Table of Contents June 2002

FEATURES

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  Great customer service is key between clients and remodelers

  Great customer service means more than providing a completed project. Read on to learn about the specific practices five remodelers have in place to ensure fantastic service and what their clients think of them.

   

• Seattle Home Remodel

  Although the building boom of the past two decades captures all the media attention these days, we're also more quietly contending with the results of earlier ones.

   

• The Remod Squad

  Somewhere between 15% and 20% of the volume of Scherer Bros. Lumber, a five-store chain in the Twin Cities, comes from sales to remodeling contractors.

   

• Suppliers are targeting remodelers

  Ed Roskowinski, co-owner and general manager of Vujovich Design/Build in Minneapolis, wants three things from a supplier.

   

• Free the Dog and Pony

  For true believers in the Sandler sales system, presentation materials are just a waste of time.

   

• Pre-Meeting Marketing

  Mailing marketing materials to a lead before your first meeting is a simple step that pays big dividends, says marketing expert Mike Cohen of Remodeling Success Systems in Cumming, Ga.

   

• Using the right presentation tools

  For remodelers not blessed with a silver tongue, using the right presentation tools can make all the difference. Tech-savvy remodelers have begun using CAD presentations at sales calls to give clients a sense of exactly what they're agreeing to pay for.

   

Before and After

• BEFORE + AFTER: Floor Plans

  Fire prompts a remodel that overcomes all the elements of disaster: distance, family ties, and multiple players. Floor Plans

   
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  Four conceptual sketches

  Four conceptual sketches addressing the entry and window plan for this remodel's new A-gable end hide larger issues.

   
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  Remodel of a 1970s A-frame house

  Disaster provoked it. And at the outset, disaster could have been scrawled all over the remodel of this rustic 1970s A-frame.

   

VIEW POINT

FIRST WORD

• Don't Take This Personally

  Any industry consultant will tell you that most small remodeling companies are undercapitalized.

   

News + Notes

• Remodeling Hall of Fame

  The NAHB Remodelors Council announced the first six inductees to its new National Remodeling Hall of Fame. The Council created the hall of fame to recognize committed leaders who have made significant and lasting contributions to the advancement of the industry.

   

• Jury Awards Marvin Millions

  A federal jury found that a wood preservative sold to Marvin Windows by PPG Industries did not prevent rot as advertised and ordered PPG to pay $135.8 million in damages, the New York Times reported.

   

• Poor Management a Liability

  Design firms can significantly improve their protection from liability by "improving their practice management skills," according to a study by insurance program provider DPIC Companies.

   

• New Subcontractor Info Resource

  Contractors have a new educational resource available online at www.contractorsknowledgenetwork.org. While some resources on the network will be restricted to members of the American Subcontractors' Association, most will be available to anyone with Internet access.

   

• Consulting Firm Shafts Remodelers

  Several small businesses that hired the services of Chicago-area consulting firm IPA have cried foul, accusing the company of overcharging for substandard advice and of making harassing phone calls to collect payments.

   

MARKET WATCH

• Strong Showing

  The first quarter of 2002 showed gains in all categories that contribute to the NAHB's quarterly Remodeling Market Index (RMI).

   

COMMENTARY

GUEST COLUMNIST

• Adding production staff

  There's no magic number or formula to tell you when to add production staff. My company, Remodeling Designs, started in 1990 as a part-time business. At different times this growth caused me to consider hiring production support staff.

   

LINDA CASE

• Consistent ways of managing and communicating with employees

  When I consult with remodeling companies, I often recommend the same action to cure many of their ills. And often they report major improvements when they follow this relatively simple advice.

   

WALT STOEPPELWERTH

• Design/build associated with high end of market

  For the past 20 years, the most lucrative remodeling segment has been, not surprisingly, the high end -- that is, the wealthiest tenth of the population.

   

YOUR BUSINESS

Sales and Marketing

• Generating leads from your own database

  Leads have to come from somewhere. They're the foundation of business.

   

• Publicity is effective form of marketing

  Publicity -- information about you or your company featured in stories circulated through communication channels like newspaper, radio, and/or television -- is one of the most effective forms of marketing.

   

• Calculating Lead Costs

  Dave Yoho Associates offers a template to calculate lead costs.

   

• Predicting Future Marketing Dollars

  How do you predict future sales? And how, in turn, do you budget for the marketing campaign that will drive increased sales?

   

BOTTOM LINE

• Paying Estimated Taxes

  Quarterly estimated tax payments must amount to either 90% of the current year's tax obligation or 100% of the previous year's.

   

BY DESIGN

• Second Garage is 'Hog Heaven'

  When clients approached Andy Fusia about building a second garage on their home to house their motorcycles, the owner of Aurora Home Improvement in Cumming, Ga., saw an opportunity.

   

FIELD NOTES

• Tool allowances for employees

  Remodelers answer the question: Do you offer a tool allowance to your employees?

   
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  Documenting construction work

  Many remodelers take before and after pictures, but Rick Hjelm of Phase II General Contractor, Lakewood, Wash., goes one further and covers the during-project action.

   

• Tim Faller discusses the labor shortage

  At first, carpentry skills were passed down from generation to generation.

