Each year, the construction industry becomes more complex. Between new methods, cutting-edge materials, customers’ expanding expectations and emerging technology, it can be a real challenge to keep up. However, maintaining our position at the leading edge of advancements has always been an integral part of how Ceco operates. You trust us to be your committed partner, with superior knowledge and expertise in everything from sophisticated, flexible design styles to the latest, most innovative technology applications. So today, we want to introduce you and your business to a piece of technology you may not be aware of – and one that could not only save you money, but also boost your profits in unexpected ways.  

Cascading Complexities 

As construction has become more complex, builders have taken on more projects – and more projects of different types. Within each of these projects, respective details split into more and more branches of complexity – each with their own suppliers, trades, budgets, variables and timelines. It’s a lot to keep an eye on. Above all, though, any project’s success is measured in terms of two things: time and budget. Was it completed on time? Was it within the budget? 

All those little variables along the way can have massive repercussions on your two primary success metrics. A change in material cost, a seemingly simple shift in design, permitting problems – you name it. It can all have a “butterfly effect” on the final cost and schedule. According to KPMG estimates, a mere 31% of 2015 construction projects landed within 10% of their initial budgets, and an Independent Project Analysis Group study of more than 12,000 projects revealed that more than 35% of all construction projects incur a major change in their lifespan. 

If you’re operating the old way – without comprehensive cost management technology – your window into all these variables and their consequences is startlingly opaque. Until it’s too late.  

The Old Way 

The way most companies attempt to manage costs has hardly evolved in decades. They essentially do it the way it’s always been done: each team or individual, from permitting to design to engineering, has its own spreadsheets, documents and software. At worst, these are all on paper in a file cabinet at the office. At best, they’re digital, but the programs likely aren’t linked, can’t talk to each other, and reside on a hard drive somewhere. If this sounds familiar, it’s time to investigate cloud-based cost management technology. 

Let Your Imagination Run Wild 

While the term “Cloud-Based Cost Management Technology” may sound complex and intimidating, the truth is it’s simplifies everything. Imagine a central platform, containing all the information about every project: Each supplier, tradesman and subcontractor, their rates and payment schedule; overall project dates, schedules, and costs; change orders and approval statuses – every last detail. Imagine that this central platform also interrelates all this information, so that by simply entering a change in material cost, the financial consequences of this are extrapolated across the entire project. Now, imagine you can access and interact with this not only at the office, but at the worksite, at home, on vacation – anywhere you need to see an entire project’s scope and the fallout of potential changes. 

From Dream to Reality 

That is the gist of cloud-based cost management technologies like Autodesk’s Construction Cloud or Procore. It gives you – and the right people inside and outside your organization – a real-time finger on the pulse of your projects’ financial health. You can visualize risk with an accurate view of profitability and control over factors that might influence it. Equipped with this level of data detail, you can make the right decisions every step of the way – regardless of what otherwise disastrous changes or unforeseen circumstances arise. We all know that those choices can spell success or failure, because every little budget overrun cuts directly into profit margins. Having this unprecedented, critical view of the big picture makes all the difference.  

Risky Business 

If you’re doing it the old way, you’re navigating waters more treacherous than you might realize. For one, you’re wasting untold man hours. But all those separate documents and processes also run the risk of errors in data entry, miscommunication and small mistakes with unpredictably large consequences. You have limited or nonexistent visibility into each project’s real financial health – and therefore a limited understanding of the organization’s overall health and future. What’s more, you’re having to make forecasts with out-of-date and possibly inaccurate information. In short, you’re working harder for less return – and you’re jeopardizing that return in the process! 

More to Come 

Cost management technology will allow you to do everything we’ve talked about so far with ease, plus a lot more. It will seamlessly shepherd changes through company-defined approval processes and auto-generate custom documents, with an at-a-glance view of potential change orders, type, scope, source, status and costs. It can streamline, track and manage pending and completed payments to suppliers and trades against work to be completed, centralizing cost data in one place, accessible anywhere and anytime by those you choose to have access. It will allow you to customize virtually every detail, from budget column names to reports, codes and hierarchical buildups. 

Without the right technology, it’s nearly impossible to adequately manage cash flow in the construction business, resulting in minimal profits. With it, your teams can use a real-time project visualization to control costs, ensuring the project is completed as planned, and expect more predictable cash flow, profitability projections and profit margins. 

We truly believe this kind of technology will be a game changer not only for you, but for the way we create the buildings of tomorrow together. To learn more get in touch with your Ceco representative. 

