The electrical contracting world is evolving faster than the time it takes to change a light bulb. For contractors and their electrical distributor partners, remaining competitive necessitates a shift into new areas through developments in communications, logistics and lighting.
Working Far from HomeThe influx of stimulus package funding for public works has caused contractors specializing in these types of projects to venture outside of their local territory in order to get the business.
“Bidding on projects has become much more competitive than the past couple of years. We are seeing an increase of 300 percent to 400 percent more bidders on projects, and many low-ball bids,” says John Barnes, electrical division manager for
Vaughn Industries, Carey, Ohio.
With more than 400 employees, the firm has broadened its focus to include projects across the country. "We are seeing the same bidding trends across the country that we are seeing in Ohio," Barnes says.
Other contractors are making efforts to stay on top of the shift in demand for public work. “We opened an office last year in Fayetteville, N.C., to better serve the needs for Fort Bragg, due to the increase in federal appropriations for the military,” says Donnie Martin, vice president of sales and estimating at
Bryant-Durham Electric Company, a $65 million firm based in Durham, N.C. “We also extended our reach to South Carolina and Georgia to general contractors with whom we are familiar. Both efforts have been successful.”
Cloud ComputingUntil recently, when a large public works project got under way, the only method of communication between supplier and contractor was email, telephone and a paper trail that could take days to process. Now, cloud computing is becoming more prevalent on construction projects.
When
Colonial Major Projects, the project management arm of Pennsylvania-based Colonial Electric Supply, decided to utilize cloud computing via Google Shared Documents to manage its large public works projects, there was skepticism at the outset.
“Before we could launch Google Shared Docs to our customers, our internal team first had to adapt, and that learning curve was the most challenging of all,” says Colonial Major Projects Executive Vice President Paul Hammelef. “However, after only a few months of internally communicating via Shared Docs, our sales, technical and support staff could see the tremendous value this tool would have when used on a customer project.”
Why is Shared Docs a great innovation? “Because there is no mystery. Large projects involve multiple people on both the contractor and the supplier sides—all needing to be up to speed on what has been ordered, modifications, deadlines and who is doing what,” Hammelef says. “Shared Docs serves as a giant spreadsheet for all to see, and allows all parties involved to communicate in real time, eliminating misconceptions, or worse, missed deadlines.”
Further, the customer (i.e., the electrical contractor) can reprioritize its own issues on an ongoing basis, for all to see. It is immediately reflected if parameters on the job have changed.
Transparency is key. Managers can work with their team and the project managers in the field to rapidly address the changing job needs. Sharing documents also allows the project team to better estimate when a product is needed and advise release dates based on factory performance.
Advances in Logistics ManagementA major construction job requires a lot of electrical equipment to be ordered—all of which has a long lead time for delivery.
Thanks to advances in logistics planning, materials are now shipped to a trucking warehouse near the jobsite so items are on hand when needed, but at the same time kept safe and dry. This makes the customer happy, satisfies the insurance companies (they know they won’t be receiving claims for damaged goods) and helps keep the project moving ahead.
However, the additional cost for storage—along with some warehouses not being as technologically savvy as others—can prove to be a detractor to this method in the short term. But in the big picture, coordinating all components and having materials on hand when needed is ideal.
LED LightingAlthough LED technology has been around for several decades, it has only recently become a player in mainstream commercial lighting applications. Already it is among the fastest growing global businesses due to a breakthrough made a few years ago when manufacturers produced a blue LED. Previously, there were only red, yellow or green LEDs, most widely used for digital clocks and other consumer applications. Now, manufacturers can combine the blue with the red and green to produce white light, or hundreds of different colors.
Advantages of LEDs include:
- Durability. They handle shock and vibration better.
- Longevity. Some products boast a lifespan in excess of 100,000 hours.
- Computer interface. LEDs are friendly when interfacing with automated systems, resulting in computer-generated images found on the exteriors of some of the largest buildings in the world.
The one major disadvantage to LED lighting is cost. However, costs are expected to decrease as the technology evolves. With developments in numerous areas affecting the electrical distribution and contracting world, remaining competitive in this environment requires planning and action outside of many companies’ comfort zones.