Building Product Marketing

Google+ Hangout

2012-01-26T07:38:00.000-08:00

I have not used Google + yet, but their Hangout capability might change my mind.

This is a recording of a Hangout with eight space science journalists. The system replicates face-to-face conversation more effectively than any other online program I have experienced.

Imagine using it for sales training. Participating in project team meetings. Online panel discussions. Jobsite walkthroughs.

Watch for future developments.

Run Over by a Cement Truck

2012-01-24T06:00:00.000-08:00

www.nrmca.org

I had a personal demonstration of the value of safety training in the construction materials industry.

I was standing at the curb of an intersection, preparing to cross. While there were no signs or stop light at the intersection, State law requires drivers to yield to pedestrians. Yet a dozen vehicles careened past me, oblivious to my safety.

It was the driver of a ready-mix concrete* truck that stopped. I heard squeals as the heavily loaded truck's brakes were applied. I waved to the driver, and crossed.

Safety training had paid off. Again.

The driver's industry association stresses the importance of safety, and I am certain his/her employer does as well. The driver was undoubtably under pressure to deliver the load on time, but know that "one traffic fatality can ruin an otherwise good day."

Construction is one of the most dangerous industries. As part of the public relations services Chusid Associates provides clients, we create contingency plans for dealing with the aftermath of tragedies. The process encourages our clients to review operations -- in their plants, on the road, and on the jobsite -- to identify potential exposures and take preventative actions, including ongoing training programs.

It is the responsibility of all of us to be vigilant for safety.

* Despite the vernacular expression, the trucks with the rotating drums haul "concrete," not "cement."

Give Them What They Pay For: Support

2012-01-17T06:30:00.000-08:00

The old saying that “you get what you pay for” can be read a few different ways:

- A description of the way life works
- A motto for merchants to reassure their customers
- A consumer demand

If you’re selling a high-end or advanced product that’s more expensive than the alternatives, you’d better make this your promise to customers.

In today’s market, when people pay more, they believe they're buying more than just a better product: they feel the price includes manufacturer support. They expect customer service they can talk to. They believe that they’ve paid for technical support they can reach easily, understand, and get useful answers from. They want confidence that the high-end performance of the product is assured by the price they’ve paid, and support is an integral part of that assurance.

If I buy a bag of ordinary portland cement and I have a problem with it, I figure I’m pretty much on my own. If I buy a high-end specialty cement, I expect the manufacturer’s Technical Support will help get me out of any problems I have with the product.

A reputation for good customer support is valuable. It supports the high price of your product. It's not that easy to establish, but in today's hyperconnected society, it's very easy to destroy. You need to get your support operation in top shape, and you need to monitor and manage your reputation online in the social media sphere.

Sometimes you have to go the extra mile to establish that rep. The most impressive example I’ve seen recently is Apple Computer. Apple sells the top end of personal computers, smartphones and music players. They charge a pretty big buck, but they have a reputation for well-designed, well made products and killer customer service.

In November, 2011, Apple issued a recall of the 1st generation iPod Nano, a device they stopped making in 2006. The recall was based on a (rare) problem with the battery overheating. They promsied to replace the old Nanos.

I sent my old Nano in, and about a month later, I received a replacement: a new 6th generation Nano, a far more advanced gadget with 4X the memory, a radio and a voice recorder built in, and all in a package 1/3 the size of my old one.

Now, I know incontrovertibly that Apple stands behind their stuff. I know that if I pay more for an Apple product, I won’t get a piece of crap, and I won’t be on my own if it fails because of something Apple did wrong. If I’m a value shopper, I know that Apple’s high price is also high value.

All high-end manufacturers need to convert their potential customers into value shoppers. Educating them about the value of the product (i.e. sales & marketing) is one way. Creating the confidence that the company will support that value in the future is the other.

Thanks, Apple, both for the Nano and the marketing lesson.

Why manufacturers need guide specifications.

2012-01-12T18:33:00.000-08:00

"The writing of architects' specifications is a task approached by many with trepidation, by some with the careless confidence of ignorance and by a few with studious determination to succeed."

This quote is from "Ready Written Specifications" a series of 1918 lectures presented by Holland and Parker, quoted in the opening paragraph of Goldwin Goldsmith, AIA's 1940 book "Architectural Specifications How to Write Them." (A tip of the hat to David Stutzman for bringing this to my attention.)

Nearly a century later, it is equally true.

By offering architects a carefully crafted guide specification (a "ready written" specification in the parlance of a past era), building product manufacturers:

Reduce the trepidation of the many,

Inform the ignorant,

Caution the careless, and

Become partners with the studious.

Call 818-774-0003 and ask how a SpecAudit™can assure that your guide specs accomplish these noble goals.

Information Technology Forecast for Construction

2012-01-10T08:52:00.000-08:00

Engineering News Record, 12/28/2011, in an article by Tom Sawyer discusses the growing use of information technology in construction. Here are excerpts with my comments about what this means for building product manufacturers:

The new year will be the year of mobility... when the constraints on the flow of data into and out of the field, and the use of mobile devices to collect, share and present it, give way for good.

Almost everyone on construction jobsites carries a smart phone or other computerized device. This offers great new avenues for building product manufacturers to communicate with customers.

Watch for wireless networks, technology kiosks and pads, and tablets to sprout on more and more jobsites...

Your shop drawings, installation instructions, training videos, and other information has to be accessible.

The value chain has been joined from one end of the project delivery process to the other...

Consider the impact on your distribution strategy, sales management, and customer service.

...relatively inexpensive Tablet PCs running Android and the forthcoming Windows 8, challenge Apple's iPad and iPhone for business use in the field.

Your field reps will have to be similarly equipped.

...independently created and relatively inexpensive apps will continue to compete with, and sometimes challenge the capabilities of more expensive, old-school, licensed software.

"Independently created" means "provided by building product manufacturers." Move beyond providing materials to offering tools the contractor can use to run his or her business.

Three-dimensional printing of models and components will become commonly used tools. Imagineers will design, model, and print in 3-D to test and communicate ideas, and then build for real.

This will first happen in design offices. Some manufacturers use this for rapid prototyping of parts. In other cases, actual parts are now "printed."

The "Internet of Things" will grow exponentially and have a direct impact on design, engineering, construction and facilities management, as embedded sensors, cloud-based analysis and rapid data exchange turns our deaf, dumb and blind structures into introspective communicators.

How will you build intelligence into your product?

...expect the challenge of capturing, storing, sharing, managing, analyzing, interpreting and presenting the "big data"—that vast collection of information piling up as a product of all of that sensor data collection and analysis, to grow as well.

Intelligent machines are great at capturing, storing, sharing, and managing data, but human beings are still best for analyzing and interpreting a problem and presenting solutions. This means your sales reps must still earn the trust of customers.

In response, look for a drive to simplify data delivery through browser-based interfaces, neutral file formats and innovative visualization.

Don't leave this to your IT guy. Make sure your marketing communications team leads the charge.

In short, look for an exciting year ahead.

I agree.

Sun Believable Solar Paint

2012-01-05T06:30:00.000-08:00

Experimental paint generates electricity.

Building product manufacturers must keep an eye on emerging material science that may impact product planning. Here is an example in recent news.

A research team at University of Notre Dame is developing an inexpensive "solar paint" that uses semiconducting nanoparticles to produce energy. They have incorporated power-producing nanoparticles, called quantum dots, into a spreadable compound, to make a one-coat solar paint that can be applied to any conductive surface without special equipment.

"The best light-to-energy conversion efficiency we've reached so far is 1 percent, which is well behind the usual 10 to 15 percent efficiency of commercial silicon solar cells," explains one of the scientists. "But this paint can be made cheaply and in large quantities. If we can improve the efficiency somewhat, we may be able to make a real difference in meeting energy needs in the future. That's why we've christened the new paint, Sun-Believable."

Their work uses nano-sized particles of titanium dioxide coated with either cadmium sulfide or cadmium selenide.Nano titanium dioxide is already used in "self-cleaning" concrete, where it acts as a semi-conductor to convert sunlight into electrical charges that convert pollutants into relatively benign compounds.

If the solar paint can be successfully developed, it will potentially impact many building finish and cladding materials. One of our clients, for example, has developed an electrically-conductive concrete that, when used with the new paint, could draw the electricity into a structure's grid or act as a storage battery.

I caution, however, that nano technology has unknown environmental risks when used in large quantities in the exterior environment. For example, the nano particles in self-cleaning concrete accelerate the deterioration of the concrete and leach potentially harmful compounds into the soil. More, the release of nano photo-catalytic titanium dioxide could be detrimental to ecosystems if released into the environment through erosion or improper disposal.

Sun-Believable Solar Paint. A Transformative One-Step Approach for Designing Nanocrystalline Solar Cells`zMatthew P. Genovese, Ian V. Lightcap, and Prashant V. Kamat*
Radiation Laboratory and Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, United States
ACS Nano, Article ASAP
DOI: 10.1021/nn204381g
Publication Date (Web): December 6, 2011
Copyright © 2011 American Chemical Society

Reliability and Safety

2012-01-03T06:30:00.000-08:00

A new study suggests that the introduction of verification and checking procedures can improve structural safety and performance. While the article focuses on the role of engineers in assuring successful outcomes, building product manufacturers can apply the same principles by verifying the proper fabrication and installation of their materials and systems.

A reviewer has this to say about the study:

Engineer Franz Knoll of Nicolet Chartrand Knoll Ltd., based in Montreal, Quebec, writing in the International Journal of Reliability and Safety explains that faults and flaws in any industrial product almost always originate from human error, through lack of attention, communication, or competence.

Knoll points out that scientific testing and analysis are increasingly removing doubt as to what is to blame for problems and errors that arise. Natural events can be quantified and the probabilities of their occurrence predicted. While early-warning systems for earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunami and volcanic activity are in place, it is often human shortcomings that lead to the worst outcomes during and after such events.

When it comes to the construction of buildings and bridges, human failings are often most apparent. As Knoll says, in the construction industry, human shortcomings trickle so that inferiority ultimately leaks from the bottom, as workers endeavor to comply with strict budgets under pressure to perform well.

"In the pursuit of quality in building in the sense of an absence of serious flaws, a targeted strategy for the apprehension and correction of human errors is of the essence," Knoll says. In this context an absolute requirement is that at critical stages during construction, highly qualified and experienced engineers must attend to the task of checking for mistakes so that problems are not buried in concrete or plastered over only to resurface later. Such personnel being in short supply would suggest that directing them towards the details that matter, rather than encumbering them with administrative chores would be appropriate.

More information: "Of reality, quality and Murphy's law: strategies for eliminating human error and mitigating its effects" in Int. J. Reliability and Safety, 2012, 6, 3-14

The Problem with Communication

2011-12-29T10:31:00.000-08:00

“The single biggest problem in communication is

the illusion that it has taken place.”

- George Bernard Shaw

Score 10 for 10 with MasterFormat

2011-12-22T07:11:00.000-08:00

Do you know which sections apply to your products?

MasterFormat -- the filing system for organizing construction specifications and other construction information -- is updated annually to refine the system and meet newly identified needs in the construction industry. MasterFormat was developed and is maintained by the Construction Specifications Institute.

During the past year, members of the Chusid Associates team proposed ten revisions. We have just learned that all ten proposals received positive responses from the MasterFormat maintenance task team.

Most of the proposals were made on behalf of building product manufacturers introducing new systems or trying to expand acceptance of existing products.

The revisions to MasterFormat are:

00 31 19.23 - Existing Structural Information
New section number and title.

03 30 00 - Cast-in-Place Concrete
Explanatory language added indicating that section includes “pigmented mix.”

03 35 19 - Colored Concrete Finishing
Explanatory language added indicating that section includes “dry shake colorants and hardeners applied during concrete finishing operations.”

09 61 19 - Concrete Staining
New section number and title.

09 78 00 - Interior Wall Paneling
09 78 13 - Metal Interior Wall Paneling
New section numbers and titles.

12 93 23 - Trash and Litter Receptacles
New section number and title.

28 41 00 - Electronic Structural Monitoring Systems
New section number and title.

33 49 22 - Storm Drainage Water Detention Structures
33 49 24 - Storm Drainage Water Storage Structures
New section numbers and titles.

The revisions were proposed by Michael Chusid, RA FCSI CCS and Vivian Volz, AIA CSI CCS. The 100 percent acceptance of their recommendations testies to their understanding of MasterFormat and construction specifications.

For more information on marketing with MasterFormat, see previous posts on this blog.

Good News for 2012

2011-12-21T13:28:00.000-08:00

Billings Index Rises Above 50

The Architecture Billings Index climbed to 52.0 in November, marking the first time it has cleared 50 since August (a score above 50 denotes an increase in billings and below 50, a decrease). The inquiries score hit 65.0, up considerably from 57.3 in October. This could portend increased sales opportunities for 2012, since architectural work precedes construction.

Should you add chat software to your website?

2011-12-20T11:39:00.000-08:00

Do prospects leave your website with unanswered questions?

Many times they will. Hopefully, they will be intrigued enough by what you offer to call or email, but there can be a substantial drop-off in interest if people have to leave your site in order to reach you. And another drop-off if they have to wait a day for your reply.

Website chat programs aim to bridge that gap, preventing interest drop-off by allowing prospects to contact you immediately, from your website, to get assistance.

We see this as an increasingly important opportunity:

Once you have attracted a prospect to your website, it is a way to deepen the connection.
Many individuals now use texting with the same ease, or more, than phone calls.

Here is one building product website already using the capabililty:

Clicking the icon in the lower left corner opens the dialog box. After signing in (a nice way to gather names for your prospect list), the user gets to exchange text messages with a representative.

Here is a live chat I had with LiveChat:

Writing Captions

2011-12-15T05:28:00.000-08:00

The Frank Gehry-designed bandshell in Chicago's Millennium Park provides an exciting visual anchor to the end of East Washington Street. Without this caption, however, you might not have recognized the view nor known what I felt about it. (©Michael Chusid 2011)

Writing captions for a magazine article or internet posting is an art. Here are some guidelines:

Captions Sell the Article: The typical magazine reader flip through an issue to see what captures the eye. If a photo or illustration captures attention, the viewer is then likely to read the caption. If the caption conveys useful or intriguing information, the reader may decide to read the rest of article.

Captions Summarize Article: Use illustrations and captions to summarize the article. That way, the reader gets useful information -- and you get your point across -- even if the reader does not read the body of the article.

Tell a Story with Captions: A caption should do more than just identify the content of an image. It has the opportunity to tell a story. Even a short caption can explain who, what, when, where, how, and why.

Caption Stands Alone: To the extent practical, a caption should be able to stand alone so the meaning of the photo is understood even before someone reads the article. This means, for example, that abbreviations and jargon should avoided in the caption, or at least succinctly explained.

Search Engines Like Captions: When writing for the internet, captions help search engines find your illustrations.

Editors like Captions: Editors hold the key to getting your message out. So anything you can do to make the editor's job easier will help you get exposure. I found this to be the case when Carolyn Schierhorn, the former editor of Masonry Construction, expressed her appreciation for an article I contributed: “It was a pleasure to receive an article so well-organized and mechanically flawless that almost no editing was required. That you included detailed, beautifully written captions as well is nothing short of miraculous.”

Finally, remember to include copyright notices and other identifying information required for use of the photo or artwork.

Metrication Update

2011-12-13T09:55:00.000-08:00

Two examples of metrication crossed my desk recently, demonstrating opposing approaches to implementing metric units in the building products industry.

1. One of my clients is converting its sales literature from inch-pound to metric (with inch-pound units also shown in parentheses).

#11 1-3/8" dia.

2. The Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute (CRSI), reversing its decade-old endorsement of a soft-conversion to metric, now urges its members to use inch-denominated size markings.

The various approaches represent the different market conditions confronting each organization.

In the first instance, the US-based firm is aggressively moving into international markets and needs to speak the lingua franca used for most of the world's construction. The change will not harm domestic sales, since the company uses digital-fabrication to make bespoke parts without regard for the designer's system of measurement.

CRSI, on the other hand, focuses on regional and national promotion. As a commodity product, little quantities of rebar is exported. The industry began marking its product in nominal metric sizes when it looked like the Federal government was serious about enforcing a 1991 Presidential Executive Order mandating metrication. However, the Federal Highway Administration (FWA) retracted the requirement in 2008, and most building construction in the US remains firmly inch-pound. (The primary exceptions Government agencies such as the Department of Defense.)

Traditional rebar diameters are stated in 1/8 inch increments; #3 = 3/8 in. diameter, #12 = 12/8 in. = 1.5 in. These units just make sense when constructing a 1 ft. thick wall with 3/4 inch concrete coverage over rebar that must be spaced to allow passage of 1-1/2 in. dia. coarse aggregate. In CRSI's soft conversion, these correspond to #10 (9.525 mm) and #40 (38.1 mm) respectively. Soft conversion reduce the cost of producers, but frustrated everyone else. Builders using inch-pound had to convert sizes to traditional nomenclature to calculate positioning. And fractions of a millimeter confounded those used to using real metric sizes, where #30 bars have 30 mm dia.

