april 2008 orange county chapter #3 american society of ... apr 08 final.pdf ·...

orange county chapter #3

President’s Message Notes from the President Speaker Information Meeting InformationCalendar of Events ASPE Board Members& Committee ContactsJoke of the MonthCompany ListingRegional RecapSpecial InsertAnnouncements

april 2008

oRANgE

Our Mission Since 1956 ASPE serves the construction &

engineering industries by providing education, training, fellowship and opportunities for

professional estimating development..

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789

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NEwSLEttER SPEEL

american Society of

professional estimators

www.aspenational.com

president’s MessageA colleague from the east coast is working on a research paper on causes of change order growth ([email protected]). Glenn Butts is trying to determine construction change order growth and claims on a typical building project. From the five building phases of a project; site work, building construction rough, building construction finish, systems installation and building activation what is the expected cost growth from 0 – 100% for each of these items? On a personal experience level, this is a somewhat rhetorical question, because every project is unique, some projects are well planned out with complete construction documents, some clients are knowledgeable in building construction, construction contracts are well defined being fair to all parties, payment terms are reasonable, while other projects are not, in all of the above categories. It is difficult to generalize about where the potential for change orders could occur on a project, but it is an interesting topic of discussion. Knowing where potential change orders or claims can happen is a way of providing prevention. Knowledgeable & experienced estimators can provide this valuable input to clients to at the beginning phases of a project in order to avoid scope growth, change orders and potential claims. What are your thoughts on this subject? If you are interested in finding out more, feel free to contact Glenn Butts, and take the survey.

Last month, we had a successful meeting on LEED Green Buildings. A special thanks goes to Jordon Seagraves AIA, LEED AP who gave an informative talk on sustainable building construction. For April the meeting topic is construction scheduling, at the estimating stages of a project. More information on our April 9th, dinner meeting is described below.

Our next Board meeting is scheduled for Monday March 31st, at 5 PM. All members are welcome to attend. We always need more volunteers. If you are interested in attending a board meeting, feel free to contact me. Board meetings are held once a month in Lake Forest, at the Earth Tech office. The meetings last about one hour.

Our dinner meetings are held on the second Wednesday of each month. We meet at the Mezzanine Building at the Newport Gateway Towers, in Irvine (see enclosed map for details).The next dinner meeting is scheduled for April 9th. Social hour starts at 5:30 PM with dinner at 6:30 PM. We finish by 8:30 and parking is free. Hope to see you there. Don’t forget, we also hold a raffle. The winner receives half of the proceeds, the chapter gets the other half.

ASPE Orange County Chapter Newsletter • Volume 2008 • Issue #8

Cannon #1 Professional estimators shall perform services in areas of their discipline and competence.

ASPE Code of Ethics:

Cannon #2Professional estimators shall continue to expand their professional capabilities through continuing education programs to better enable them to serve clients, employers and the industry.

Cannon #3Professional estimators shall conduct themselves in a manner, which will promote cooperation and good relations among members of our profession and those directly related to our profession.

Cannon #4Professional estimators shall safeguard and keep in confidence all knowledge of the business affairs and technical procedures of an employer or client.

Page 1

~ Dan Schottlander, CPE President, ASPE Orange County Chapter

Notes from the President

Cannon #6Professional estimators shall utilize their education, years of experience and acquired skills in the preparation of each estimate or assignment with full commitment to make each estimate or assignment as detailed and accurate as their talents and abilities allow.Cannon #7Professional estimators shall not engage in the practice of "bid peddling" as defined by this code. This is a breach of moral and ethical standards, and a member of this society shall not enter into this practice.

Cannon #8Professional estimators and those in training to be estimators shall not enter into any agreement that may be considered acts of collusion or conspiracy (bid rigging) with the implied or express purpose of defrauding clients. Acts of this type are in direct violation of the Code of Ethics of the American Society of Professional Estimators.

Cannon #9Professional estimators and those in training to be estimators shall not participate in acts, such as the giving or receiving of gifts, that are intended to be or may be construed as being unlawful acts of bribery.

Cannon #5Professional estimators shall conduct themselves with integrity as all times and not knowingly or willingly enter into agreements that violate the laws of the United States of America or of the states in which they practice. They shall establish guidelines for setting forth prices and receiving quotations that are fair and equitable to all parties.

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Chapter WebsiteASPE reservations can be booked on line. Our chapter website is www.ASPEChapter3.org. Monthly newsletters are posted on the site. If you have any questions or ideas on what to include in our website, feel free to contact our Webmaster Paulette Rutlen. The national website has been changed from www.aspenational.com to www.aspenational.org. Be sure to check out both websites for current announcements.

