Moving to Commercial Construction - Table of Contents:

• The Change
  • Don't Worry, You're Not Alone
  • The Construction Industry
• Staffing the Commercial Construction Office
  • Weighing Your Needs
  • Staffing Your Office
  • Independent Contractor vs. Employee
  • The Office Itself
• Finding Commercial Work
  • Covering Office Overhead
  • Residential Bid Opportunities
  • Commercial Bid Solicitation
• Working With Architects and Engineers
  • The Architect
  • The Engineer
  • Professional Organizations
• Construction General Requirements
  • Why Should You Care About General Requirements?
  • Administrative General Requirements
  • Field General Requirements
• Creating a Winning Estimate
  • Commercial Construction Estimating
  • The Estimating Process
  • Conclusion
• Owner/Contractor Relationships
  • Types of Commercial Contractor/Owner Relationships
  • Fee Arrangements
  • The Problem with Competitive Bids
  • The Competitive Difference
  • If Not Competitive Bid - What Then?
• Design/Build and Partnering
  • What Is Design/Build
  • The Pros and Cons of Design/Build
  • Partnering
  • Conclusion
• The Submittal and Shop Drawing Process
  • The Process
  • Why Have a Review Process?
  • Final Thoughts
• Subcontractor and Supplier Selection
  • The Selection Process
  • Purchase Orders and Subcontractor Agreements
  • The “Buy-Out”
• The Profitable Job Site
  • Making or Losing Money in the Field
  • Construction Delays
  • The Change Order Challenge
  • Conclusion
• Employee Turnover and Morale
  • Investing in Your Employees
  • Taming the Beast
  • A Course of Action
  • Conclusion
• Project Closeout and Warranty
  • The Job That Wouldn't Die
  • Project Closeout Requirements
  • Don't Wait Until the End
• Accounting, Collections, and Your Financial Health
  • The Importance of Accounting
  • Bookkeeping vs. Accounting
  • Common Bookkeeping Duties
  • Cash Flow
  • Collection Procedures and Overdue Accounts
  • Computers
• Bonding, Insurance, Workers' Compensation and Safety
  • Business Failures
  • Bonding Companies
  • Insurance
  • Safety and Workers' Compensation Insurance
  • Other Insurance Needs
• Marketing and Promotion
  • Marketing Tools
  • Customer Presentations
  • Trade Shows
  • Other Ways to Get the Word Out
  • Getting the Advertising Juices Flowing
• The ADA Impact
  • The Americans With Disabilities Act
  • Common ADA Applications
  • The Consequences for Noncompliance
  • Resource Information
• The Contractor, the Computer and the Internet
  • Computer Basics
  • The Computer and Commercial Construction
  • The Internet
• Success and Failure in Commercial Construction
  • Ten Dumb Things We Do to Spoil Our Own Success
• What's on the CD
• Index