LESSONS LEARNED
Many US industry sectors are now firmly metricated. (When was the last time you bought a fifth of whiskey?) Yet it is unlikely that there will be a comprehensive countrywide construction conversion anytime in the foreseeable future.

Until then, each building product manufacturer will have to "weigh and measure" whether and when to embrace metric based on their unique marketing "metrics."

-----------
By the way:

"Metrication" is term for adopting metric measurements.
"Metrification" is term for using poetic meter.

Not on Time. Not in Budget. But Who Cares!

2011-12-12T14:57:00.000-08:00


Isaac Chusid. Date of Substantial Completion: 2011-DEC-12

Born to Aaron and Alex Chusid, and grandson of Michael Chusid.

Another fine job done by a Chusid associate.

The Ultimate Roll-Up?

2011-12-08T05:30:00.000-08:00

I was recently asked about the attractiveness of having a single company provide all elements of the building envelope, including roofing, foundation, exterior walls, cladding, windows, curtainwalls, entrances, storefronts, insulation, vapor barriers, and the rest. The question came from a business strategy firm, suggesting that some group of investors is seriously contemplating such a move.

At least one company is already well on its way to being able to offer complete building envelopes. Oldcastle is one of the company's that is well on its way toward offering a complete package, with strong positions in masonry, concrete, glass and glazing systems, curtainwalls, doors and skylights. Add a roofing manufacturing line, and they have it.*

The past few decades has seen strong trends towards "roll-ups" -- bringing many small producers under one corporate ownership -- in attempts to gain economy of scale and improve competitiveness by dominating an industry and combining related products into package.
Continue Reading

Proofread or Perish

2011-12-06T06:30:00.000-08:00

Your 2nd grade teacher was right: proofreading your stuff is an absolute must. Othawise, your risk having you’re busness appear solppy an unresponsible, or worse, even ignorent.

Which stuff am I talking about? Every single thing you publish. Your product literature, your ads, your catalogs, your website, even your material safety data sheet (MSDS).

I was recently reading a web page about a coloring product. The manufacturer was boasting that the product “is available in a full pallet of pigments.” Which is good, I suppose, if you’re a volume user who buys pigments by the pallet.

But if you’re an artist who likes many color choices, you might prefer a full palette of pigments.

I thought to myself, "the code monkey who put together this website isn’t very literate." Then I pulled up the technical data sheet for the product, and found the same language there. It wasn’t that feckless web designer after all, it was the manufacturer!

Another technical data sheet I recently downloaded was simply incomplete. Two sections were blank except for notes in red, notes asking if this info should be a copied from the sheet for a related product. Nobody had checked the file that went online.

To be fair, the file was dated several years ago and nobody had ever said a word about it, so we might conclude it wasn’t getting read very much anyway. Maybe this slip-up hadn’t impacted their reputation heavily. But it easily could have.

I see typos and grammatical mistakes every day on manufacturer’s websites and in their product literature. It makes a bad impression on me, but it could have a more serious impact on architectural outreach. Specifiers depend on the accuracy of product information when they select products for a project. Do you really want to shake their confidence in your information?

Now that you’ve seen the light and are determined to proofread everything, a hint: it is very difficult for the writer of a piece to proofread it well. She knows what it should say, which makes it easy for her to miss what is actually printed. Somebody else should proof it. Ideally, the writer should read it aloud to somebody else who follows on a printed copy and proofs it.

You have got to be kidding!

2011-11-30T13:52:00.000-08:00

A sense of humor is a great asset for a building product sales rep. A good joke can help thaw a cold prospect, defuse a tense negotiation, and salve your wounds.

I have found an excellent trove of jokes about engineers at www.inflection-point.com/jokes.php. Most of them work just as well if you exchange "architect" or "contractor" for "engineer."

Here are a few examples that I hope you enjoy:

A New Element Discovered!
A major research institution has recently announced the discovery of the heaviest element yet known to science. This new element has been tentatively named "Administratium."

Administratium has 1 neutron, 12 assistant neutrons, 75 deputy neutrons, and 111 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312. These 312 particles are held together by a force called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons.

Since Administratium has no electrons, it is inert. However, it can be detected as it impedes every reaction with which it comes into contact. A minute amount of Administratium causes one reaction to take over four days to complete when it would normally take less than a second.

Administratium has a normal half-life of three years; it does not decay but instead undergoes reorganization. In fact, Administratium's mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganization causes some morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes. This characteristic of moron-promotion leads some scientists to speculate that Administratium is formed whenever morons reach a certain quantity in concentration. This hypothetical quantity is referred to as "critical morass." You will know it when you see it...

Salesmen
An enthusiastic but somewhat unscrupulous salesman was waiting to see the purchasing agent of an engineering firm. The salesman was there to submit his company's bid, or price quote, for a particular job. He couldn't help but notice, however, that a competitor's bid was on the purchasing agent's desk. Unfortunately, the actual figure was covered by a juice can.

The temptation to see the amount quoted became too much, and the salesman reached over and lifted the can. His heart sank as he watched thousands of BB pellets pour from the bottomless can and scatter across the floor.

How to Find the Height of a Building
An engineering student, a Physics student, and a Mathematics student were each given $150 and were told to use the money to find out exactly how tall a particular hotel was.

All three ran off, extremely keen on how to do this. The Physics student went out, purchased some stopwatches, a number of ball bearings, a calculator, and got some friends. He had them all time the drop of ball bearings from the roof, and he then figured out the height from the time it took for the bearings to accelerate from rest until they impacted with the sidewalk.

The Math student waited until the sun was going down, then she took out her protractor, plumb line, measuring tape, and scratch pad, measured the length of the shadow, found the angle the building's roof made from the ground, and used trigonometry to figure out the height of the building.

These two students bumped into the Engineering student the next day, who was nursing a really bad hangover. When asked what he did to find the height of the building he replied: "Well, I walked up to the bell hop, gave him 10 bucks, asked him how tall the hotel was, and hit the bar inside for happy hour!"

Not Obsolete Yet...
John was well respected for his engineering knowledge. When a new computer system was put in to help with the engineering duties, the brass at the company was given a demonstration of the new systems abilities. To give the computer as test, the brass asked the computer a solve a difficult engineering equation. The computer promptly responded back with the perfect answer, "Ask John."

Building a Fence
An engineer, a physicist and a mathematicians have to build a fence around a flock of sheep, using as little material as possible.

The engineer forms the flock into a circular shape and constructs a fence around it.

The physicist builds a fence with an infinite diameter and pulls it together until it fits around the flock.

The mathematicians thinks for a while, then builds a fence around himself and defines himself as being outside.

Arguing with an Engineer
Arguing with an engineer is a lot like wrestling in the mud with a pig. After a few hours, you realize that he likes it.

Common Sense
During the heat of the space race in the 1960's, NASA decided it needed a ball point pen to write in the zero gravity confines of its space capsules.

After considerable research and development, the Astronaut Pen was developed at a cost of $1 million. The pen worked and also enjoyed some modest success as a novelty item back here on earth.

The Soviet Union, when faced with the same problem, used a pencil.

The Guillotine
Three men are sentenced to death for various crimes against a mythical and oppressive state. One is a priest, another is a drunkard and the third is an engineer.

The first to face the executioner is the priest. When asked if he wanted to lie face down or face up on the guillotine, he said, "I'll lie face up! I have nothing to fear. The Lord is on my side!" So he lay on his back and faced the razor-sharp blade. When it was released, the blade fell half way and stopped. The executioner exclaimed, "This must be divine intervention. You are pardoned, and you may leave."

The next was the drunkard. When asked the same question, he chose to lie face up like the priest, saying, "I'm a drunk, not an idiot!" So he lay on his back too, facing the sharp blade as the sun glinted off its keen edge. Again, the blade fell only half way and stopped. The executioner exclaimed, "The Lord is generous today. You are pardoned, and you may also leave."

Finally, it was time for the engineer. He also chose to lie on his back. After all, it seemed that was the lucky thing to do that day. He lay on his back looking up at the heavy blade tensing against the rope. Just before the blade was let loose, he shouted, "Wait! I think I see the problem!"

Efficiency Expert
The efficiency expert concluded his lecture with a note of caution. "You don't want to try these techniques at home."

"Why not?" asked someone from the back of the audience.

"I watched my wife's routine at breakfast for years," the expert explained.

"She made lots of trips to the refrigerator, stove, table and cabinets, often carrying just a single item at a time. 'Hon,' I suggested, 'Why don't you try carrying several things at once?'"

The voice from the back asked, "Did it save time?"

The expert replied, "Actually, yes. It used to take her 20 minutes to get breakfast ready. Now I do it in seven."

The next one lets the engineer be the hero, and give marketing consultants like Chusid Associates a once-over.

Sales and Marketing Experts
A group of Sales and Marketing experts were given the assignment of measuring the height of a flagpole. Wearing suits and ties, they marched out to the flagpole with their ladders and tape measures, falling all over themselves to get an accurate reading.

An Engineer comes along and sees what they're trying to do. He walks over, pulls the flagpole out of the ground, lays it flat on the ground, measures it from end to end, gives the measurement to one of the so-called experts, puts the pole back vertically into its slot in the ground and walks away.

After the Engineer has gone, the sales guy turns to a marketing guy and laughs. "Isn't that just like an Engineer?" he says. "We're looking for the height, and he gives us the length!"

Add your favorite joke in the comments, below.

Trademark this Title™

2011-11-29T06:07:00.000-08:00

I delight in creating meaningful phrases that express the identity of my clients' brands. I encourage clients to seek trademark registration ® for these phrases when appropriate, and to mark them with a ™ when registration is not possible. (The ® mark provides greater legal protection than does a ™.)

I recently saw a website that appears to be misusing trademarks. Fentress Architects, a firm that does many airport terminals and other major public projects, enumerates eight principles to which they aspire. As a good marketeer, the firm has branded their principles as Touchstones of Design(tm). So far so good.

But then they claim the following touchstone phrases as trademarks:

Discover the Natural Order™
Use Context to Create Identity™
Let Culture Guide Design™
Celebrate the Entry™
Listen Closely™
Stay Focused™
Restrain the Ego™
Design for People™

Give me a break. These are not trademarks -- they are part of the architectural ethos and express ideas every architect learns in school or in the first few years of practice.

But here is the best part -- The firm has the chutzpah to say, under the Design for People™ label:

"Truly great architecture
is not controlled by catchphrases
of the time."

(Emphasis added.) Having listed eight catchphrases (nine if we count Touchstones of Design™, the firm tries to shrug off catchphrases. I am surprised they didn't put a ™ after "catchphrases of the time".

LESSONS WE CAN LEARN
Use trademarks in moderation. Use too many and you start to look like you are trying too hard and maybe aren't as good as you claim.

Use trademarks wisely. Trademarks require protection. To secure the firm's trademark rights to "Listen Closely" or the phrases, the firm will have to monitor other businesses in their industry and pursue legal actions against violators. This is a fight they will lose; an online search finds nearly half a million webpages that use "listen closely" in conjunction with architects or architecture.

Introduce your copywriter and your intellectual property manager. If your lawyer goes through a website aggressively flagging trademarks, make sure the copywriter doesn't badmouth catchphrases.

--------------
Ironically, the firm does not denote trademarks on items that are clearly trademarks, like its distinctive logo.

CSI-Compliant Specification Program

2011-11-22T05:47:00.000-08:00

Michael Chusid has been designated a CSI‐approved Specification Reviewer. In this capacity, Michael will be assigned to review building product guide specifications from manufacturers participating in the Construction Specifications Institute's new CSI Compliant Document Program for Guide Specifications (CDP).

According to CSI, the Compliant Document Program,

"...is a structured program for reviewing manufacturer guide specifications for conformance with the CSI formats and guidelines. The guide specification should conform to the intent expressed in the application guidelines provided in MasterFormat, SectionFormat and PageFormat. Other good specification practices as identified in the CSI Project Resource Manual or CSI Practice Guides (Project Delivery, Construction Specifications, and Contract Administration) should be used for a specification to receive approval for receipt of the CSI compliance designation."

Manufacturers that pass muster and pay the fees can emblazon the CDP logo on their guide specifications, websites, and other marketing materials. Specifiers will, no doubt, find reassurance and in this mark, giving it marketing appeal. CSI says the Institute plans to publish a directory of participating manufacturers, creating additional exposure opportunities for a brand.

It is critical, however, to note the program's significant limitation:

"The CSI Compliant Document program is not an evaluation of the technical merits, correctness of the material submitted, or the appropriate use of the work result being specified in a project." (emphasis added)

Put another way, a CSI Compliant Document can look like roses, but smell like manure. With or without CDP review, a guide specification can comply with CSI formats, language-usage guidelines, and other principles, but still be wrong, wrong, wrong!

BOTTOM LINE
Use the Compliant Document Program to catch a specifier's eye, but keep them in your pocket by making sure your document is clear, concise, complete, and correct.

-------------
Chusid Associates offers a free, 10-Point SpecAudit(tm) to help you understand how to improve your guide specifications. Contact us to learn how you can take advantage of this offer. Call +1 818 774 0003.

Commissioning Architectural Photography

2011-11-17T05:36:00.000-08:00

The American Institute of Architects and American Society of Media Photographers have jointly developed recommended practices for acquiring photography of architectural subjects. They offer two publications that will be useful if you are trying to hire a photography to capture images of your products used in building projects.

Commissioning Architectural Photography: Best Practices in Working with a professional Photographer, is on the ASMP website or as a PDF brochure.

Sharing the Photographic Assignment: A Case Study, discusses the common practice of sharing the cost of hiring a photographer.

Chusid Associates recently shared the cost of photography. In our situation, it wasn't so much a matter of cost reduction, as access to the site -- a private office -- where the owner did not want to be bothered by multiple photo shoots.

Find the right questions

2011-11-15T10:08:00.000-08:00

Replace the words in brackets with marketing/marketeer, design/designer, or with almost any other profession, and the quote below will be just as applicable.

"The best [petrographic] examination is the one that finds the right questions and answers them with maximum economy in minimum time, with a demonstration clear to all concerned that the right questions were answered with all necessary and no superfluous detail. In practices the approach to the ideal varies depending on the problem, the skill with which the questions were asked, and the skill of the [petrographer]. On measure of the [petrographer]'s skill is knowing when to stop, either because the problem is adequately solved, or, in some cases, because it has been shown to be insoluble under the circumstances."

Katherine Mather, 1966, Petrographic Examination. Significance of Tests and Properties of Concrete and Concrete Making Materials, ASTM Special Technical Publication No. 169-A

Myths about Crotchety Specifiers

2011-11-14T13:42:00.001-08:00

This should be helpful for sales reps wondering how to win the trust and business of specification writers:

CSI Webinar: Care and Feeding of Your Specifier

November 29, 2- 3PM ET

Speaker: Nina Giglio, CSI, CCS, SCIP

Credit: 1.0 AIA LUs, 1.0 PDHs

Cost: Member: $75.00, Non Member: $95.00

Working with a specifier can be a challenge; this session will explore the importance of understanding what a specifier can do for a project and that they are so much more than a necessary evil. We will dispel common myths about the crotchety specifier and provide tools for developing a working relationship that will benefit the entire process.

Specifiers have been the knowledge managers for projects for years, writing a specification is only the product that they produce. Being able to check boxes in a data base, or being able to word process in the most current program does not make someone a specifier. We will compare the many hats that a specifier wears and how best to work with them.

This webinar will benefit design professionals and project managers who are working with specifiers to assist the team in producing a better project. This session will also help facility managers and owners to understand the role of a specifier, and how their input is vital in the development of a project.

Learning Objectives

Identify what the specifier will bring to the project team.
Compare what a specifier does and their software tools.
Develop tools for working with a specifier.
Analyze project stages that should include the specifier.

Register now!

Have questions about CSI Webinars? Read the FAQs

Train your entire team with one registration fee-participants are charged per site/telephone connection-not per person. Space is limited and is on a first-come-first-serve basis.

All Registrations must be received 24 hours prior to the webinar. Telephone dial-in and web log-in instructions will be forwarded to you 24 hours before event. Please add jnorris@csinet.org to your list of safe senders to ensure delivery of webinar details. Cancellations received less than 72 hours prior to the event are subject to a $25 cancellation fee.

Another Score for Advertising

2011-11-11T12:19:00.001-08:00

Chusid Associates has been recognized for excellence in advertising.

An ad we designed for Ceilings Plus has been honored as a TOP 50 award winner by Architectural Products. Every year, the magazine tracks the number of reader requests for product literature resulting from each ad and editorial mention that ran in the previous 12 months (10 issues Sept 2010 - Aug 2011). There were over 3000 tracked items, so the top 50 represents the top 1 percent in reader response.