Golden Spike AwardLast year, the San Diego Chapter initiated an award dinner to honor an outstanding individual for contributions to the construction industry. This idea originated from the Atlanta Chapter which has locally, had their Golden Hammer Award for a number of years. For 2008 the Golden Spike Award would like to honor someone from Southern California. The award ceremony is going to be held in Orange County, sometime this fall. Nominees can be an estimator or any one in construction industry. If you know of someone that you would like to nominate, or you would like to participate, please contact our John Mauk CPE or Frank Young FCPE of the San Diego chapter. John’s phone number is 949-476-2094 and Frank’s cell phone number is 619-980-4025. We need some volunteers for this upcoming event.

CertificationYou may want to consider taking the Certified Professional Estimator (CPE) examination. This is a good opportunity to gain industry recognition as a certified estimator. The next testing period is scheduled for July 2008 at the National Convention in Baltimore. The workshop is being offered online on the national ASPE website. If you want to find out more about the exam, what to study, what to do for the paper, please contact Certification Chair Art Quinion. We are planning to have a local workshop in May. There is still room to sign-up.


Sriram “Ram” Ramdass, PSP O’Connor Construction Management, Inc.Irvine, California

Mr. Ramdass joined O’Connor after having taught CPM scheduling and Primavera Project Planner at Arizona State University’s renowned Del E. Webb School of Construction. He is an authority in the application usage of P3. He is also involved in the implementation of Primavera 6.0 and Primavera Expedition for different projects. He has more than six years of experience in the construction industry.

Mr.Ramdass has provided numerous training seminars to Contractors and Owners in general topics of construction scheduling, Suretrak Project Manager and Primavera Project Planner. Recently, Mr.Ramdass presented on the topic of “Scheduling 101 using Suretrak” at the California State University Facility Management Institute 2007 conference.

At O’Connor, Mr. Ramdass provides cost estimating, CPM scheduling, and constructibility analysis for various projects including medical facilities, parking garages, operations and maintenance centers, universities, and airports.

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About the Speaker


quote of the Month

”“those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts.

~ rachel carson

The presentation will review the scheduling basics and move on to the tools in the market for creating a schedule. Then a brief overview of the resource and cost loading will be provided. The presentation will then review some of the reports including cash flow analysis that the Estimator can provide input on. Finally, an overview of the tools that provide integration of the estimate with the schedule will be provided.

Agenda

1. Need for Scheduling 2. The Circle of Schedule Creation 3. Scheduling Tools 4. Resource and Cost Loading 5. Reporting 6. Integration Tools

Date: Wednesday, March 12th , 2008Social Time: 5:30 p.m. - Program & Dinner: 6:30 p.m.

Location: 19800 MacArthur Boulevard, Irvine, CA The Mezzanine @ Newport Gateway Towers

Topic: Construction Scheduling with an Estimator’s Perspective

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF PROFESSIONAL ESTIMATORSInvites you to join the

ORANGE COUNTY CHAPTER’Snext meeting at:

Page 4

Presented by: Ram Ramdass , PSP – O’Connor Construction Management, Inc.


For reservations, please go to the website to book your spot at www.aspechapter3.org.Contact Art Quinion at [email protected] or call 949-581-9370 if you have any questions.

For reservations, please go to the website to book your spot at www.aspechapter3.org.Contact Art Quinion at [email protected] or call 949-581-9370 if you have any questions.

Page 5ASPE Orange County Chapter Newsletter • Volume 2008 • Issue #8

Dinner: Steak $35 Chicken $35Vegetarian Lasagna $35

MEETING INFORMATIONSpeaker: Ram Ramdass

Date: Wednesday, April 9th , 2008Social Time: 5:30 p.m. - Program & Dinner: 6:30 p.m.

Location: 19800 MacArthur Boulevard, Irvine, CA

The Mezzanine @ Newport Gateway Towers P: 949 724-1066

405 Freeway @ MacArthur Junction between

MacArthur & Fairchild

ASPE Orange County Chapter Newsletter • Volume 2008 • Issue #8 Page 6

April 2008Sunday Tuesday Wednesday Friday SaturdayMonday Thursday

5

6 12

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26

151413

20 21 22 23 24 25

30292827

7 8 9 10 11

ASPE Orange County Chapter #3 • Calendar of Events

3 4

Dinner Meeting @

6:30 p.m. in Irvine

2131

Board Meeting

@ 5 p.m.

*Don’t miss the next meeting on Wednesday, May 14th at 6:30 PM.

2007-2008 Board Members and Committee Chairs

President

1st Vice President

Secretary/Treasurer

Immediate Past President

Board of Directors

Board of Directors

Board of Directors

Chapter Certification Chair & BOD

Programs

Newsletter Editor & BOD

Membership

Education

Scholarship

Bylaws

Web Master

Dan Schottlander, CPEEarth Tech

Art Quinion, CPEPhoenix Planning

Shantha Suraweera, CPEO’Connor Construction Management

Ron Svarc, CPEALY Construction

Paulette R. Rutlen, CPEThe Austin Company

Peter GaranAnalytical Planning Services

John Mauk, CPEO’Connor Construction Mgmt.