   

Tech at Work

• Shopping for a PDA

  Thinking about buying a PDA (personal digital assistant)? Michael O'Doherty, a network engineer with Horizon Data Corp. of Reston, Va., suggests you ask yourself 10 questions.

   

• Logging Hours By Phone

  A St. Louis remodeler's field crew is turning in hours by Nextel phone, eliminating paper timesheets and adding minutes to the workday that normally might be used to bring timesheets to the office.

   

• Office technology for visual aids

  What if there was a way to show your prospects a picture of their project before you bid it?

   

Ways + Means

• Mapping Your Process

  Last August, Gardner/Fox, a design/build remodeling company in Bryn Mawr, Pa., hired a consulting firm to take the company through a procedure known as process mapping.

   

• Handy Change Orders

  Gary Nash, owner of Nash Construction in Marshall, Va., found out the hard way that his company was giving away work.

   

• Boost Your Markup

  When Vermont remodeler Gary Crowley decided to shift his pricing from a 15% markup on materials to a straight 50% markup on materials and labor eight years ago, he was afraid his closing rate would drop to nothing.

   

• Getting subcontractors together

  Subcontractors play a key role in helping Gaspar's Construction in Seattle get its jobs built. Gaspar's Construction now plans to hold its subcontractor breakfast annually.

   

BIG50

CLOSE UP

• Big50 profile of Kelly Wright

  When he was named Big 50 in 1991, 90% of Kelly Wright's work was remodeling. Wright recently started Wright Homeworks to handle $2,000 to $200,000 jobs such as kitchens, bathrooms, and decks.

   

FACE OFF

• Crossfire on running a full-service business vs. a niche

  The value of being a niche business is it defines processes for you. It directs your marketing. General remodelers spend a lot of time trying to figure out where to go and what to do. We don't have to do that.

   

SECOND LOOK

• Second Look: Tim Carter

  Soon after being named to the REMODELING Big 50 in 1993, Tim Carter stopped doing home remodeling to concentrate on his new career as a columnist.

   

SOLUTIONS

• Big50 discuss warranties

  Some of the Big50 discuss warranties.

   

KITCHEN AND BATH

Details

• Building a bathroom under stairs

  In this historic 1860s house, as with many historic houses in Charleston, the only place to fit a powder room was under the stairs.

   

• A Fitting Place

  When Gilday Design and Remodeling in Silver Spring, Md., finished designing a three-story addition to the back of their clients' house, the homeowners were thrilled that they would have more room.

   

SPEC BOOK

• 

  Kitchen Ventilation and Range Hoods

  The latest range hoods and kitchen ventilation products are sleek and stylish, crafted in finishes and shapes that blend well with popular stainless steel appliances.

   

Management

• Standard bath packages

  Fast and efficient remodeling appeals to the segment of the market that is looking for an updated look but not a custom design.

   

REPLACEMENT

SIDING

• Fit for Trim

  The lack of practical and affordable accessory options for fiber-cement siding may be holding that market back.

   

• Being put on hold

  How do you respond to, "We'll get back with you"?

   

Windows

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  Service Expectations High for Window Suppliers

  A quality product and timely delivery are only the first items on the list of what remodelers want from window suppliers. Ray Ferraro of All Trades Contracting in Clinton, N.J., has a long list of what he looks for in a window supplier.Ten years ago, Brian Elias, owner of Hanson's Windows and...

   

PRODUCTS

IN FOCUS

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  Fireplaces and Fireplace Products

  Designed to fit in the company's Modern Rumford fireplace, the Lodge Series gas log set offers realistic looks with flames that rise as much as 30 inches and encircle the logs and a hearth effect of burning coals.

   
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  Skylights and Sunrooms

  NatureScape patio rooms feature Eze-Breeze floor-to-ceiling sliding panels that glide up and down to open up 75% of the window area. The units feature aluminum frames and come in white, bronze, and almond.

   
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  Composite Decking Offerings Grow

  Composite decking manufacturers beef up their offerings with wood-look colors.

   

READERS CHOICE

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  Reader's Choice

  Matt Le Vesque's most useful tool is the one that keeps him in contact with suppliers, subcontractors, and his family: his Nextel cellular phone.

   

TRENDS

• Increase Curb Appeal

  Get your client to spend more on a grander entry door and you could increase the home's curb appeal by more than you may think.

   
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  New Alternatives to CCA-Treated Lumber

  On February 12 the EPA announced its voluntary decision, in cooperation with treatment manufacturers, to phase out the use of chromated copper arsenate (CCA) in lumber by December 31, 2003. CCA, currently the most commonly used wood preservative in the United States, has come under fire recently...

   
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  New Linoleum Catches On

  If the word linoleum conjures up memories of Mrs. Cleaver for you, you're probably not alone. Forbo Industries has been offering linoleum commercially for some time and, in January, launched a residential program in response to increasing demand from residential installers.

   

LAST WORD

Bench Mark

• Benchmark for non-productive hours

  In the United States, there are 2,080 standard working hours in a year. For a variety of reasons, however, few remodeling company employees are consistently productive eight hours a day, five days a week.