Giving credit where due:

Client: Ceilings Plus, Nancy Mercolino - President

Creative: Michael Chusid

Copy: Steven Miller

Photography: Doug Hill

Art Direction: Stephen Klippenstein

Thanks also to Jim Fuhrer, sales rep for the magazine, for procuring the inside front cover position for us.

Another Score for Publicity

2011-11-10T06:30:00.000-08:00

As we’ve noted before, the real impact of publicity is notoriously hard to track and quantify. With more and more publicity exposure taking place via the web – exposure that often remains available and searchable for far longer than most print media ever did – it’s harder than ever to know who’s reading what, and what percentage of them act on what they read.

Anecdotal evidence continues to come in, though, saying, “Publicity works.” The latest installment:

Michael Chusid recently wrote an article in a major architectural magazine about an advanced materials conference he attended. In it, he mentioned a company that made a presentation, a company that specializes in digital fabrication and has done a lot of work with resin composites. They weren’t the focus of the article, just one of many things described.

A few weeks after the article appeared – I was going to say “in print,” but with simultaneous web distribution of most magazines, print has become merely the tip of the iceberg – the president of the company received a call from one of the largest and most prestigious architectural firms in the world. They requested him to come and do a presentation to them. That kind of request was the bullseye on his marketing strategy target.

Of course, this was only shortly after publication. Who knows how many more such inquiries he may get from that one mention, over the next few years? The shelf life of articles on the web has become pretty much Forever, and unlike the advertising, they show up in search engines. We have had numerous inquiries recently, responding to articles we authored for clients two or three years ago.

Digital Asset Management

2011-11-08T06:05:00.000-08:00

Chusid Associates has recently entered the field of DigitalAssets Management (DAM). We have invested in a new piece of DAM software to help us do our DAM job. This is a DAM-useful piece ofsoftware that simplifies many DAM projects. Its Graphics On Demand (GOD)capabilities allow us to quickly and easily produce a ### DAM slideshow,webpage, or presentation. If you would like us to help organize your DAMassets, let me know. Chusid Associates – We give a DAM!

A Multitude of Materials

2011-11-03T06:09:00.000-07:00

The quantity of individual components in even a simple building is enormous. A recent TV (and online) commercial makes this explict, extracting each screw, shingle, framing member, and other building elements in a dramatic animation:

Imagining this animation in reverse suggests the complexity of the material culture necessary to support our era's buildings. I am in awe of the ingenuity and dedication of the folks in the building products industry that make this type of complex assemblage possible.

Wiki Revisited

2011-11-01T17:43:00.000-07:00

I was asked, recently, about the potential for a new and improved internet-based source for building product information, a comprehensive and reliable source of information about construction means and methods.

It seems the industry already has many powerful tools for distributing information; the crucial issue is how to create and maintain the content. My suggestion is to "crowd source" it, allowing the learned members of the construction industry (including building product manufacturers) to create content.

Wiki tools, such as Wikipedia, are a good way to do this. I use Wikipedia frequently as a quick source of information, as demonstrated to the many Wikipedia links embedded in this post.*

When looking for building product information, many architects and builders begin their investigation on a search engine where pages from Wikipedia are often the first result returned. Archiplanet.org is another wiki specifically for architecture. Yet I note that these sites are woefully limited in building product information and neither uses industry standards for organizing data. They could be more useful to the construction industry if it were cross-referenced according to MasterFormat and OmniClass, industry standards for organizing construction information.

At the time of writing this, Wikipedia, for example:

"Ceiling" does not cross reference MasterFormat Division 09
A search on "Acoustical Ceiling" returns 13 hits, but most of these are tangential. Wikipedia does not have a prime entry for the topic.
Wikipedia's "MasterFormat" entry links to the entry for "50 Divisions" where Division 09 links to a page on "wood finishing" --- hardly a complete discussion about finishes.

Amazingly, the following common building product terms do not have pages in either wiki:

"Concrete Admixture"
"Division 04"
"Single Ply Roof"

This makes me wonder if the construction community is willing to support a new, non-profit product database. Perhaps an individual or organization could champion such an effort. Is this an initiative that should be undertaken by a trade organization such as the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI)? Is it a viable commercial venture that could be financed by selling ads? Or will a new generation of online tools soon render wikis as antiquated as three-ring binders?

Marketing Opportunities
While the industry sorts itself out, you have a great marketing opportunity. If you are in the ceilings industry, for example, why not take it upon yourself to provide and maintain good content about your area of interest.

While overtly commercial messages will quickly be deleted by the crowd sourced legions of wiki watchers, you will find many ways to direct prospects to your company, such as links to articles you have published, and describe technology specific to your products. Chusid Associates created the studcast page, for example, with links to articles we wrote for our client, articles that also list the client's name and contact info.

This blog is mentioned in the Wikipedia listing for scriptio continua:

Scriptio continua has become common in e-mail and internet addresses. For example, the address for the website "Building Product Marketing" is written, scriptio continua, as buildingproductmarketing.com, without spaces between the separate words.^[4]

My business has little to do with Latin inscriptions, but I have had prospects call me after finding our link in the footnote on Wikipedia. It also helps our search engine listing.

Other than the time you invest, there is no cost to participate in most wikis. It should be part of your social media and brand management programs.

For more information, see my earlier posts on the subject.

---------
* Wikis should not be relied upon for critical decision making since they can contain biased, incomplete, and inaccurate information. Still, they are powerful starting points for further investigation, and frequently provides links to other resources.

This Weekend Only -- Testing Social Media

2011-10-28T06:00:00.000-07:00

You can read the following to save $48, or you can read it for insight into using social media to channel the promotional efforts of your customers.

It is from an email sent to CSI members with blogs, asking them to publicize a "this weekend only" discount on CSI membership. Check back next week for feedback on the effectiveness of the promotion.

And in the meanwhile -- please consider joining the Construction Specifications Institute. It has done wonders for my career, and will do the same for yours. (You can also forward this to others in your network.)

This weekend, we’re going to offer 20% off of a professional membership to people who join between 9am ET Friday and midnight Monday. (Shhh…. Don’t tell anyone until Friday!) CSI leaders will receive this information in a separate email.

I’m writing to ask you to help us. Please post this information on your blog after 9am ET Friday, along with your view on who should be a CSI member, and why. Even if you just refresh an old blog entry that touched on CSI, it would help us out. If you want to promote your favorite chapter, by all means, do!

If you tweet this, I’m using hashtag #JoinCSI for this promotion.

I know this is short notice, and I appreciate any help you can give me.

Here are the exact directions for getting the discount:

Don't miss this special offer! Join CSI by October 31 and pay only $192 for national dues -- a 20% savings.

1. Visit www.csinet.org/joincsi
2. Select "Join Now", and then click "Sign Up as a New Member"
3. Enter Promotion Code 1220ARCH when prompted
4. Click the "Add Discount" button

We recommend you also join a chapter, where you can attend local education sessions and networking opportunities (chapter dues are not included in this promotional offer).

Your dedication to talking about construction, architecture, and CSI has made a huge difference for the Institute during the past few years. CSI’s newsletter has high open rates because we link to your blog entries, and CSI members who can’t get to a meeting tell me that they feel they’re part of CSI’s community because they read “so-and-so’s” blog. Thank you for all the time and energy you put into your blog, I really appreciate it.

Sincerely,

Joy Davis, CSI, CCPR
Communications & Web Community Senior Manager
800-689-2900 ext. 4795
jdavis@csinet.org
www.csinet.org

TOUT, new video Social Media channel, perfect for building products manufacturers

2011-10-27T06:30:00.000-07:00

Tout is new Twitter-like communications channel for VIDEO. 15 second messages. Today, I saw about a dozen short clips, apparently from an architect showing the contractor (or owner?) things that needed to be fixed on the project.

This could be a great way for a building products manufacturer to offer brief tips and ticks, and more important, to handle tech support inquiries. Open a channel. Print your TOUT tag on all your product packaging, so your customers will know how to reach you. Use you existing outreach channels - including your packaging - to encourage customers to put their issues on short videos and send them, so you can monitor the channel and provide answers. A quick visual demo may be enough to resolve the issue. Or else, you can answer by telling the person to call you directly for a detailed discussion. It puts correct information out into the Toutosphere (which is small now, but could easily go big) and shows that you're there for your customers all the time.

Naturally, this means you have to have someone monitoring Tout for you - either someone in house, or your outside PR agency perhaps. Social Media is about being engaged, after all.

A penny for your thoughts

2011-10-25T06:55:00.000-07:00

...the market forces of supply and demand are supposed to be the main factors in setting the prices for goods and services. But marketing comes into play as well. Supply and demand have little to do with a seller’s decision to price an item at $19.99 instead of 20 bucks.

The psychological trick of seeing a one instead of a two at the front of a price, as in $19.99 versus $20 can work to increase sales. But Robert Schindler, professor of Marketing at Rutgers School of Business-Camden, says that in some cases, the penny saved isn’t worth it.

The $19.99 technique may actually backfire when a consumer is most concerned about quality, say, in a luxury item. The penny-lower price can then raise questions in the buyer’s mind about quality. According the Schindler, in those cases, the full, round non-99 price may send a signal of a better buy.

From Scientific American 60 Second Science, 2011-Sep-07

Specifying Nothing

2011-10-20T09:22:00.000-07:00

"We...have actually found the majority of the known objects,"

This linguistic gem was part of an NPR newscast about the potential for a collision between earth and a a "near earth object" such as an asteroid.

Eros Asteroid, Photo by JPL/JHUAPL

It should come as a relief that we have already found what is known.

It would be shocking to know objects that had not been found. Or if we failed to know objects that had been found.

Yet figures of speech like this abound in building product technical literature. I once wrote that a water repellent "penetrates up to a quarter inch or more." While it sounds good as a marketing claim, it actually means nothing, since a material that lays on the surface would also satisfy this claim.

Recently, I saw a product claim that "our material meets ASTM E84." This says nothing, because a test conducted according to the standard (for surface burning characteristics of a material) yields a numeric value, not a pass/fail criterion that can be met.

Send me your favorite example of a product claim that doesn't say anything.

-------------

Post Script:

A comment on the NPR site refers to the title of the news segment:

"Asteroids Pose Less Risk To Earth Than Thought"

The commentator says, "I completely agree!!! Thought poses a huge amount of risk to the earth. Way more than asteroids."

I was taught that construction specifications must be written not only to say what was meant, but in a way that can not be misinterpreted.

Sales Training at CSI Academy

2011-10-19T12:05:00.000-07:00

Every building product sales rep or marketing manager will benefit from attending CSI's Product Representative Academy, to be held at the CSI Academies, March 1-3, 2012 in San Diego.

Here is what you will learn:

I'm Not Getting Through! How Do I Communicate With Design Professionals?
Do you ever feel you're not getting your message across in your architectural visits? Is it your age difference, your delivery method, the style, the timing, your cologne or all the above? Age difference is not the only problem -- it's the communication methods you use to get your message across. Architects work, learn, hear and express differently than most product representatives. Most of them have been interested in architecture and building since they were kids, and have a passion about the profession. Throw in a generational difference, and as the product representative, you need to find out the best way to get your message across. Join in this conversation on finding the best methods to share your information effectively with your architectural customers.

Learn about the communication barriers caused by the personality differences between architects and product representatives
Understand changing office dynamics and the benefits and pitfalls
Understand how different age groups respond, communicate and use your information
Learn to build trust in your relationships with architectural firms

Get It Right - What To Look For In The Specifications
Do you race to Part II of a specification to see if your product is specified and then ignore the remainder of the document? There may be important information that you are missing that could mean the difference between success and losing money, or the job. Listen to an architect/specifier's explanation of why all the information is important, how it will affect your product, and how it integrates with other products.

Learn the parts of a specification and the importance of each
Discover the frequent problems specifiers have when writing speicifcations
Learn how you can help the architectural team improve their specifications

Bringing Back Customer Service: How To Redevelop Relationships in Construction
What happened to the good old days, when a handshake meant something? Is customer loyalty a thing of the past? Has your personal communication with customers turned into a cold, electronic auto-response? This session will explore ways to help you redevelop relationships with customers by focusing on becoming their source and resource for information to solve their problems during design, bidding and construction phases.

Learn about the importance of building your network
Discover how referrals help make you the guru of your profession
Understand the importance of staying in the forefront
Find new ways to rebuild loyalty and remind your customer why they need you

Proprietary Specifications: The Mistakes Manufacturers Make
Many manufacturers provide electronic guide specifications written around their products exclusively. Are these sections useful, and are they worth offering? Who uses them, how they are used, and how effective they are in getting the sponsoring companies specified will be the main topics of this session.

Understand the difference between a generic and a proprietary specification section
Learn why many design professionals decline to use proprietary specifications
Discover the benefits of including the names of comparable products in your specifications
Learn why it’s a bad idea to disguise a proprietary product spec as a generic section

How to Submit the Ultimate Substitution Request (Panel Discussion)
Who likes submitting their products for approval, especially when there is no guarantee that you'll be considered or even reviewed? This interactive, 90-minute panel discussion with two architects and a product rep/subcontractor will help you understand the process, the why-where-when-how of making a request for approval of your products, what CSI forms are available, and where to find this information in the construction documents.

Learn how to avoid ever needing to make a substitution request again
Hear why architects don't want substitutions
Discover the rules of the game for a successful submittal
Understand how to make your request meet the needs of the project and its requirements, so it will be accepted

You Want Your Product Specified? How NOT To Spend Your Marketing Dollars
Websites are important. Print advertising is useful for establishing an image. Electronic directories can be helpful, providing you use them properly. Proprietary specifications can get you specified by smaller firms on smaller projects. But getting your products listed in the major master guide specification is crucial. This session explains why.

Learn about the website features that are important to a specifier
Understand the differences between the various product directories and where you should concentrate your resources
Learn why print advertising is less effective with specifiers
Discover the importance of getting your company included in the major master guide specification systems - and learn how to do it

Integrated Project Delivery - The Good, The Evil, and Its Affect on The Building Team
Everyone’s talking about Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), but is anyone doing anything with it? In this seminar you’ll meet a team on the IPD fast track, with a real project under construction. The panel will explain how this project delivery method completely shakes up the standard roles of architects, contractors, owners and suppliers by making them one team, focused on realizing the project, which results in shared responsibilities, shared rewards, shorter construction schedules, lower costs, fewer disputes, no legal battles, and a more enjoyable project experience for all. Sound too good to be true? Maybe it is -- or maybe it’s a process worth serious effort. This model changes the whole role of a product rep in the construction process. In the IPD process many of the project trades are contracted, on the basis of qualifications, rather than a hard bid for the work! Don’t miss this opportunity to find out how to compete for your place in this new delivery method -- or you may be find yourself on the outside as a spectator.

Find out why owners, designers and construction teams are considering IPD as their new delivery method
Understand how IPD is changing the process of incorporating product knowledge into a project, and how that affects you
Learn about the pitfalls and downsides of this delivery method over traditional methods

Why Is It So Difficult To Get My Product Specified? Viewpoints Of An Architect and Product Rep
At the end of the day, all product reps and manufacturers want is to see their manufacturer, model number and product type listed in the architect’s specification. Sounds like a simple request, doesn’t it? It’s just what the architect needs on the job, so what’s the problem? Attend this session and listen to an architect and product representative discuss the complex choice and decisions that are essential to the product selection process and how these selections can make the difference between a successful or failed project.

Learn about the architect’s office policies and process of selecting products for projects
Hear the manufacturer’s side of developing new products and getting them specified
Discover the liability of creating specifications and who is responsible for their performance
Understand the influence of the owner or outside forces when making product choices

Reading the Architect's Drawings - Do You Really Know What You're Looking For?
When you visit with a designer and they roll out the plans, does fear race through your veins? Are you afraid the architects will find out that you can't find your own product on their drawings? If you want to know the difference between a plan and elevation view, what section and details mean, how to read an architectural scale, or just want to look like you know what's on a set of drawings, this session is for you.

Learn where to find your products on the drawings
Find out how to identify the types of drawings and how they relate to each other
Work with archiectural scales - hands-on!
Discover how plans, elevations, schedules, details and the specifications work together

The Eleventh Hour Of Bidding
BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND! Have you ever been in a general contractor's office on bid day and wondered why they don't talk to you? If this bid's today, why weren't they working on this proposal sooner? Experience the excitement of being in a general contractor's office just before a bid is due. While you may know everything about your product, learning how the general contractor uses this information and your quotes may surprise you. This fast paced exercise will give you new insight why it’s essential to know about the construction documents, the bidding procedures, and the means and methods BEFORE you submit your price.