The most progressive companies in construction are embracing advances in technology of all types to improve work quality, communicate better with building owners, control risks, and gain a competitive advantage. This has certainly been true with the use of computers and information technology but it is also quite true of photography and video related technology, including on-site web-cams (internet linked cameras). In addition, the use of small flying drones (aka Unmanned Aerial Vehicles or UAVs) with cameras or other sensing devices has literally taken off (no pun intended) in the construction industry. In fact, one drone company reports that the construction industry is their biggest technology adopter logging a whopping 239 percent increase over last year! That’s notably more than other industries that are adopting the use of drones including mining, agriculture, surveying, and real estate.

According to a recent article in the online Dot-Dash publication “the balance”, there are at least six ways that owners, contractors, installers, and metal building manufacturers are benefiting from the use of drone technology as described below.

Land Surveying

UAVs have become a valuable way for land surveyors to capture and review information about topography, physical improvements, distance, and other information. In some cases drone / UAV use has become so popular that the classic expression “bird’s-eye view” has even been replaced with “drone’s-eye view.” Those using the technology report significant reductions in labor and time to capture data and produce accurate surveys. Further, because of the advanced technology used, a lot of human error can be overcome or eliminated.

Infrastructure Improvements

Using drones to locate and collect data on infrastructure can be particularly helpful on projects that cover large areas where the view from the ground is limited. In this way, they help provide superior levels of intelligence gathering on large job sites. Further, there are products available that are rugged enough to offer the superior endurance needed in these conditions. Having the use of drones available can allow contractors to make more ambitious bids and complete work in a more timely way.

Managing Communication

In addition to being able to capture information, drone technology can provide wireless, instant connectivity and communication on the job site. That means information can be provided in “real time” (i.e. at the same time the construction work is happening) without having to wait for any processing or other steps to be completed first. Having the ability to gather, manage, and report information 24/7 about current conditions to others off-site is also easily achieved providing a variety of benefits to the many different players in most construction projects.

Security Improvements

Drones that feature mounted cameras can use those cameras while in the air or even in stationary, parked positions to provide surveillance video of the project site. That allows companies to help protect against theft or vandalism as well as keep tabs on employees and other workers as they come and go.

Total Surveillance Freedom

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) currently regulates the use of drones and classifies different types. Most of the models used in construction meet the definition of a “Hobby Class” since they are generally under the 4.4-pound weight threshold and 400-foot travel radius defined by the FAA to meet that classification. As such, they are not subjected to the more stringent regulations of larger drones defined by other classes. Hence, these smaller, lighter drones can be flown almost anywhere for any reason.

Inspection and Transport

There are two other very helpful uses of unmanned drones in construction. One is the ability to send them into concealed spaces or other hazardous areas that present workplace safety concerns. By sending the drone instead, inspection information can be obtained without putting personnel in an unsafe situation. Second, a drone can be used as a means of transporting very lightweight items within or around a construction site. This might be helpful when workers on a roof, for example, need a quick, safe way to retrieve a paper document or a dropped piece of hardware or something similar.

If you or your company is looking for more ways to improve worker safety, project communication, job-site security, or better project management, then looking further into drones might be a good place to start. To find out more about this and other innovations in construction, contact your local Ceco representative.

The standing seam metal roof is a very popular roofing solution due to its durability, water-tightness, relative simplicity, and clean appearance. While the standing seam, which is created by forming two adjacent metal roof panels together, contributes to all of these traits, some people may not realize that it also simplifies the attachment of other items to the roof. The most common and effective means to attach anything to a standing seam metal roof is to use an ingenious piece of hardware known simply as a seam clamp.

What are seam clamps?

These are engineered and fabricated small cubes of stainless steel or aluminum that are designed to be mechanically attached directly to the standing seams in a metal roof. They do that with a round-point set screw in the clamp that squeezes and dimples the standing seam for a true mechanical attachment. This approach is truly non-invasive since it does not penetrate or compromise the integrity of the metal in any way and therefore keeps all roofing warranties intact. Once secured onto the standing seam, then the seam clamp is the base for threaded bolts or screws that fit into specific locations on the clamp. From there, specific hardware can be secured to attach a variety of additional items. Specifically, seam clamps have been used for decades on metal roofing to secure accessory items such as snow retention systems, fall protection devices, HVAC equipment, lightning protection, satellite dishes, and even rooftop service walkways.

How do they work with solar panels?

