President's Message
Andrew J. Wasiniak, CPC
As we celebrate AIC’s 40th year, we can all take pride in knowing that we stand today, as we always have, for professionalism, ethics, and education through a certification process designed to validate our profession’s body of knowledge. We will continue to build our Institute on a strong foundation of outstanding members.
Not long ago, the AIC community lost an exceptional member and friend—Ted Benning, Jr. Ted exemplified what it means to serve AIC with passion. His leadership and enthusiasm were the standards of excellence for which we should all strive. He was a true Southern Gentleman who would always remind us to stay true to the founding purpose.
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AIC’s New Representative to ACCE
Norma Jean Andersen, Ph.D., CPC
AIC is proud and honored to have named Norma Jean Andersen, Ph.D., CPC, to be its representative to the American Council for Construction Education. As a full professor at Minnesota State University Moorhead and Vice President of KWA Constructors, Inc., she has been a constructor since 1994 and a CPC since 1997. Dr. Andersen has also served on the AIC CCC Certification Examination Committee since 2009 and has been active in ACCE since 1999 where she has served on numerous committees and task forces. She was the first female educator appointed to serve on ACCE’s Board of Trustees where she serves on the Long Range Planning committee, task force assignments for the Standards Committee, Student Learning Task Force, and help with Visiting Teams Case Studies session. In addition, she has given several presentations on programs and student learning assessment.
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Professional Certification – Why?
By David T. Jones CPC, DBIA, LEED AP, PMP
Sundt Construction, Inc.
So why do I need to be certified?
Does professional certification really get me anything?
How does my certification benefit the company?
These are just a few of questions that I have heard over the years. Let’s try to unwrap this idea.
Over the last several decades, most major industries have taken steps to develop the professionalism of its members. One notable exception is construction. This fact has permitted many of the long-standing stereotypes about construction professionals (unskilled, unethical, uneducated, behind the times, etc.) to perpetuate.
Fortunately there are associations and organizations within the construction industry that have been trying to affect positive change.
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Mr. Ethics
In a previous edition of Mr. Ethics, you were presented with a situation where a colleague asked attendees at an association dinner to bid projects in a consistent manner in order to raise contract amounts. Of all the choices presented as possible responses to the above statements, the most ethical are: ignore the plea and bid projects in accord with your normal practices, and advise the association’s counsel of the incident. Counsel needs to know in order to keep all members in ethical and legal waters since all attendees could be accused of bid rigging if the statements ever got out, Here is another bidding issue recently sent to Mr. Ethics.
Dear Mr. Ethics,
I am an estimator for a general construction firm. I have been with my firm for two (2) years. We have a couple of subcontractors in each area of construction that are our “favorites.” As “favorites,” these firms get 98% of our business. However, we take bids from several subcontractors (that are not our “favorites”) on each project. These bidders are never awarded our good projects but always the little jobs in which really don’t require bidding. I asked my superiors why we take bids from those companies on our larger projects when we will never offer them a contract, my superiors responded that “Those bids can keep our favorite sons “honest,” and do not ever say never. Remember they can always decline to bid. It’s their choice.” I know our non-favorite sons do get little jobs from us, and they do not have to bid our jobs, but something does not feel right. What do you think?
Sincerely,
Bid Challenged
To View the Response Click Here
2011 FMI Forecast
Looking Ahead: Signs of Emergence
In the 4th quarter of 2008, the NRCI (FMI Nonresidential Construction Index) was only 34.1. Now, at 60.8 for the 1st quarter 2011, it appears markets are emerging from wherever it is that they go to “hunker down.” The Great Recession officially ended in June 2009 according to the Business Cycle Dating Committee of the National Bureau of Economic Research, although that news wasn’t announced until September 2010. Few would have believed it in 2009 anyway, but now we have significant signs the recession clouds are beginning to clear over the construction economy.
Construction Markets
For 2011, and likely into 2012 and beyond, we can expect a significant decline in federal and municipal construction projects as the federal government and states go into budget repair mode. The hope is that private owners will begin to come back into the market. However, the transition will not be smooth.
Read Entire Forecast Here
“Reprinted with permission from FMI Corporation, 919.787.8400. For more information, visit www.fminet.com or call Sarah Vizard at 919.785.9221.”