Learn how subcontractors use your prices and how you may be disqualified
Understand the importance of knowing how your information may be analyzed at bid time
Find out how General Conditions, Supplementary Conditions, Division One, Specifications and Addenda affect what you need to include in your prices

Ways to Make the Audience Hungry for Your Box Lunch Presentations
What do presenters do right or wrong during box lunch presentations? Hear it from an architect that has sat through many presentations and a product representative that has provided thousands of programs. Learn the important steps to make your lunch-and-learn education session more productive, effective and beneficial to your architectural audience. Discover new ways to stimulate interest in your product, methods to improve retention for adult learners, and techniques to make you their first call for product or system consulting.

Using General Conditions and Division 01 to the Product Rep's Benefit
If you're just selling the product to your customer without knowing how the General Conditions and Division 01 affect your product or its installation, you may be walking into trouble! Know that those who frequently read the General Conditions and Division 01 are lawyers, judges, and the well-informed users who keep themselves out of the courtroom. Attendees will learn the importance of the General Conditions and Division 01 and who is responsible for what, how, and when. Beat the competition by knowing how the General Conditions and Division 01 affect your product and your Bid. Learn which sections of Division 01 you simply cannot miss reading.

Understand the role of Division 01 General Requirements in the Construction Contract
Understand what parts of the General Conditions and Division 01 affect the technical specifications and the product
Learn what articles in the technical specifications relate to what Sections in Division 01
Learn how Division 01 shows you who is responsible for what, how and when

A Link is Not a Relationship! Social Media for the Small Rep Agency
LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and similar social media platforms are new tools – but what you should be doing with them isn’t! They’re today’s way to support your relationship with designers, so that you can remain the go-to person your clients think of first. In this session, we’ll discuss using social media to build and maintain relationships with the design team. We’ll use examples from LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. You’ll leave with a strategy for getting started in social media, or, for the experienced social media user, strategies for making your social media profiles work harder for you. Submit links to your profiles in advance, and we’ll discuss what you’re doing in social media!

Understand social media and its unique value for construction professionals
Learn the process of turning a “like” into a relationship
See where you can incorporate social media into your marketing strategy
Develop a plan for getting started in social media

When to Say “NO”: A PR’s Dilemma Of Providing Too Much Free Assistance
How many material samples did you deliver this week? How many box lunch educational sessions have you presented with only interns and secretarial staff attending? How many voice mail messages did you leave as you followed up on budget pricing? Have you created your own monsters because there is no value perceived in what you are providing as a complimentary service? Designers, architects and specifiers needs to understand what value you bring to the team. Gain tips and ideas to ensure your place as a respected colleague, not just a sample delivery person.

Learn methods on how to interview your customers to provide the right samples and right budgets effectively
Discover ways to control your urge to say and do too much
Understand your role as a source of accurate architectural information
Discover how NOT to be just a salesperson

Helping Design Professionals Make Sustainable Choices: Performance vs. Greenwashing
Everyone, including the design professional, wants to make choices that provide a better environment. They know they have choices to make in the design of a sustainable project, and in the selection of products and systems. Some choices seem right -- they appear to satisfy environmental, social and economic elements. But, are they really the correct ones for providing a truly sustainable project, or do they just appear to be? A product or system can perform on a sustainable project, but does it meet the true intent that complies with the rating system used? Some questions will be presented that may be used to assist in that review.

Review some of the current tools for analyzing products and systems that claim to be “green” or “sustainable”
Learn what design professionals can do to minimize greenwashing

Product Reps Giving Back: The Importance of Professional Memberships and Certifications
There are many product representatives loyal to their company's products and interested in seeing them specified. Memberships in professional organziations help to achieve that goal, and give the product rep an opportunity to become an appreciated and sought after industry professional. Hear from two long time CSI members and Fellows of CSI about how professional memberships have enhanced their careers, and their bottom lines.

Hear how active involvement can build your leadership skills
Learn how the CSI network can enhance business and employment opportunities
Build your reputation through participation
Listen to others share how professional memberships have enhanced their career

Register now!

Panoramic Photo Stitching for Dramatic Online Content

2011-10-18T06:30:00.000-07:00

Digital photos make it easy to "stitch" together several images to create a wide-angle panorama of a scenic vacation spot. Now, software enables the stitching together and online viewing of super-high resolution photos with gigabytes of visual information. I believe these images have great potential for building product marketing. They allow customers to see detailed views of your product, then to zoom out to see them in context.

Create this, in super-high definition...

...from ordinary photos like this.

Check out the examples at www.ptgui.com/gallery/.

Visit an Architecture School to See Future

2011-10-13T06:10:00.000-07:00

Central China TV Headquarters, Beijing 2009

When I attended architectural school in the 1970's, one of the graduate level studios (not mine) explored the concept of linking highrise towers with horizontal connections. So it did not surprise me when, about 30 years later, buildings utilizing such concepts were actually constructed; the students had become principals in major design firms.

I am reminded of this by a visit to Southern California Institute of Architecture's presentation of their graduate students thesis projects.

Architectural schools represent a broad range of pedagogical approaches and philosophical underpinnings. Sci-Arc's amuses me; many of the projects on display appear to treat gravity as an optional design consideration. But their creative investigation of architectural forms challenges existing conventions, and suggest architectural trends that will impact the future of building materials. Take a look:

Chia-Ching Lang

Dave Bantz

Han-Yin Hsu

Qing Cao

Sheng-Ping Lin

Experiment from robotics lab.

You won't have to wait to wait 30 years until today's students become principals. In a few months, these new graduates will find jobs and begin influencing what materials are used in buildings currently being designed. Your ability to communicate with them and understand their architectural influences may be critical to your marketing success. For while it may be the principals from my graduating class that make the final call, these youngsters know far more about the realities of computer-aided design than the old geezers ever will.

Now, if only they would understand gravity...

...and if you think I am joking about gravity, take a look at how the emergency exit doors at the school are blocked. This is the second time this year I have visited the campus, and on both occasions the doors were blocked.

This suggests a second reason for you to visit the schools of architecture. The faculty is probably not teaching students about your products and technology. This creates an opportunity for you to cultivate relations with these future principals.

Sci-Arc photos by Vladimir Paperny.

Call for Presentations for CONSTRUCT 2012

2011-10-12T15:31:00.000-07:00

Speak at an industry convention is great opportunity to build your brand. In addition to direct exposure to convention attendees, you and your company get promoted in the promotional materials for the event, you get to invite key customers, and you reduce the odds that your competitor gets the opportunity. Not only is this free publicity, some shows even reimburse your expenses or pay an honorarium.

Proposals to speak at CONSTRUCT 2012 are due in a few weeks. The event, held in conjunction with CSI Annual Convention, will be September 11-14, 2012 at the Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix, AZ.

SUBMIT NOW

For additional questions or assistance preparing a proposal, feel free to contact Chusid Associates.

Dihydrogen Monoxide: Hazard?

2011-10-11T06:23:00.000-07:00

Dihydrogen monoxide (DHMO) is colorless, odorless, tasteless, and kills thousands of people every year. Most of these deaths are caused by accidental inhalation of DHMO. Prolonged exposure to its solid form causes severe tissue damage. Symptoms of DHMO ingestion can include excessive sweating and urination, and possibly a bloated feeling, nausea, vomiting and body electrolyte imbalance. For those who have become dependent, DHMO withdrawal means certain death.

Dihydrogen monoxide:
- is the major component of acid rain
- contributes to the "greenhouse effect"
- it can cause severe burns in its gaseous state
- contributes to erosion
- accelerates corrosion and rusting of many metals
- may cause electrical failures and decreased effectiveness of automobile brakes
- has been found in tumors of terminal cancer patients

Despite the dangers, dihydrogen monoxide is often used:
- as an industrial solvent and coolant.
- as an ingredient in concrete.
- in nuclear power plants.
- in the production of styrofoam.
- as a fire retardant.
- in many forms of cruel animal research.
- as an additive in certain "junk-foods" and other food products.

Companies dump waste DHMO into rivers and the ocean, and nothing can be done to stop them because this practice is still legal.

The American government has refused to ban the production, distribution, or use of this damaging chemical due to its "importance to the economic health of this nation." In fact, the navy and other military organizations are conducting experiments with DHMO, and designing multi-billion dollar devices to control and utilize it during warfare situations. Hundreds of military research facilities receive tons of it through a highly sophisticated underground distribution network. Many store large quantities for later use.

Chemical Formula: H2O.

Other Names: Product also known as water, ice, and steam.

Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) and other disclosures of potential product hazards are vital to protecting public and environmental health, safety, and welfare. Still, the testing, documentation, and record-keeping requirements can be an onerous burden. For anyone who has ever felt rankled in this regard, I hope the preceding warning brings a smile to your face.

Based on Petition to Ban Dihydrogen Monoxide at www.petitiononline.com/h2o/petition.html.

New "Speed Dating" Event

2011-10-06T08:18:00.000-07:00

Instead of flying from city to city to meet with key architectural specifiers, imagine having them congregate in one location in a format that allows you to have one-on-one meetings and networking opportunities.

This is the "speed dating" concept of building product sales calls. Like the social speed-dating programs where the ladies get in without charge, specifiers will attend these junkets on an all-expenses paid basis. Manufacturers pick up the tab, starting at $6000 per sponsor.

Forums like this, from Arc-US and others, are already part of many manufacturer's marketing mix. Now, the Construction Specifications Institute has decided to play matchmaker, too.

CSI has announced a "Master Specifiers Retreat" to be held March 8 – 10, 2012 in Tucson, AZ. It will "bring together senior specifiers from across the country for an intimate gathering of focused education, group networking, and one-on-one meetings with building product manufacturer executives." The event, they say, is for:

"Expert specifiers who specify millions of dollars of products, and who are ready for a high-level discussion about specifying.
"Manufacturer executives who are ready to develop profitable, mutually beneficial relationships with these specifiers."

The mix of attendees is likely to be different than those at the Arc-US events, attracting more people with titles like "director of specification" or "specification consultant" and fewer people with titles like "project manager" and "principal." This is a useful cohort for manufacturers in many product categories.

For more information, contact Susan Konohia, skonohia@csinet.org or 703-706-4744.

World of Concrete Press Conferences

2011-10-04T06:30:00.000-07:00

Press Conference reservations at World of Concrete have been opened up. (www.worldofconcrete.com). If you'll be at World of Concrete with a new product, or you have product news, a press conference is a great way to get a little publicity. In past years, we have helped clients set up press conferences, prepare powerpoints, and alert magazine editors about the conference, and usually seen 2-5 stories get into print as a direct result. A press conference can be one of the great publicity bargains.

Copy Websites (Yours & Your Competitors')

2011-09-28T04:55:00.000-07:00

Make copies of websites.

Building product manufacturers should make copies of their websites and other online assets. Having off-line copies will be helpful:

In case your website crashes and your webmaster forgot to save on offline version.
To preserve a record of your marketing claims to use in preparing a product liability defense.
To preserve your company's history for future reference.
You can refer to your website even when off line, such as during air travel, on a jobsite, or to make presentations at a prospect's office without having to access their internet service.

Also consider making copies of your competitors; online assets; you may be able to glean valuable intelligence by observing changes in a competitor's presentation.

A useful tool for copying websites is www.SiteSucker.us. For your archiving to be successful, you will need the discipline to download sites on a regular basis and save them to a permanent storage device.

2011-09-27T07:33:00.000-07:00

These presentations from Hanley Wood's recent Foundations conference provide eye-opening research, challenge conventional wisdom, and will give you plenty to think about as you plan your next move:

The New Now: Marketing and Media for Construction

Frank Anton, CEO, Hanley Wood, LLC

Charting the Course of a Nonresidential Construction Recovery
Kermit Baker, Chief Economist, The American Institute of Architects

Housing Hits Bottom
Mark Zandi, Chief Economist, Moody’s Analytics

The Chaos Scenario
Bob Garfield, Editor at Large, “Advertising Age”; Co-host “On the Media” produced by WNYC and distributed by NPR; Author, “The Chaos Scenario”

Hanley Wood Housing 360: Insights Into Home Ownership
Kent W. Colton, President, The Colton Housing Group and Senior Fellow, Harvard University Joint Center for Housing Studies

Hanley Wood Housing 360: Insights Into Home Ownership Executive Summary
The Colton Housing Group, Kent W. Colton, Ph.D., Gopal Ahluwalia and Jay Shackford

5 Trends in Commercial Design
Ned Cramer, Editorial Director – Commercial Design Group, Hanley Wood, LLC

Residential Design Trends
Boyce Thompson, Editorial Director – Residential New Construction Group, Hanley Wood, LLC

Hot and Not: The Latest Trends in Housing
Jonathan Smoke, Executive Director - Research, Hanley Wood, LLC

Carbon Neutral Shipping

2011-09-22T06:30:00.000-07:00

Did you know that UPS can calculate the carbon footprint of of your shipment, so you can buy carbon offsets to neutralize the environmental impact of your shipping?

TRI-KES, recently implemented a program to do just that with 31,000 sample shipments. (see their website) They are a distributor of interior finishes, so samples are a big deal. They claim to be the first company in the architecture and interior design industry to do this.

We hope there will be more.

Are You Ready for World of Concrete?

2011-09-21T06:30:00.000-07:00

World of Concrete 2012 kicks off just 4 months from now. When are you going to start getting ready?

A little planning now saves big headaches at the show!

If you're exhibiting at WOC, now is the time to be putting the pieces in place, so you can make World of Concrete work for you to its maximum potential.

* Is your booth designed?
* Is your sales collateral up-to-date?
* Have you written, shot, and edited the videos you're going to show in your booth?
* Do you have an up-to-date press kit to put in the Press Room, so trade magazine editors can learn about your products and your news?
* Have you booked a press conference to tell the world about your new products and innovations?
* If you're giving a seminar or continuing education presentation, is it written and designed?
* Are you going to do anything to encourage customers and prospects to visit your booth -- like direct mail, pre-show advertising, or at-show sponsorships?
* Who will be staffing your booth? Are they trained in booth skills?

Light a fire under your people, so they can tackle these issues bit by bit during their downtime, and not cut into business later with a big last minute crunch.

Exhibiting at any tradeshow is a big investment. Support it with the proper prep, so you can make it pay off. (And if you need help, don't hesitate to call on Chusid Associates.)

Fearless Publicity

2011-09-20T07:30:00.000-07:00

They say that even bad publicity is good publicity. Nonetheless, few companies paying for PR want to go telling uncomplimentary stories about themselves.

On the other hand, the story of a problem, and how to fix it, can make compelling reading. It takes a little courage to admit that there could ever, possibly be a problem in any way connected with your peerless product. But everyone knows problems happen, and the details of how they can be overcome are valuable information. That's 'news you can use.'

We recently wrote up a case study about a concrete coloring project where the color – made with our client's product – came out wrong. A skillful contractor fixed it - again using our client's product. The product does not seem to have been at fault - some damaging agent apparently leaked onto the slab - but it was still a gutsy move to tell the story. And the president of the company is quoted extensively, so it's obvious when reading the article that the manufacturer is 'on board' with telling this tale.

Many business people would have turned off the whole notion of telling about it, without considering the value. It's a reaction to negativity that's like an allergy. They think, what possible good can I do my product by associating it with failure?

So what is the positive value?

- Contractors learn how they can address problems
- Architects and specifiers learn that the product is versatile and problems can be resolved
- The manufacturer displays honesty
- The manufacturer's involvement and support of applicators is demonstrated
- The manufacturer shows that he's not afraid of the truth, because the product is good and worthy of his faith

What's more, readers in this industry will understand and appreciate the fearlessness of it. The story is more compelling, more memorable, because it's obviously not the usual marketing sunshine.

When seeking publicity, consider sharing your troubles (and solutions) with the world. It might come out better than you think.

Parliamentary Procedure is a Sales Tool

2011-09-19T07:47:00.000-07:00

Robert's Rules of Order was compiled by an engineer.

"Henry Martyn Robert was an engineering officer in the regular Army. Without warning he was asked to preside over a public meeting being held in a church in his community and realized that he did not know how. He tried anyway and his embarrassment was supreme. This event, which may seem familiar to many readers, left him determined never to attend another meeting until he knew something of parliamentary law." (Robert's Rules of Order website)

Building product salesmen, like engineers, ought to be prepared to participate in "deliberative assemblies," to use Robert's elegant phrase for meetings where a group considers and democratically decides on a course of action or policy. As Robert's found, being able to conduct a business meeting effectively is a form of service to an organization. It can also enhance an individual's reputation and afford leadership opportunities that can aid one's career.

I am reflecting on this following the recent Annual Meeting of the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI). A simple motion from the floor devolved into confusion that delayed the meeting and frustrated members. This would not have been the case if the meeting had been assisted by an able parliamentarian or if the members had a better understanding of the rules of order.

Rules of order are similar in function to MasterFormat's Division 01 - General Requirements; both describe administrative and procedural requirements to be followed in order to achieve a goal. Conducting a meeting is far easier than managing a construction project.

