happy reading & happy voting!

5 Impressive Construction Projects in North Carolina

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What are your top construction building projects in North Carolina?  Do you have a “short list”?  Author Ralitsa Golemanova of JW Surety Bonds does, and she has the reasoning behind them. Ralista’s Top 5, which all “present a different facet of exceptional modern design and construction” are presented below. 

Her list, in no particular order, includes:

art museum1.  The North Carolina Museum of Art’s West Building Expansion

The 127,000 square-feet West Building Expansion of the North Carolina Museum of Arts won the 2011 American Institute of Architects (AIA) Honor Award for Architecture.   The Building is largely made of aluminum panels. One of its specificities is that it does not have any windows. Instead, visibility is ensured through 360 skylights that allow delicate natural light to enter the inner galleries.

2.  The Bank of America Corporate Center in Charlotte

The skyscraper is 871 feet tall and was completed in 1992, is allegedly the tallest building between Atlanta and Philadelphia, and can be seen from 35 miles away.

3.  The Bell Tower Development project at UNC-Chapel Hill

The huge $175 million Bell Tower Development includes a 710 car parking deck, a 25 thousand-ton chilled water plant, a new Genome Science Laboratory Building which will provide approximately 210,000 square feet of  modern classrooms, laboratories and offices including nine wet labs, four bioinformatics labs, a 250 seat lecture hall, a 450 seat lecture hall, an 80 seat classroom, and four 30 seat seminar rooms.

4.  The Biomanufacturing Research Institute & Technology Enterprise (BRITE) at NC Central

The BRITE construction was a $17.8 million endeavor, which is spread out over 59,900 square feet and complements the existing science buildings.  The project includes a four-story 65,000 square foot building to provide hands-on learning experiences for biotechnology students.

Hunt library5.  The James B. Hunt, Jr. Library at NC State

Priced at $93.75 million, the 221,122 square feet library  is designed with maximized light and views of nature in mind.  With its LEED Silver certification, it provides natural heating and cooling, as well as usage of rainwater with the help of green roofs and rain gardens.

What about you?  Do you have a list of favorites??  Share in the comment section of the blog.

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Photos of Art Museum and Hunt Library both courtesty of Wikipedia via cc.