One of the biggest current uses of seam clamps is for the connection of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels to a metal roof. On many roof-mounted PV systems, the use of rails or some similar component may be needed to support the PV panels. By using seam clamps with customized interface hardware designed to connect directly to the solar panels, the standing seams of the roof act as the rails. Eliminating the use of the rails and using the seam clamps means the installation is easier and the cost is reduced notably, both in terms of material and labor.

Why put solar panels on a metal roof?

Solar systems are typically warranted 25 years for power production, but the real service life of the modules can be 40 years or more. Hence when mounting the PV system, the building designer or owner needs to be sure that the roof underneath it has a comparable life. Metal roofing is a very good match since it will last as long or longer than the PV panels. A roof with a shorter life will require removal of the PV to replace the roofing and then a reinstall of the PV at a high cost.

How many seam clamps are needed on a roof?

Some seam clamp manufacturers have independently tested their product in combination with literally every standing seam metal roofing system on all of the available metal gauges that are on the market. As such, very specific information can be provided on things like loading capability, wind uplift resistance, etc. for the seam clamps. With that information, combined with the roofing and solar panel information, an engineer can calculate the needed spacing and locations of seam clamps. Those calculations will take into account the specific design wind speed and wind uplift potential for the project location. It will also take into account the specifics of the building structure and the internal structure of the solar panels. In some cases, locations such as perimeters and corners of groups of solar panels (called an array) may require more frequent spacing while in the field of the array, the spacing may be less. Ultimately, the best location and spacing of seam clamps is determined and the proper quantity identified. It is worth noting that when engineered in this manner, the most common mode of failure is that the module itself fails under windy conditions, rather than seam clamp attachment.

What maintenance is needed on seam clamps?

Virtually no maintenance is required. All of the clamp designs are not friction connections, they are mechanical interlocks, so loosening is rarely, if ever, an issue. We have noted that the set screw dimples the standing seam and compresses it to make a mechanical interlock. In addition, locking head screws, bolts, and nuts all with serrations that are directional allow the hardware to be seated but not unscrew, thus holding everything permanently in place. Since all of the metal is either stainless steel or aluminum, there is no concern of rusting or corrosion.

Where can I learn more?

To learn more specifically about seam clamps and how to use them to mount solar panels on a standing seam metal roof, visit the website of the leading manufacturer of seam clamps known as S-5! To learn more about standing seam metal roofing and metal buildings, contact your local Ceco representative.

Content for this article was provided by Rob Haddock, Founder and CEO of S-5!®

Finding a reliable supplier that can provide quick service, knowledge of the metal building industry and available stock including specialty items can be the key to having a building completed on time and within budget. It does no good to have the metal building or roofing parts and pieces on the site and the crew ready to work only to have to wait until they have the right items to proceed. What kind of hardware and specialty items are we talking about? Here is a short overview:

Anchors

More than a mechanical fastener, anchors are typically larger and longer pieces of hardware and include things like anchor bolts, foundation anchors, concrete anchors, threaded rods and similar items. While some may be fairly standard, special construction conditions or unique configurations means that specialty anchors may be needed. That means the size, shape, finish and length need to be correct for a successful start to constructing a metal building.

Flashings

A critical part of making a building and roof watertight is the proper use of flashings for differing conditions and for panel penetrations. Hence, having a ready supply of specialty EPDM flashing materials, standard or high temp pipe flashings and neoprene linings for gutters will help insure that work proceeds smoothly and in a water-tight manner. Further, having the ability to use standard or custom colors will help satisfy owner requirements and demands.

Mastic, Sealant and Tape

Many joints, connections and other conditions of metal building construction require compatible ways to seal them effectively against both water and air intrusion. Some are applied from tubes, some unrolled as rope or rods, others are spray applied and a few are custom fit rigid neoprene. The right selection will assure that the right results are achieved.

Tools

A good hardware and specialty item supplier will also be able to provide the specific hand tools, cordless tools and accessories needed for a complete installation. The right tool for the job is often the difference between a professional looking job and one that is lacking.

Safety Equipment

Anytime workers are up in the air on a roof or are elevated to work on a wall or ceiling, there is the potential for an accident. Having a source for reliable safety hardware and equipment that is easy to use and effective can not only protect workers from injury, it can help guard a company against liability and claims.

To learn more about metal buildings and roofing contact your local Ceco representative.

Content for this article was provided by Mike Turnipseed, at Dynamic Fastener. Dynamic Fastener has been in business for 40 years and supplies specialty fasteners, tools and accessories. For more information, contact Mike or visit www.dynamicfastener.com and download their free Tool and Fastener hand guide.