"The application of parliamentary law is the best method yet devised to enable assemblies of any size, with due regard for every member’s opinion, to arrive at the general will on the maximum number of questions of varying complexity in a minimum amount of time and under all kinds of internal climate ranging from total harmony to hardened or impassioned division of opinion." (Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised, 10th ed., Introduction, p. xlviii)

While CSI's meeting was tumultuous, the members were still able to approve the motion in question, with a substantial majority voting in the affirmative.

Familiarity with parliamentary procedures will enhance your participation in professional and trade associations and committees and in community affairs. To learn parliamentary procedures, I recommend reading Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised IN BRIEF, a clear, concise, and correct guidebook that is complete enough for use most meetings. I also recommend The A-B-C's of Parliamentary Procedures, a pamphlet that explains basic rules and is priced so that copies can be affordably provided to all members of an organization.

Roberts worked with the US Army Corps of Engineers, eventually becoming its Chief of Engineers. Among his many civil engineering works were improvements to waterways. Yet his greatest achievement was to improve the flow of group decision making and to drain the swamps of debate. It is altogether fitting that contemporary members of the construction industry follow his lead.

Greenwash On Wheels

2011-09-15T07:30:00.000-07:00

It's a hot day in Tarzana, CA (where Chusid Associates has its headquarters) and I just saw a perfect symbol of greenwashing: a black Toyota with the windows rolled up and the air conditioning on.

No knock against Toyota or its Prius hybrid. I'm thinking of the driver. In this hot climate, what environmentally conscious person buys a heat-absorbing black Prius?

Someone for whom the purchase is not really a sustainable choice, just a sustainable statement.

When the weather heats up and she turns on the air conditioning, it becomes pretty obvious to anyone who thinks about it that her sustainability credibility is pretty thin. Her black Prius is pure greenwash.

Every day, Chusid Associates helps building products manufacturers tell their “green” stories in websites, press releases, magazine articles, sales sheets, data sheets, guide specifications, trade show displays, continuing education, social media and more. Green has become a major aspect of marketing. This means that the consumers – in our case, design professionals, contractors, and building owners – have gotten and continue to get more sophisticated.

In the current environment, a green story gets attention, but increasingly, greenwash gets seen through. Design professionals can smell it. LEED AP’s are cropping up in every architectural office. And they care. Owners and even contractors are starting to know, and they’re starting to care.

Green is not a fad, it’s not going away. As has been noted here before, it’s becoming standard. Products that can’t meet the standard will see their markets shrink.

If you have a green story, now is the time to tell it.

If you don’t know whether you’ve got a green story, now is the time to figure it out (we can help).

If your product has a green problem, now is the time to address it. There are many avenues to tackling a green problem, and there are experts available. Get some help, save your product, save the planet.

But don’t waste your time trying to greenwash a black Prius.

Proofreading Perils

2011-09-13T06:40:00.000-07:00

The ad was already on the presses when I realized it contained several copy errors:

1. "The system is panelized for rapid installation and access above-ceiling access."

2. "Using high speed, equipment, each part is made with precision..."

Can you spot the errors?

Fortunately, with the aid of the ad sales rep and the cooperation of the publisher, the correction was made before the ink was laid down.

But the near miss motivates me to share these proof reading techniques.

Use a professional copy editor.
Dial phone numbers in the proof to make sure they go where you intended.
Don't wait until the last minute. It is amazing how many mistakes are caught after a night's sleep.

So what are the errors in these examples?
1. The word "access" is repeated.
2. There is a carelessly placed comma after "high speed".

Encouragement!

2011-09-12T05:31:00.000-07:00

For those of you struggling with the economy, take not -- some firms grow even during declines. I received this today in an email from a client:

Sorry for the lack of communications from my end! We have been inundated with an unprecedented level of sales - forcing us to deal ONLY with the moment. We have set several sales records this summer, and we are poised for our largest sales year since 1927. We are on a recruitment drive for two new employees to start, and two more planned for later this fall. All good, but this leaves NO time for keeping pace with marketing and product development.

The foundation for their growth included repositioning the company into new markets, reducing operational costs, trimming unnecessary expenses, embracing digital media, and listening to their customers. I trust that their work with Chusid Associates was also a contributing factor.

Keep focused. Stay optimistic. Learn from businesses that are struggling, but learn even more from businesses that are growing.

Greenwashing Doesn't Pay

2011-09-08T06:30:00.000-07:00

Greenwashing is a bad practice (I'm sure we all agree on that) that hurts the credibility of the industry, and the perpetrator, when it's discovered.

Compounding the sin is Bad Greenwashing, which not only distorts the truth, but insults the reader's intelligence, as well.

I recently read a manufacturer's trade association paper that notes 35% of the manufacturing plants in this field "have investigated alternative energy sources." (It refers to an historically energy-intensive process, and the chief sustainability knock against the product in question is energy consumption and associated CO2 emissions in its production.)

Decoded: 65% haven't even looked at the possibility of alternative energy. To make matters worse, the other 35% merely have investigated, with no indication that any of them have done a blessed thing about actually changing.

The statement was intended to provide reassurance that the industry is improving on its thorniest environmental problem. But if you think about their argument for two seconds, it's so weak that it becomes an embarrassment. The facts are bad. The attempt to greenwash them actually highlights how bad they are, and damages the credibility of the entire paper. (Pity, too, since the paper raises some other honest points about the sustainable performance of the product.)

Greenwashing, like crime, doesn't pay.

Pace of Innovation

2011-09-07T05:44:00.000-07:00

First Polished Precast Concrete Building.

Click here for "Greenwashing does not pay,"

Ten years ago, polished concrete became a practical finish for concrete with the development of chemical densifiers and affordable polishing machines. It is now an is increasingly common for floors.

But what about polished concrete walls?

Five years ago, I predicted the polishing of precast and tilt-up concrete. Yet it has taken until now to see it in practice. A project at Ohio State University, designed by Ross Barney Architects, is being constructed of polished precast panels that reflect light from dichromic glass fins.

New technologies rise and fall on an annual cycle in some industries. But construction product innovations gain market acceptance at a slower pace. Now that one early adopter has taken the step, others will follow; architects watch what their peers do, and are trained to copy (i.e., take inspiration from) the work of others. But will any precasters or manufacturer of concrete densifiers take the lead in promoting the concept?

And for the next five years? Here are some predictions:

Polished concrete floors are often stained for color and given ornamental treatment. The Ohio state university columbus ohiosame can be done with polished precast and tilt-up walls.
Machinery to polish precast panels in-line during production, rather than as an after process.
Precast and tilt-up concrete are polished while panels are horizontal; is it practical to create a polishing machine that creeps up and down the side of cast-in-place walls? (I have a sketch of such a machine if any equipment manufacturer is interested.)
There are a few concrete masonry unit manufacturers that already make burnished CMU. I would love to see units with a high polish. They could be set in a wall so that each was at a slightly different angle, creating a wall that would sparkle in sunlight.

For more information about concrete densifiers, see: www.lythic.com and www.adcsc.com.

Keep Thinking, Keep Greening

2011-09-01T06:30:00.000-07:00

There are many real, substantial ways that you can green your products and operations. Everyone thinks about recycled content and carbon footprints, but sustainability is a broad concept with many facets.

If you want to be greener - and evidence is mounting that it's good for your business as well as the planet – look at all aspects of your operations, your products, and what happens to your products after they leave your hands.

Some manufacturers in the brick industry, for example, are using an innovative method of packaging their products for shipment. They've eliminated the palettes and the shrink wrap, and thereby significantly reduced jobsite waste. That may contribute to a LEED point for their customers.

Photo courtesy of Boral Brick.

This palette-less cube of brick is held together by thin bands that create minimal waste. Instead of wooden palettes to provide lift-points for the forklift tines, the cube has integral slots that a forklift can engage with.

(And just to make it cooler, these cubes were packed by robots.)

The first step to being green is thinking green.

Hanley Wood Marketing Conference

2011-08-30T06:53:00.000-07:00

Please join Michael Chusid in attending this marketing conference for building product manufacturers:

Hanley Wood Foundations 2011

American Construction and Design Conference

September 21 and 22 in Chicago

(http://foundationsconference.com)

We know how challenging the past few years have been. The shifting economy, changing consumer attitudes, new forms of media and marketing—they’ve likely all been on your mind. Those are the things we kept in mind when we put together this conference.

When you join us at Foundations 2011, you’ll get information to help increase your marketing efficiency, generate more leads, and deal with changing attitudes. And hopefully put your mind at ease.

Registration is free and by invitation only, so contact your Hanley Wood representative, then reserve your spot today. Register now

AGENDA

Wednesday, Sept. 21

3 p.m. Welcome

3:05 p.m. The New Now: Marketing and Media for Construction

In these changing times, many building-product marketers have taken the opportunity to explore and refine their marketing methods. Hanley Wood CEO Frank Anton reveals the marketing trends and best practices uncovered by a recent proprietary independent-market-research study conducted by Hanley Wood.

4 p.m. State of the Economy: Commercial Building Industry

In late 2010, the commercial-building industry was showing some positive momentum. American Institute of Architects (AIA) Chief Economist Kermit Baker explores the current state and what’s ahead.

4:45 p.m. State of the Economy: Residential Building Industry

As the U.S. economy shows signs of rebounding, will the residential housing market follow suit? Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, discusses events impacting the industry and offers his forecast.

5:30 p.m. Hanley Wood Windy City Happy Hour

Thursday, Sept. 22

8 a.m. Shifting From the Old Model of Media and Marketing to the New

Bob Garfield is a prominent commentator and analyst of advertising and marketing. His new Ad Age column, Listenomics, explores 21st-century marketing and media, and he’ll share insights on making the move to a new marketing model.

9:10 a.m. Housing 360: Insight Into Home Ownership

According to the headlines, consumer attitudes and ideas about home ownership and remodeling have changed dramatically. Discover what 3,000 diverse consumers disclosed about home ownership, renting, and remodeling in this proprietary Hanley Wood survey, presented by Kent Colton, senior fellow at the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.

10:15 a.m. What’s New: Design Trends

What’s the next big thing in design? Ned Cramer, editorial director of the Hanley Wood commercial design group, and Boyce Thompson, editorial director of the residential new construction group at Hanley Wood, present the latest trends popping up in the commercial and residential design arenas, and explain why they’re likely to show staying power.

11:15 a.m. What’s Hot? What’s Not?

Hanley Wood Market Intelligence is the housing industry's leading independent housing research source. Jonathan Smoke, executive director of research, provides an overview of hot (and not-so-hot) housing markets.

12:15 p.m. Closing Comments

12:30 p.m. Lunch and Adjourn

Facebook and Twitter: Major Impact on Purchase Decisions

2011-08-25T04:31:00.000-07:00

New study shows that those who are fans or followers of a brand on Facebook or Twitter, respectively, are significantly more likely to buy products and services or recommend the brand to a friend.

Specifically, the study by Chadwick Martin Bailey and iModerate Research Technologies found that consumers are 67% more likely to buy from the brands they follow on Twitter, and 51% more likely to buy from a brand they follow on Facebook. Moreover, they’re 79% more likely to recommend their Twitter follows to a friend, and 60% more likely to do the same on Facebook:

Of course, those findings might be a bit overstated — many people actively seek out the brands they’re already fans of and follow or fan them on Twitter and Facebook. Moreover, the research was conducted among ordinary consumers, not construction industry specifiers or buyers. But there’s still much to be said for the mindshare that engaging those existing brand enthusiasts on social media sites creates, in turn keeping them active. Plus, the study also found that many consumers across a wide variety of demographics have negative perceptions of brands that aren’t using social media.

Overall, the study is another sign that social media is becoming a competitive advantage for those that are participating, and an increasingly major weakness for those that aren’t.

[via eMarketer]

A Wall by Any Other Name

2011-08-24T20:49:00.000-07:00

Facade of building as seen from the street.

Successful construction depends on clear communications, and this is facilitated by using words with commonly accepted meanings. Language must evolve in response to the changing needs of design and construction, and it is not uncommon for words to take on new meanings. Yet we should resist the urge to redefine a term when an appropriate alternative is already established.

A case in point is, "facade." The word derives from Latin for “face” and refers to what can be seen of or experienced on the exterior surface of a building. Here are several definitions:

• The face or front of any considerable building to a street, court, garden, or other place. Rudimentary dictionary of terms used in architecture, civil, architecture..., John Weale 1850
• A face of a building, usually the front. Dictionary of Architecture, Henry H. Saylor, Wiley, 1994
• The main exterior face of a building, particularly one of its main sides, almost always containing an entrance and characterized by an elaboration of stylistic details.” Illustrated Dictionary of Architecture, Ernest Burden, McGraw-Hill 2002

When architects design facades, we are concerned about the organization of shapes, color, massing, texture, ornament, and fenestration, and the experience of the public seeing the building.

"Facade" may be acquiring another definition, however.

I realized this while attending a "Facade Tectonics" conference at University of Southern California. They use the term to mean the materials, systems, and processes that relate to a building's exterior surfaces and appurtenances thereto, including the effect upon the spaces and occupants on both sides of the surfaces. Conference participants delivered papers about the thermodynamics, weather enclosure, and other performance considerations of facades, but scarcely used the word in it established meaning relating to the appearance of a building.

The is no justification for using "facade" in this new way, since there are already preferable terms, including:

• Enclosure: Used in ASTM E1557 - Standard Classification for Building Elements and Related Sitework-UNIFORMAT II, and in the OmniClass international classification system for building elements.

• Envelope: Used by National Institute of Building Science (NIBS), publishers of Building Envelope Design Guide and co-sponsor, along with AIA, of Building Envelope Council.

• Wall and curtainwall are readily understood terms.

There is frequently a connection between a facade and an envelope. Yet the two their meanings are distinct. A structure on Main Street may have the same facade as one on a Hollywood soundstage, but the envelope of one is constructed of hewn limestone while the other is painted plastic foam.

Productware

2011-08-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is an encore of an article Michael Chusid wrote over 20 years ago. "Productware" is now firmly established, and our attention has turned to identifying new trends that will shape building product marketing in the decades ahead. The future is hard to predict -- this article failed to foresee the internet, for example.

Building product manufacturers must be able to speak the language of the architectural community. With a majority of architectural firms now using computers for everything from code analysis to working drawings, many manufacturers are rushing to learn the language of automation and its marketing dialect.

To date, the number of manufacturers using computers as a new sales communication medium is still relatively small. But as the computerized customer base reaches a critical density, more manufacturers are realizing that the medium can be an effective method for reaching targeted markets.

I refer to computerized building product sales tools as "productware." The first productware to be developed has been electronic versions of existing guide specifications and product details. By eliminating the chore of inputting data, manufacturers are hoping their diskettes will find a way into an architect's, library of master specifications and standard details. It is fairly simple to translate a guide specification into the variety of word-processing systems most commonly used by specifiers. But it remains an expensive proposition for manufacturers to create easy-to-use libraries of CAD details, especially since data cannot be moved directly between some of the most widely used CAD systems.
Continue Reading

Match your sales approach to the project phase

2011-08-18T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is an encore of an article Michael Chusid wrote almost twenty years ago. It is still applicable today.

My sales manager is urging me to make more architectural sales calls during the design phase. But experienced sales reps tell me I’m wasting my time if I make a call before the construction documents phase. What do they mean by project phases? And which phase is the best time to make sales calls?—J. P., sales trainee

Architects typically provide their services in a series of phases described in American Institute of Architects document B141: Owner-Architect Agreement. The sales assistance an architect needs may differ from one phase to another. Understanding the following seven phases will enable you to adjust your sales style to each.

1. The sales process begins even before a project is identified. The pre-design phase is not just for prospecting, it provides an opportunity to form relationships with architects and their staffs and to position yourself as a valuable resource. Ask about the firm’s experience with and attitude toward your product and have the staff explain their product selection process. These kinds of questions will put you in the role of a consultant and not merely a vendor.

Architects deal with thousands of products in a typical building. The pre-design phase is not the time to overload them with data that has no immediate use. Instead, concentrate on creating positive impressions of your product’s primary benefits. Give the architect enough background to make intelligent product decisions.
Continue Reading

Don't use trade show to evaluate US market.

2011-08-17T05:33:00.000-07:00

It is easy to get lost among the other exhibitors
at a trade show unless you know what
you want to achieve and have a plan.

Foreign manufacturers sometimes exhibit at North American tradeshows, "to see what are our prospects in the US?" This is seldom an effective type of market research.

There is a classic parable about two sales reps sent to a distant country to peddle shoes. After a day, one sent a message to company headquarters, "Coming home on next boat; no one wears shoes here." The other cabled, "Send lots of shoes; no one wears shoes here." But neither would have a valid impression of the true market if they formed their opinions while visiting the beach.

A company from the Netherlands, for example, exhibited at a recent World of Concrete. Not only is their brand unfamiliar in the US, their product category and technology are also foreign to US contractors without international experience. The staff working the booth were unable to address technology transfer issues such as US building codes. Even their booth and sales skills reflected a European aesthetic and approach to business that does not communicate effectively to North Americans. Yet they were trying to judge the attitudes of American customers.
Continue Reading

Videos

2011-08-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

This article was published in the late 1980's, but may still provide some insight to the present day.

Although still relatively new tools in the architectural office, videotape presentations are nevertheless changing the way design teams explore and evaluate building products. To be sure, the number of VCRs in architectural offices has not yet approached the 70 percent penetration some experts estimate the video medium has achieved among America's households Yet, when viewed in the context of today's electronic office, videotape is making significant gains.

A recent study of design industry professionals showed that more than 30 percent of the design and construction office surveyed used a VCR in day-to-day office operations, Respondents also indicated that they viewed some three videotapes each month as part of their regular office duties. Perhaps most significant is the fact that nearly 99 percent of these same designers said that over the next half decade, they fully expect to substantially increase their reliance on new automation and communication technology, including VCRs.

Building product manufacturers and trade organizations have long recognized the one two punch packed by a sight-and sound medium like videotape Accordingly, 34 percent of all product videos that architects' and their associates reported viewing over the past year were screened at trade shows and industry meetings for design professionals.
Continue Reading

Post Occupancy Evaluation

2011-08-11T05:58:00.000-07:00

A seminal work on POE.

Sometimes, the key measurements of a building product can be assessed by physical properties. But many products must also be measured by human factors and how well they meet the emotional, physiological, and psychological needs of a building owner, tenant, or user. For example, lighting can measured in lux or watts per square meter. But it can also be measured by its effect on sales revenue and workplace productivity.

Sometimes these factors can be studied in a laboratory. But in other instances, the only meaningful way to study them is to go into a building to measure the behavior of people using the facility and collect feedback. Consider, for example, a hospital, where design can actually influence patient outcomes, as measured by the amount of pain medication the average patient requires. This type of research is sometimes referred to as post-occupancy evaluation.

One of our clients seles a pre-engineered building system for schoolhouse construction. His customers have been very happy and have written nice testimonials for him. But testimonials, no matter how effusive, can go only so far to establish credibility. My client wanted a more effective tool for convincing school boards to look favorably upon his unique solution.

We proposed to conduct a post-occupancy evaluation comparing two facilities, one built with conventional construction and the other with the pre-engineered system, to understand how the buildings effect the performance of students and faculty. Armed with findings based upon student test scores, faculty turnover, absenteeism, community satisfaction, and other criteria, our client hopes to be able to offer solid evidence that will convince architects and school districts to take a closer look at his system

Sandra Goodman, Ph.D., an associate of Chusid Associates, is a psychologist cross trained in building design and is available to discuss post occupancy evaluation with you. She has conducted post-occupancy evaluations for a major architectural firm, helping to identify lessons that could be applied to other projects, and her skills can also help a building product manufacturer design better products and assess the impact products have on building users.

Changed formulations in building products

2011-08-10T06:42:00.000-07:00

An article in January 2011 issue of Consumers Report pointed out the unintended consequences of reformulating a product. According to tests conducted by the magazine, glass baking dishes made in the US have been reformulated. While the new products look the same as the old and generally perform as well under normal use, the reformulated products can shatter and cause injury. This got me thinking about how reformulations effect building product marketing.

Is this old or new Pyrex? New product packaging has safety warnings and handling instructions, but there is no warning on the product itself.

I have always had Pyrex brand glass baking in my kitchen, as did my parents before me. Over the decades, the brand earned a place of trust in my kitchen due to the product's ability to withstood the ordinary wear and tear of household use.

Recently, and without public fanfare, Pyrex brand products were reformulated. Instead of being made with borosilicate glass, they are now made with a less costly soda ash glass. The new products look the same as, and usually perform like. the older models. But I have had newer pieces of Pyrex break during ordinary handling while my older Pyrex products keep on working unless I drop them on the floor.

This reminds me about a story my father-in-law, a dentist, told me about a batch of anesthesia that produced unusual side effects. While the manufacturer insisted the drug was made according to all quality assurance standards, my father-in-law discarded the rest of the batch. Years later, he learned the manufacturer had finally identified the culprit; the company that made the gasket that sealed each vial had changed its supplier for a lubricant used in the gasket manufacturing process. While the new lubricant met the written performance standards of the previous product, it left a trace contamination that interacted with the chemicals used in the drug.

Continuous process improvement is often touted as a virtue. However, it can become a liability if your customers are not informed about changes. Failure to notify customers can lead to increased product failures when someone assumes the new formulation will work just the same as the old one. Equally insidious is damage to your brand's reputation. My father-in-law found a new vendor and stayed with it for the rest of his career. And even if Pyrex resumes manufacturing of borosilicate products, I will probably remain skeptical, preferring to buy the old stuff in second hand stores than take a risk with an unknown product.

In construction
Product reformulations occur frequently in the construction industry, and usually without the knowledge of the specifiers or builders using the product. Indeed, reformulations often result in superior and more affordable products. But not always.

New products will always lack something that older products offer: the test of time. An old-fashioned built-up asphalt roof might fail in 10 to 20 years, but we reliably knew they would fail in that time period. When a new roofing system comes along, we can look at lots of material tests and even accelerated aging tests. But nothing tests a roof like 20 years of actual exposure. Lab tests usually measure one variable at a time; everything happens at once in nature.

It is generally best to tell customers when changes have been made to trusted brands. Then, work closely with them while they get used to the feel of the new product and learn to use it correctly.

Product Rep Blogs Done Well: I Dig Hardware

2011-08-09T06:22:00.000-07:00

The I Dig Hardware blog wastes no time letting you know what it's about. The top of the first page proudly proclaims:

Following the tone set by the title, the blog's style is very informal. The layout is simple, using a pre-made template with minimal customization; this keeps focus on the blog's content, instead of high-tech bells and whistles. The language is very personal, like a conversation with a colleague rather than the business or textbook style adopted by many corporate blogs.

Which makes sense because this is not a corporate blog; it's personal.

Lori Greene, AHC/CDC, CCPR started the blog when she was basically the New England product rep for Ingersoll Rand. But it was not a company project; she started it on her own as an evening hobby with three stated goals:

Keep her name in front of New England architects
Gather all the building code information she had collected over the years in a single site
Make learning about hardware less painful

A fourth goal has since emerged, increasing awareness of new fire door codes.

The blog has developed a very active community of commentators, and high daily readership. Lori reports that some people have even set it as the home page on their web browsers, and is picked up as a monthly column in Doors & Hardware magazine.

Not bad for a night time hobby.

Why this works

The first key to Lori's success is that she started with clearly stated goals in mind. As the blog has grown, reoccurring topics have emerged (such as "Wordless Wednesday" where pictures of interesting doors speak for themselves...mostly). In the early days of a blog, deciding what to post can be very intimidating, so having goals helps you identify good topics and give structure to the blog.

The informal, personal style is also a major strength. Developing relationships with architects is still the best way to get specified, and the conversational tone does more to foster a relationship. If the blog felt like a constant sales pitch, or used very dry "professional" communication, it would not make that same personal connection. Especially for this topic. The original title of the blog was "I Hate Hardware", a tongue-in-cheek acknowledgement that many architects do not understand, are scared of, and get intimidated by hardware. The informality defuses the subject, making it more accessible.

Which is not to say all blogs need to be this informal; many great blogs benefit from creating an "expert" or "consultant" tone. The key is to decide what tone will resonate most with your audience, and what you will be most comfortable writing.

The blog is also very multimedia. Almost every post has a picture or video; given that many architects are visual learners and thinkers, relying solely on text would be a mistake. Especially given the perceived complexity of the subject. It also makes the page more visually interesting, and provides other avenues for readers to find your site by following links from YouTube or photo-sharing sites.

Trade Show Booth Visibility

2011-08-04T07:20:00.000-07:00

Most people design tradeshow displays as though the prospect is standing directly in front of the booth. In reality, this front and center perspective may be the least important vantage point. An attendee's decision to stop in front of your booth is usually made as he or she approaches the booth. This means your exhibit material and signage have to communicate when seen from a diagonal.

Here is a case in point. While the exhibitor had various graphic on their backwall, they were relying on three mock-ups to demonstrate and sell their product. The free-standing displays and accompanying signage were lined-up, parallel to the "front" of their booth.

However, a quick analysis of their 10'x20' "half-island" booth revealed that it was near the back corner of the exhibition hall, and that there was almost no traffic walking the aisle directly in front of the booth or along the back aisle. (See percentages in sketch above.) By turning the free-standing displays 45 degrees, they became visible by over 70 percent of traffic around the booth.

Sometimes, this sort of traffic analysis can be done before the show by studying the floor plan. But shows constantly offer surprises. So after you set up your trade show booth, take a few minutes to inspect it from a variety of positions around the exhibition hall. Sometimes small adjustments can make a big difference.

Howard Jancy Joins Chusid Associates

2011-08-02T22:19:00.000-07:00

Howard Jancy, CSI, CDT of Chicago, Illinois is now putting his 27 years of experience in the building product industry to work for Chusid Associates. He will lead Chusid Associates' business development in the Midwest, identifying opportunities where the firm's marketing and technical consulting expertise can be put to work for building product manufacturers.

Howard is principal of Jancy Associates, an independent sales agency. He has also worked as a sales representative and architectural consultant for leading building product brands, with responsibilities for sales, training, technical service, architectural promotion, specifications, technical writing, and business development.

Jancy holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Illinois. He was a founding board member of the Decorative Concrete Council and has been an affiliate or member of Construction Specification Institute (CSI), American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), American Institute of Architects (AIA), National Ready Mix Concrete Association (NRMCA), and American Concrete Institute (ACI). He has also written numerous articles for construction publications and been a presenter at industry seminars.

With his strong background in sales and a successful track record in the building industry, Howard is a welcomed addition to the Chusid Associates team.

To speak with Howard or schedule an appointment, call +1 312-286-1813 or email howard@jancyassociates.com.

Underestimating our Future

2011-08-02T18:35:00.000-07:00

Michael Chusid will be a keynote speaker at the CSI West Region Conference to be held in Spring 2012. His presentation will be during a Vendor Appreciation Luncheon. With both design professionals and sales reps in attendance, any guess who picks up the bar bill?

Here is the write-up on announcing the event:

Underestimating our Future

It's been said, "We always overestimate the change that will occur in the next two years and underestimate the change that will occur in the next ten." (Bill Gates) With that in mind, Michael Chusid, RA, FCSI, CCS, ACI, CWA, SCIP, EIEIO*, fearlessly prognosticates a decade into the future to help us reimagine the next few years. He interprets auguries about building design and construction, material science and product trends, and whether sales reps and specifiers will, at last, find true love and commitment with each other.

Michael is author or ghost writer of over two hundred published articles about architecture, building products and marketing, and publisher of BuildingProductMarketing.com. As president of Chusid Associates (chusid.com), the leading marketing and technical consultant to the building product industry, he has seen untold numbers of innovations crash and burn, yet is adamant that his predictions will be just as wrong as those of anyone else.

While the tone is lighthearted, the topic is crucial for construction industry professionals in a changing market.

* For those uninitiated, the author is parodying the CSI practice of making liberal use of professional credentials following names. EIEIO is a group for individuals with more than five sets of initials after their name.

Box Lunch Strategies

2011-08-02T05:49:00.000-07:00

CSI Webinar - Thursday, August 4, 2011

What do presenters do right or wrong during box lunch presentations? Hear it from an Architect that has sat through many presentations and a product representative that has provided thousands of programs. Learn the important steps to make your lunch and learn educational session more productive, effective and beneficial to your architectural audience. Discover new ways to stimulate interest in your product, methods to improve retention for adult learners, and techniques to make you their first call for product or system consulting.

Learning Objectives

Find ways to become the first choice resource for your architects.
Make your Box Lunch productive and rewarding for both you and your architects.
Increasing the power of your presentation.
Discover how adults “learn” and retain.
Understand CES program requirements.

Speaker: Jim F. Whitfield, FCSI, CCPR, CTC, LEED AP
Credit: 1.5 AIA LUs, 1.5 PDHs
When: Thursday, August 4, 2011 from 2:00PM to 3:30PM

To Register, Click Here

An Earthshaking Opportunity

2011-07-28T21:57:00.000-07:00

I felt the earth move last week, even though I was hundreds of miles from the epicenter of the earthquake. It was a reminder of the near certainty that there will be a major, devastating earthquake in the US in the near future.

We all know that individuals, businesses, and institutions must plan for earthquakes and other disasters, building product manufacturers can also plan ahead.

As the map shows, earthquake (and tsunami) opportunities are not just for the West Coast market. Indeed, faults in the Midwest and near large population centers of the East Coast are more vulnerable to loss of property and life.

Advances in building standards usually occur in response to natural disasters. As scientists, underwriters, and policymakers study the lessons learned from quakes in Haiti, Chile, Mexico, and Japan, more stringent building codes are likely to emerge.

But there is no need for you to wait until then. Now is the time to take a fresh look at your product offering to determine if your products can help create safer buildings. Give me a call if you want to discuss your opportunities; your initial call is always free. I look forward to hearing from you.

Journal of Advanced and High-Performance Materials

2011-07-27T06:38:00.000-07:00

The first issue of Journal of Advanced and High-Performance Materials was published this winter. The new periodical introduces readers to the recently formed Advanced and High-Performance Materials Program, which the National Institute of Building Sciences manages for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Science & Technology Directorate, Infrastructure & Geophysical Division.

JMAT is one of three periodicals, along with the Journal of Building Enclosure Design (JBED) and Journal of Building Information Modeling (JBIM) published by NIBS.

While it is unlikely to become a major industry publication, it reaches industry leaders in government, research, and academia. It will also reach leading engineers and technical consultants working on advanced materials. These thought leaders will be interested in advanced materials and technologies being developed by building product manufacturers and their suppliers. It accepts contributed articles and advertising.

Tic-Tac-Toe, 3 product issues in a row

2011-07-23T05:34:00.000-07:00

All in a row, three major architectural magazines have invited manufacturers to nominate products for their annual new product competitions:

Architectural Products

Product Innovation Awards: For products, materials and systems that offer attributes, qualities, design, functionality and/or performance beyond the standard. Products entered do not need to be "new" to the market. $95 entry fee.
To be published in November issue.
Submittal deadline: July 22

Architect

Product Spec Guide: Submitted products must be green and must have been released within the past year. No entry fee.
Product categories: Envelope, Interiors, Systems, Outdoor, Materials, Lighting.
To be published in Fall 2011 Product Spec Guide.
Submittal deadline August 5

Architectural Record

Product Reports: Presenting the most innovative and useful building products of year. No entry fee.
To be published in December 2011 issue.
Submittal deadline September 9

Exposure in any of these issues produces great exposure and the bragging rights of being selected as a winner. And if your product is not selected for the product issues, editors may still showcase your product in a latter issue.

Since the cost of entry is so low, why not enter all three? You can pretty much use the same write-up to enter. Call Chusid Associates at +1 818 774 0003 or click here for assistance in nominating your products.

Tessellation Trends

2011-07-21T06:51:00.000-07:00

Tessellated patterns, the repetition of a geometric shape, is currently in vogue for architectural design, and building product manufacturers are responding with innovative product shapes.

www.ogassian.com

www.ceilingsplus.com

Chusid Associates has written two articles about the trend:

"Getting Off the Rectangular Grid", Construction Specifier 2010-05
"Form Follows Fun," Architectural Record 2011-06

-----------
Update 2011-Oct-09

George Baty of Cresset Chemical brings to my attention the exciting tessellated paving stones by Gecko Stone:

Finding Hidden Architects

2011-07-20T06:27:00.000-07:00

How can a building product manufacturer or sales rep stay in touch with architects that are working out of their homes and other unconventional business venues?
A recent post by Architectural Record discusses architects working out of storefronts and other unconventional locations as survival strategies during these tough times, including the one shown above who sets up his "Architecture 5 Cents" booth at farmers' markets.

While architects have always been nomadic, moving from office-to-office as they hire then fire for big projects, the recent recession has made it even more difficult for manufacturers and sales reps to locate their prospects.

Here are some tips:
Continue Reading

Twitter Augments Webinars

2011-07-19T06:20:00.000-07:00

When you do a face-to-face seminar, the side conversations around the table help participants understand the information being presented, and to apply it to their own needs. For example, Charlie turns to Jane and whispers, "This would solve our problem on the new High School project."

This interactive aspect has been missing in many webinars. Until now.

Twitter conversation during webinar enabled participants to ask questions and share insights.

Joy Davis, manager of CSI's online programs, conducted a demonstration during a seminar she presented recently at a CSI Chapter meeting. Her presentation was about use of social media in the construction industry. So she incorporated social media by simultaneously sharing her slideshow and talk with specifiers across the nation via webiar. Participants were also encouraged to engage in side conversations via Twitter.

A transcript of the Twitter feeds is at http://storify.com/csiconstruction/csis-first-tweetchat. While some of the comments are just chatter, serious information is also being exchanged, and relationships are being fostered. The tweets were projected on a screen at the live CSI meeting so the people in seats could benefit from the comments, and I suspect a few people in the physical audience were also conversing online.

Like it or not, this type of interactivity and further social media innovations will affect your business in the near future. Since anyone can create a hashtag to start a side conversation during a webinar, it might as well be you -- at least you will know about the conversation and be able to follow-up. Used wisely, Twitter feeds like this can be an important way to extend your sales effectiveness.

Red Listed Products

2011-07-15T06:30:00.000-07:00

Living Building Challenge Version 2

Acceptance is growing for a "Red List" of materials that are considered environmentally hazardous. The Red List, created by Living Building Challenge, precludes usage of the following:

Asbestos
Cadmium
Chlorinated Polyethylene and Chlorosulfonated Polyethlene
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
Chloroprene (Neoprene)
Formaldehyde
Halogenated Flame Retardants
Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs)
Lead
Mercury
Petrochemical Fertilizers and Pesticides
Phthalates
Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)
Wood treatments containing creosote, arsenic or pentachlorophenol

These compounds are found in many building materials; finding and adopting suitable alternatives will require a significant investment for many manufacturers.

The investment may be worthwhile, however, since the number of developers prohibiting Red List materials is increasing. For example, Google is among organizations that have banned the use of Red List products. Google is alleged to be building facilities at the rate of 40,000 sq. ft. a week.

Anthony Ravitz, Google’s project coordinator for real estate and workplace services, says the firm's decision is based on an economic analysis of the true costs of using a material, including the health and vitality of its employees and avoiding expensive claims for illness due to exposure to potentially dangerous materials. He calls upon manufacturers to provide better transparency about what is in their products, saying, “We don’t have complete information about what’s in our products. It’s not readily available. Until we have that, it will be difficult to make the best decisions.”

Union Training Centers

2011-07-14T06:45:00.000-07:00

Today's trainees.
Tomorrow's customers.

A recent visit to the Cement Masons and Plasterers Training Centers of Washington (www.opcmialocal528.org) is a good reminder of how important it is for building product manufacturers to work with labor organizations. The center provides vocational skills and business training and stress safety and craftsmanship.

I visited the Training Center as the guest of a product manufacturer. From the way he was greeted by the center's director and staff, it was clear that he was important to their program. In turn, the manufacturer got to use the Center to train its customers.

The Center had just had a series of classes on how to install self-leveling cementitious toppings. Building product manufacturers got to donate materials and to have their experts come and do the training. The results were instructive as the students got hands-on experience with a variety of products. Inspecting the work afterwards, it was also clear which ones performed, and which had shrinkage cracking or other defects. You can be sure, each of the participants shared their observations with their colleagues out on job sites.

Social Media for Construction - Webinar

2011-07-13T15:17:00.000-07:00

Social Media for Construction Professionals

Joy Davis, CSI's Social Media Champion, will be presenting this program at a CSI Chapter while simultaneously broadcasting it via a webinar and having a Twitter Feed so folks around the world can engage in simultaneous conversation about the topic. Come and learn about the future of collaboration.

Join us for a Webinar on July 14Space is limited.

Reserve your Webinar seat now at:https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/438735641

Whether you’re considering a blog, a Facebook page, a Twitter feed, a LinkedIn profile or another social networking option, if you’re “experienced” in the real world, you have something to offer online -- and social media has something to offer you in return. It doesn’t matter if you’re a one-man shop, or one-of-many in a firm. You can build credibility, demonstrate your expertise, and expand your network through the web. A decent web-presence can be as valuable to you as a well-written resume or a colorful brochure about your company.

This presentation focuses on understanding what social media is and how it works, so that you can approach any social media platform with confidence. We’ll look at the actual social media examples set by other CSI members, and see how some of the principles of construction documentation carry over into social media.

Twitter Users: We’re hosting a tweet-chat during this webinar. Please use hashtag #CSIFutureCom to participate.

Title: Social Media for Construction ProfessionalsDate: Thursday, July 14, 2011Time: 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM EDT

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

QR Codes Go Mainstream

2011-07-13T06:30:00.000-07:00

As we have been predicting, QR codes are arriving at some sort of critical mass in the US, and suddenly, you see them everywhere. Home depot has them on store displays. They’re on the news. A headstone maker is putting them on gravestones.

They may look like a maze puzzle to you, but to a smart phone with a (free) QR-reader app, they are a link to information, like a bar code on steroids.

Most current applications simply use the code to link to a website. At Home Depot, a QR code attached to a display model links you to the Home Depot web page about the product. The gravestone-maker similarly uses the QR code to link to a web page about the deceased. (The code, etched in stone, will probably outlast the web page.)
Continue Reading

Product Life Cycles

2011-07-12T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is an encore of an article by Michael Chusid that was first published over a decade ago. The specific examples cited are no longer accurate, but the principles remain the same.

An awareness of building product trends can contribute to an architect's ability to stay in the forefront of design and technology. The marketing concept of "product life cycle" provides a useful tool for this. By evaluating where a product is in its life cycle, an architect can anticipate changes in its availability, recognize new channels of promotion and distribution, assess the risks associated with its use, and make sense of the rapid evolution and introduction of new products.

Product life cycles are typically divided into four phases based on sales performance, and form a characteristic "S"-shaped curve. The introduction of a new product is marked by slow sales growth. It takes time to train salesmen, build distribution channels, overcome reluctance to change established behavioral patterns, and get the new product into the specification pipeline. Manufacturers must identify innovative customers and work closely with them during this phase to persuade them to give the product a trial. Because of heavy start-up costs and promotional requirements, little or no profit is realized by a manufacturer during this phase, despite typically high prices. Intelligent building systems are in this introductory phase.
Continue Reading

Recycling Bone as a Building Material

2011-07-10T13:06:00.000-07:00

LEED and other recent environmental initiatives have increased the construction industry's awareness of recycled content in building materials. However, finding alternative uses for industrial "waste" is not a new concept. This is made clear by recent archeological excavations in London that reveal how the bone core of horns were used as masonry units.

After the Romans settled in today’s London, Aldgate surroundings (eastwards from the city wall) were turned into a cemetery. But in the Post-Medieval period, Prescot Street was transformed from an essentially rural situation on the fringe of the City, into a densely populated central district. Among the on-going archaeological excavations at this site, a horn core pit has been discovered, showing the intense industrial activity in the area.

The pit itself consists of a cylindrical void with a perimeter structure built with animal horns as a cheaper alternative to bricks. These kind of industrial memories are often found in areas known for small-scale industry, such as ivory-working, tanning, bell founding and glass making.[...] These pits are sometimes used as soak-aways.” (www.deconcrete.org/2010/10/30/horn-walls/)

Underlying the basement slabs were large deposits of Post-Medieval soils that had been truncated by two large soak-aways and one small, and a horn core pit constructed from the horn cores of long horn cattle. This is significant because ‘horning’ was once an important industry in the area... ‘Horners’ were skilled craftsmen who worked horn from cattle to create a range of artifacts from drinking vessels to buttons, and from panels in lanterns (when sliced very thinly) to tool handles.

The waste from this procedure, the horn core, was not discarded, and was frequently reused as a lining for round pits with vertical sides dug deep into the ground. The horn cores were inter-woven to offer a degree stability to the structure, and the pit was then used for the disposal of domestic waste. They essentially performed the same function as the soak-aways, with waste material being dumped into them so that the waste water would drain away into the natural gravels below, while the remaining solids were broken down over time by bacterial action. (www.lparchaeology.com/prescot/journal/field-officers-report-for-week-ending-28th-march-2008)

What would it take to get an ICC-ES Evaluation Report on such a construction material today?

Photos from www.lparchaeology.com/prescot/galleries/photo-diary-for-25th-march-2008/set/72157604245105892.

CSI Academy: Construction Product Reps

2011-07-08T05:34:00.000-07:00

Become part of Project Team

The date and location for the next CSI Academies has been set. The event will take place March 1-3, 2012 in San Diego. Along with training for construction specifiers and construction contract administrators, the program also includes CSI's Product Representative Academy.

Designed for experienced building product professionals, the Academy instills confidence by teaching you the roles and responsibilities of all the construction teams, and how they should interact (and what to do when they don’t!) You will improve your marketability and productivity with skills and information you can use immediately.

The Product Rep Academy will help you become a product representative who understands more than the product – know where and how you fit into the construction process, and become a useful resource the design team will call on again and again. We’ll teach you best practices for presenting products and supporting the design and construction teams. Manufacturers will tell you what you need to know about their products – we’ll give you the skills to present that information and succeed in the commercial construction community.

Chusid Associates highly recommends this program to everyone involved in building product sales, marketing, and customer service.

Questions? Email csi@csinet.org

Social Media for AEC Industry

2011-07-07T10:57:00.000-07:00

Scott Butcher Discusses Social Media in the AEC Industry

View more videos from scottdbutcher

While this presentation is directed towards design professionals, the same advice is applicable to building product sales representatives.

Guide Specifications

2011-07-06T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is an encore of an article Michael Chusid wrote over 20 years ago. Since then, an increased percentage of guide specifications have been written in accordance with CSI formats and principals, and there are now large, online databases of proprietary specification guide specs. Guide specs remain an important part of your sales collateral.

One of the most useful pieces of product literature an architect can receive from a building product manufacturer is a well written guide specification for the product. Along with product data sheets and suggested details, guide specifications can simplify the process of evaluating a product and incorporating it into a project's construction documents.

Proprietary guide specifications fill a need not satisfied by commercially available master guide specifications such as Spectext or MasterSpec or by an architectural firm's in-house master specification. While these standard references are sufficient for most projects, they do not always provide an adequate basis for specifying a particular manufacturer's product. Some master guide specifications try to generalize about products manufactured by several suppliers, requiring only the lowest common denominator of features and performance. In the process, they become "generications" instead of "specifications." Furthermore, there are far more products available than can be included in even the most comprehensive master guide specification, and new products are introduced faster than master guide specifications can be up-dated.
Continue Reading

"Excellence in Construction Information" Awards Won By Two Chusid Associates Clients

2011-07-05T06:30:00.000-07:00

Two clients of Chusid Associates have won this year's Excellence in Construction Information Awards, jointly sponsored by CSI and Specification Consultants in Independent Practice (SCIP). Ceilings Plus was recognized for their Idea Box, an innovative presentation of product data and samples. American Decorative Concrete Supply Company (ADC) was awarded for their sales collateral and product documentation. The EICI Award was created to recognize excellence, originality or creativity in processes, tools, or documents used in development or construction of the built environment.

ADC embarked on an extended communications project in 2010, revamping all their product literature to make it more useful to architects and specifiers and well as contractors and concrete artists. The campaign includes sales sheets, technical data sheets, and guide specifications, as well as a redesign of their website. Their new technical data sheets follow Construction Specifications Canada ProductFormat, currently the only published standard for building product data sheets. All the pieces were designed and coordinated for greater consistency of information, more consistent branding, and better accessibility of data. All of the sales collateral recognized by the award was created by Chusid Associates.

Ceilings Plus produced a highly innovative way to present their product data and samples. The Idea Box is a formed aluminum box decorated by precision perforation, made in the Ceilings Plus factory. Inside it are elaborate samples of the company's finishes and forming abilities, as well as the Idea Pad, a handbook-sized product catalog full of surprises. The cover of the Idea Pad is a steel sheet with magnetized sample-chips of wood and metal finishes on it. The chips are cut into unusual geometric shapes that can be arranged in patterns including complex tessellations, inviting architects to play with designs and turn loose their imaginations. The book includes not only product and company information, but suggested tessellation patterns, luscious project shots, and space to sketch designs. The Idea Box and its contents were conceived and designed by Chusid Associates, with art direction by Vladimir Paperny and copy by Michael Chusid.

A Magazine That 'Gets' Digital

2011-06-30T06:30:00.000-07:00

Recently, I posted about the evolving nature of magazines in the digital age. I opined that not many construction trade magazines are yet dealing very effectively with the new delivery media.

That same day, I found out about one that's doing exactly what I'd been looking for: Sustainable Construction, a recently-launch publication from Cyngus. It's currently scheduled as a digital quarterly, with one issue per year also being published in hardcopy. The publisher tells me that the print issue will be separately designed from the digital edition of the same issue.

Sustainable Construction is formatted in landscape mode, and the online version looks like it would fit an iPad screen, as well. (Cygnus is also offering a free iPad app for the magazine.) The pages are readable without going to "magnification mode," even on my laptop screen. The ads are big and bright and full screen, too. The overall effect is excellent.

Of course, it's totally appropriate and not even surprising for a sustainability magazine to be largely paperless. The unusual thing is that they've jumped into digi-screen formatting, and done it well.

Bravo, Cygnus! I hope other publishers are smart enough to follow in your footsteps, and build a new infrastructure for this valuable communications tradition.

Misuse of Product Reps by Architects

2011-06-30T06:11:00.000-07:00

CSI Product Representative Practice Group Meeting

July 13, 2-3 pm ET

Topic: Product Rep Abuse - The Growing Misuse of Product Reps by Architects

Presenter/Group Leader: Alana Sunness Griffith, FCSI, CCPR

Have you experienced elation when design professionals call, need your services desperately and you drop everything to respond immediately? Have you experienced frustration when you call the next day to follow up and are told they are too busy to talk to you? Or, are they are unresponsive when you want to spend a few minutes with them to share education about your product or the product's application? We'll share some "war stories" on July 13, but also will talk about some ideas to help you become better connected with the design professional.

System Requirements
Windows® 7, Vista, XP or 2003 Server
Mac OS® X 10.4.11 (Tiger®) or newer

Create your Own Recovery

2011-06-29T09:19:00.000-07:00

Many economists are now saying that there will be no general economic recovery in the short term. However, Chusid Associates continues to work with building product manufacturers that are making their own recovery by becoming more competitive, launching breakthrough products, taking advantage of niche growth opportunities, and getting better results from their sales and marketing investments. Stop waiting for another construction boom, and create your own.
New construction starts in May fell 6% to $376.1 billion (annual rate). Nonresidential building plunged 12%, retreating after its improved pace in March and April. Substantial declines were registered by hotels (down 64%) and transportation terminals (down 59%) after each had been lifted in April by the start of several large projects. More moderate declines in May were reported for offices (down 8%) and schools (down 7%). Helping to cushion May’s nonresidential downturn were gains for manufacturing plants (up 35%) and healthcare facilities (up 15%). Residential building in May dropped 7%, reflecting more weakness for single family housing as well as a pullback by multifamily housing from its elevated April amount. Nonbuilding construction in May climbed 5%, boosted by a 68% jump for electric utilities that featured the start of a $2.0 billion solar power facility in Arizona. The public works side of nonbuilding construction decreased 10% in May.

For more information, read here for the full press release on construction start statistics.

Advice for Sales Reps

2011-06-29T07:41:00.000-07:00

11 06 Trusted Advisor

View more presentations from Joy Davis, CSI, CCPR

Joy Davis, Web Content Manager at Construction Specifications Institute, post this annotated slide show with sound advice for sales representatives working with design professionals.

CSI Continuing Education Program Terminated

2011-06-28T14:28:00.000-07:00

Periods of rapid expansion in an industry are frequently followed by consolidation. This is what has, apparently, has happened to the now defunct Construction Specifications Institute's Construction Education Network (CEN).

The movement to require continuing education of architects began in the 1980s. AIA was one of the first organizations jumping onto the bandwagon, establishing AIA/CES for accrediting continuing education programs and vigorously promoting courses to AIA members. CSI joined the fray relatively late in the game, hoping to provide a continuing education vehicle that crossed disciplinary lines. But many other groups were more nimble in establishing themselves as the CEU providers of choice. US Green Building Council, engineering trade associations, and industry publishers now compete for a piece of the action, and demand has flattened.

CSI is still very active in providing continuing education, but will no longer be certifying programs nor tracking the credits obtained by participants.

Building product manufacturers with courses listed in CEN will need to make other arrangement for credentialing and promoting their programs.

CEN, RIP.

CSI Webinar - Guide Specifications: A Building Product Sales and Marketing Tool

2011-06-28T09:06:00.000-07:00

Michael Chusid, RA, FCSI, CCS, SCIP and Vivian E. Volz, RA, CSI, CCS, LEED AP will explain how guide specifications make it easier for architects and engineers to write your product into their projects. A well-written guide spec also helps educate specifiers about your product, so they can write more accurate and better coordinated project manuals. This course will be led by two experienced specifiers with expertise in guide specifications and building product marketing. They will explain how to apply CSI principles to guide specs, integrate them into your marketing efforts, and train your reps to use them as a sales tool. You will learn how guide specs can help reduce the risks of product liability and substitution abuse. The course will also help you prepare for the CDT and CCPR exams.

Date: September 8, 2011

Time: 2pm EST

Register Now

Learning Objectives

Understand guide specifications and how to use them to communicate with specifiers.
Be able to apply CSI formats and principles to the special requirements of guide specs.
Know how to use guide specs to provide "point-of-specification" assistance to specifiers.
Use guide specifications to reduce product liability, construction claims, and substitutions.
Train your sales team to use guide specifications as a valuable sales tools.

Credit: 0.1 CSI CEUs, 1.0 AIA LUs

10 Best New Building Products of 2010

2011-06-27T22:12:00.000-07:00

At the end of each year, the staff at Chusid Associates nominates and votes on its list of the Ten Best New Building Products of the year. Our intention was to blog about all ten, but we got busy and only managed to write about a few of the winners. Without delaying the project further, here is our truncated list:

The pace of innovation continues. The tough economic times are actually proving a boon to some companies, as they use the opportunity for research and launching new products that, in the continual press of sales during a good year, would normally get buried. Several of this year's entries are innovations on ages-old problems, while others represent the intersection of several cutting-edge technological developments. A few were included not because the actual products were significant, but because of the trends they represent.

1. Plasma Lighting: Solid state lighting, in the form of LEDs, have been a major trend for the past few years. Now plasma lighting is taking the spotlight, offering in some cases twice the lumens per Watt of LEDs. Right now most of the plasma lighting available is for stadium and street lamp-sized installations, but miniaturization to commercial and industrial scale seems inevitable.

Multiquip's H2LT Hydrogen Fueled Light Tower drew a lot of attention at World of Concrete for combining low-energy, high-intensity light with quiet, low-polluting hydrogen fuel cells. The plasma light bulb produces 22,000 lumens while consuming only 255 watts, with a life expectancy of up to 50,000 hours. Beyond its energy efficiency, the tower made our list for one simple reason: it is sparking imaginations. At the show, people were walking away from the Multiquip booth discussing new ways and places they could use this technology, sewing the seeds for the next generation of innovations.

This all-glass wall is energy efficient.

2. Phase-Change Insulated Glass: Another ripe field for innovations is combining multiple successful technologies into a single high-performing system. This becomes especially important in sustainable design when building systems often need a higher level of flexibly to meet multiple design objectives simultaneously; natural daylighting is advantageous, for example, but too much interferes with the building's thermal performance and energy use.

Glass-X, from Greenlight Glass, addresses exactly this problem. The core of the system is phase-changing glass that stores or releases thermal energy in the process of converting from solid to liquid states. Glass-X controls thermal transfer, essentially creating virtual thermal mass to help warm or cool the interior as needed. A prism system takes advantage of seasonal changes in the sun's position to reflect hot summer light, while allowing more light, and heat, transfer in winter months.

Glass is one of our favorite building materials around the office; the amount of versatility and innovation in glass construction is staggering, and the trend looks set to continue for the next few decades. The next winner is another glass product.

3. Bird-Visible Glass: When I was five I once ran full-speed into a closed glass door, face first, so I have a lot of sympathy for birds flying into windows. The problem is so prevalent that it has become embedded in our culture; birds hitting windows is an instantly recognizable slapstick troupe. But the real-world side is not funny; estimates are that almost 1 billion birds are killed by window collisions in the US each year.

Ornalux glass has special ultraviolet patterns that are visible to birds, but not detectable by the human eye. This means birds see the window and identify it as an obstacle, and humans get to enjoy natural lighting and an unobstructed view.

Click here for our 2009 list. And stay tuned for our best of 2011 list.

Last Call for Presenters - AIA 2012

2011-06-27T06:38:00.000-07:00

Speaking at a national convention is a great way to get your brand in front of prospects. If architects are an important part of your market, there is still time to submit a proposal to become a presenter at the 2012 AIA Convention.

We encourageproposals from industry leaders and forward-thinking professionals who are on the cutting edge of design,practice, technology, leadership, collaboration, research, training, and mentoring.Proposals will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. PST, July 1, 2011.

Please download the Call for Presentations for the AIA 2012 National Convention in Washington DC.

Contact Chusid Associates for assistance in submitting a winning proposal.

iPad Apps

2011-06-26T17:06:00.000-07:00

A year since its release, the iPad platform continues to gain broad appeal in the design and building product community. That big, bright, highly portable screen is replacing both the clipboard and the laptop in many meetings and site visits.Businesses in all corners of industry and commerce have found it advantageous to create apps for the iPhone.

As an electronic catalogue, or purchasing device, its big screen can display architectural materials at a pleasant scale, and explain design problems and concepts with readily accessible illustrations. The iPad-based catalog not only weighs nothing, so it can be carried anywhere, but it can go conceptually where a hardcopy catalog cannot: interactivity, video displays, and far more.

A thoughtfully designed app can be an effective means of interacting with your customers. We believe that developing such apps, is a great opportunity for building products marketers, and we are working with our clients to take advantage of it.

How To Become a Recognized Expert In Your Field

2011-06-23T06:30:00.000-07:00

The effectiveness of publicity is notoriously difficult to quantify, so anecdotal evidence of how it works is very valuable. We believe that publicity not only gives manufacturers great venues for explaining a product in depth, but also can establish a manufacturer as an authority on the subject, and a thought-leader in the field.

One of our clients just got a bit of direct experience in just how it works.

We placed and wrote an article, published in February, 2011, in a magazine with a strict “non-proprietary content” policy. This meant we could not name our client’s company or product in the article, we could only explain the problems his product solves and how it solves them. However, our client was on the byline of the article.

In June, he received an inquiry from a large contractor specializing in an area where our client’s product could be used. The writer had admired the article enough to make all his project managers read it.

More importantly, he invited our client to collaborate with his company, as an expert, in trying to change an outdated industry standard that was blocking use of our client’s product. The article didn’t lead directly to a sale, but it led to an opportunity to open up an entire area of the industry.
-------------------

Shortly after posting the above, I got an e-newsletter from the Door and Hardware Institute. They make the same point about writing articles as a way to build your apparent expertise:

How Stuff Works?
What questions do you hear most frequently from your customers? What issues are common during installation of your product? What troubleshooting and "how to" tips can you pass along to openings professionals and end users? Doors & Hardware magazine is currently looking for manufacturers in our industry willing to write 1-2 page "How to..." or "Troubleshooting" articles to help answer and address those common industry-related questions.

Article submissions need to be general in focus - no mention of specific product names. Your company name will be included within the table-of-contents and at the end of the article. Readers and potential customers will appreciate and remember that YOU were the source of this helpful information! (Emphasis added.)

If you are interested in submitting an article for an upcoming issue, contact Chusid Associates for assistance in writing and placing your story.

Digital Magazines at an Awkward Age

2011-06-22T07:00:00.000-07:00

The publishing institution, the Magazine, is at that awkward age; it’s been thrust into the Digital environment, but it hasn’t outgrown its Printed look.

Many magazines – including construction trade magazines -– have put themselves online, perceiving (quite correctly) that it’s the only way they will survive. A few have cancelled their print editions altogether, but most have opted for both forms of delivery for their content.

Some have created digital editions that are formatted as websites. Others have sought to port their entire format, advertising revenue and all, into digital replicas of their print editions. Both approaches have drawbacks.

The website format typically does not have the advertising impact of print. Large ads are a difficult stunt to pull off because the web formatting is strung together entirely by the editorial content. With links directly from the article’s page 1 to its page 2, there’s no need to flip through a couple of half-page or full page ads to read the article. So ads in these formats tend to be small, and command less money for the magazine. In other words, it is simply a slower route towards the magazine’s extinction.

Digital replicas offer those stunning full page ads, but both ad and article are hard to read in the full page view. The type is too small to read. The full page view is really for navigation only. The close-up view is the reading view, and it requires a lot of scrolling around to see everything on the page. It simply destroys the visual cohesion and impact of a full page ad the entire time you’re close enough to read it.

Magazines need to embrace digital publishing on its own terms, not as an extension or a port of Print. Pages should be formatted in landscape mode, and designed the way tasteful websites are, for screen viewing. They need to forget what they know about print formatting, but not forget what they know about good design. To remain viable businesses and useful advertising and publicity vehicles, magazines need to embrace the digital space more wholeheartedly.

Until they do, it might be worth re-considering your ad strategy in both online and print formats, and make sure you’re getting your money’s worth. In a digital-replica magazine, a well-designed half page ad online may actually be more impactful than a full page, because you can see the entire ad and read it at the same time.

Also, the next time a magazine ad salesperson calls, it might be worth suggesting that they re-think their online format to create a truly digital magazine that’s formatted for computer screens, not magazine racks.

FOR AN UPDATE, CLICK HERE

Computer-Based Systems Integration

2011-06-21T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is an encore of an article Michael Chusid wrote twenty years ago. Looking back, it is encouraging to see that many of the advances predicted then have now become part of every day design and construction practice. Yet fundamental challenges about improving communication and project quality still remain.

For many architects, integration of computer-based systems still means figuring out which end of the cable plugs into their personal computer. But the topic was given much greater meaning at the First International Symposium on Building Systems Automation-Integration held in June at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This week-long conference, initiated by Varkie Thomas of the Chicago office of Skidmore Owings B Merrill, was devoted to "the integration of computer-based systems for planning, design, construction, and operation of buildings." The conference offered bold predictions for computer technology and its effect on architecture.

While an increasing number of architectural and construction tasks employ computers, the Symposium identified two major barriers preventing computer-aided design from achieving even greater productivity. First, computers have been applied essentially as "electronic pencils," speeding up manual processes but not changing the nature of the tasks. For example, specification are written as though word processors are just fancy typewriters and CAD drawings replicate the types of lines and abstractions used in traditional drafting. Second, computerized information is still transferred from one application to another by manual methods, leading to increased costs and errors in data processing. For example, it is rare for an architect's CAD file to be passed along for a contractor to use in construction engineering, and electronic product data are not passed along to owners for use in automated facility management. To overcome these barriers, conference participants presented an amazing variety of new computer-based systems and concepts that are already available or under development in laboratories around the world. They also called for new paradigms, based on integration of information and the building team, for the organizational structure of the building industries.

Computers and Practice
Many designers still practice what Tor Syzertsen from the Norwegian Institute of Technology called "Pencil and Paper-Aided Design (PPAD)." But he predicted that computers will soon be such an intrinsic part of architecture that we will drop the phrase "Computer-Aided" from our description of design. He called for the creation of "knowbots" to automate routine architectural tasks, many examples of which were presented during the week-long conference.
Continue Reading

Marketing with Standards

2011-06-19T07:09:00.000-07:00

Standards: Dense Prose

Industry standards are essential to the construction industry. Yet they are often confusing, out of date, and contradictory. Produced by consensus organizations, they are subject to political pressures that can favor or exclude proprietary products and innovative solutions. Moreover, designers, builders, and building material suppliers are challenged to stay current with revisions to standards.

This complexity can work to your marketing advantage.

First, building product manufacturers should be active in standards writing organizations affecting their work. These consensus-driven committees need your insight into best industry practices, the needs of your clients, and the pragmatic limitations of current technology.

Further, you can keep your clients up-to-date and informed of changes to standards. This will make your firm the "go-to" resource for current and reliable information. For example, changed standards provide a great opportunity for publicity; contact the editors of trade journals and offer to provide an article about the revisions.
Continue Reading

How do Spec Writers Decide?

2011-06-15T07:35:00.000-07:00

The following is from the blog of Liz O'Sullivan, AIA, CSI, CCS, LEED AP, NCARB, a Denver architectural specifications writer.

One for Construction Product Manufacturers: How do Spec Writers Decide What Products to Specify?

Maybe in a perfect world, spec writers would research ALL the available products, and specify ALL of the products that meet the project requirements. Think of the competition that would create, and the potential cost savings to the Owner because of that competition… and think of the additional costs to the Owner for the time the specifier would have to spend on all that research!

The construction industry generally seems to agree that having 3 competitors provides enough competition to get a fair price for a product. I believe that the law of diminishing returns would apply to a practice of researching and specifying any more than 3 comparable products, or “equals”.

So how do spec writers select those three products? Sometimes the Owner tells the design team what they want us to specify.¹ If an Owner doesn’t have a preference, the Architect often makes selections based on aesthetic requirements.² And, if neither the Owner nor the Architect has a preference, the specifier makes product selections.

Last night, I got a comment from Kirk Wood about the third situation. Kirk was wondering if it’s a case of “who you know” rather than “what you have to offer” that determines which manufacturers’ products get specified by spec writers.

First, I have to mention that the manufacturers’ reps that spec writers know best are those whose products we have researched and have had questions about; the reps we know best are those whose products we know best. We know these reps through the process of researching the products we were specifying, NOT the other way around. It’s NOT that we know them, so we spec their products; it’s that they rep products that we spec, so we turn to them when we have questions about the products (compatibility, pricing, product options, availability, et cetera).

So how do specifiers know about these products or manufacturers in the first place?
Continue Reading

Presenting Electrically Conductive Concrete to the World

2011-06-15T07:00:00.000-07:00

An article by Chusid Associates about ground-breaking electro-conductive concrete technology appeared in the May issue of Concrete International magazine, a highly respected magazines published by the American Concrete Institute. (download PDF)

The article, An Electric Highway to the Future, details the development of concrete that can conduct electricity due to the inclusion of high carbon fly ash and/or spent carbon sorbent, along with carbon fibers. High carbon fly ash is a coal combustion product that results from changes in coal-burning methods mandated under the Clean Air Act of 1990. Although conventional fly ash has long been used as a concrete additive, the high carbon variety has encountered low acceptance in ordinary concrete uses.

The invention of electrically conductive concrete promises many opportunities to utilize this material in potential applications such as roads that can charge electric cars as they drive, improved grounding for power plants, security shielding for sensitive data handling and storage facilities, and massive electrical storage batteries that be built into buildings, roads or parking lots. In other words, it is a basic technology in search of specific applications. By featuring it in a publication read by thought leaders in the field, Chusid Associates was able to help our client present it worldwide to the people who can truly make a difference in its adoption.

This is the first article to appear in a major publication about this new technology. Being first, it allowed Chusid Associates' staff to develop the initial language that will be used by our client, We Energies, to market this new material and attract useful applications for the concept.

Life-cycle assessments of products

2011-06-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is an encore of an article Michael Chusid wrote 20 years ago. To a limited extent, increased attention to environmental sustainability have increased focus on life cycle performance of buildings. LEED, for example, requires buildings to be commissioned to ascertain that mechanical systems perform as required. Also, the "cradle-to-cradle" concept encourages examination of the flow of materials from extraction to re-purposing.


Operational costs typically, exceed construction costs.

Tools that can help architects make life-cycle assessments of products

The architectural community too often disregards the life-cycle costs and operation of buildings. This attitude is not expressed overtly but nonetheless permeates architectural practice:

We grovel before a project's bid price and all but disregard a building's cash flow, the streams of operational and maintenance expenses, financing, revenue and tax consequences, which spell economic success or failure to a building owner.
When designing an addition or renovation, we too often fail to involve the building's maintenance staff in a serious discussion about their resources, schedules, and experience with the building's existing materials and systems.
We rarely retain qualified building maintenance consultants on our design teams.
And frequently, we pass along a hodgepodge of submittals and call it an Operation and Maintenance Manual without considering whether the accumulation really communicates.

Over the economic life of a building, operation and maintenance costs will typically equal or exceed first costs. And when we consider how a maintenance program can affect a building's resale or salvage value, the importance of building maintainability becomes even more apparent.
Continue Reading

BuildSite - Marketing to Contractors

2011-06-13T08:15:00.000-07:00

Architects, engineers, and other specifiers are powerful gatekeepers for building product sales, but contractors make the actual purchase. The contractor's power to select products is particularly strong with commodity and generic types of products, putting them and the distributors serving them in the driver’s seat when it is time to choose product brands for the job. This role as the “last designer” means that contractors and distributors are crucial players in purchasing decisions.

BuildSite, is an online (and mobile) tool that helps get product information in front of distributors and contractors when buying decisions are being made. Through BuildSite, manufacturers can target buyers with messaging that is tied to "un-proprietary specs"—the kind that most contractors face.

While BuildSite can be used for product selection and for email messaging, I see its main application as a way to simplify the assembly and distribution of submittals -- the process by which a contractor sends product data sheets, sample warranty forms, material safety data sheets, and other product information to the designer.

At the present time, the system is strongest for products in Divisions 03, 07, and 09.

For additional information and a demonstration, contact:

Melanie Loftus, Buildsite Product Manager
mloftus@buildsite.com
510-208-4428

Schema.org will effect online marketing

2011-06-13T07:55:00.000-07:00

The web's three leading search companies -- Google, Bing, and Yahoo -- have announced a new collaboration called Schema.org, where more than 100 new types of website markup for content like movies, music, organizations, TV shows, products, places and more will allow search engines to better understand and present what they find on the pages that show up in search results.

This will change the way people design websites, it will change the way people do search marketing, it will change a lot of things. It should be very interesting.