Art Quinion, CPEPhoenix Planning

Vacant

Danielle Leyva HMC Architects

Vacant

Vacant

Vacant

Vacant

Paulette R. Rutlen, CPEThe Austin Company

949 330 [email protected]



949 629 4300 ext. [email protected]





Vacant


Vacant

Vacant

Vacant

Vacant



Joke of the Month

A contractor dies on a fishing accident on his 40th birthday and finds himself greeted at the pearly gates by a brass band. Saint Peter runs over, shakes his hand and says “congratulations!” “Congratulations for what?” asks the contractor. “Congratulations for what?” says Saint Peter. “We are celebrating the fact that you lived to be 160 years old.” “But that’s not true,” says the contractor. “I only lived to be 40.” “That’s impossible,” says Saint Peter, ‘we added up your time sheets!”

Company Member Representatives from ASPE Orange County Chapter

Abacus Project Management Inc.

MC Consultants

American Constructors

Analytical Planning Services, Inc

Arnulfo Ruiz

Bel Esprit Builders, Inc.

Bert L. Howe & Assoc., Inc.

Brussel Consulting & Const Mgnt

Consolidated Contracting Services

Contracting Engineers Inc.

Contractors & Cost Consultants

Corecon Technologies Inc.

Disneyland Resorts

Earth Tech

Faithful & Gould

GKK Works

Herzog Contracting Corp.

HMC Architects

Jacobs

Jacobs Engineering

JBH Structural Concrete Inc.

Joshua Don

Kanda Project Service

Kerry Contractors, Inc.

KFHP Inc.

KGA, Inc.

KHS&S

L&R Construction Inc.

Lennar

Lombard Consulting Services, Inc.

M. Cangro Development

Madsen,Kneppers & Associates

Marlin Const. Consulting & Assoc.

O’Connor Construction Mgmt.

Pacific Rim Mechanical Contr.Inc.

Pete Fowler Construction Services

Phoenix Planning

Project Control Assoc.

Raymond Interior Systems

Ronald Fedman Associates, Inc.

The Austin Company

The Clark Construction Group

Timko, Inc.


Last weekend I attended a gala ASPE weekend event in Phoenix, AZ. There was a joint Regional meeting for the Northwest and Southwest Regions held in conjunction with the spring meeting of the National Board of Trustees and an Estimating Academy conducted by the hosting Chapter.

Some of the guys flew in a day early to get in a round of golf before getting down to work. A large group of us met up on Thursday night for dinner at the Cadillac Ranch Grill in Tempe.

Friday morning we all got down to business with the Estimating Academy being held at the hotel Fiesta Inn Resort, a beautiful venue. The BOT held their all day meeting in the offices of Sundt Construction Company. This LEED certified building was a marvel, complete with high tech systems, a beautiful kitchen, a workout room and a meditation room. We took a short break at noon to join the folks from the Estimating Academy for lunch at the hotel. Friday evening started with a cocktail reception, hosted by several

corporate sponsors, followed by dinner at Monti’s La Casa Vieja, in downtown Tempe.

There was a good showing from the two regions at Saturday’s joint regional meeting. The BOT joined the regional meeting after a brief meeting of the finance committee and the Regional Governors. In the afternoon we had a working session with those in attendance doing a review and critique of the EP-1 and EP-2 tests. There was a lively discussion with good feedback on the usefulness of these tests as a screening tool for employers. The comments were gathered and will be given to the two technical boards responsible for the administration of these exams.

There was a review of the bylaw changes being proposed for this year’s convention voting, with the BOT recommendation on each.

The Governor’s have asked each chapter to put a line item in their chapter budgets for a donation to the Governor’s Fund. This is money used at the discretion of the Governor to travel to various chapters during their time in office. Additionally, it was noted that when a new chapter is starting up they need funding. Because a group wishing to start a new chapter must start with MAL’s before they are able to charter a chapter, they have no funding from dues until the charter members come up for renewal. Therefore, when a chapter is chartered, if each chapter in the region contributed a hundred dollars to that chapter it would be of tremendous help in establishing the new chapter. It would be my recommendation to


Northwest and Southwest Regional Meeting…

the Orange County Chapter that we set aside $500.00 for such purposes. We could give $250.00 to the Governor and hold the remainder for any new chapters in development.

The following convention sites have been selected by the BOT:

2009 Saint Louis, MO 2010 Dallas, TX

2011 Nashville, TN 2012 Reno, NV

The BOT has voted to contribute $5,000.00 seed money for the development of a study to be conducted by the California Center for Construction Education (CCCE) through California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo, CA, with the assistance of ASPE and CSI. In a nutshell, CSI & ASPE have been approached to contribute a total of $10,000.00 to put together a research study plan to conduct a research study whose primary objective is to establish evidence that certification adds to the professionalism of the industry and directly impacts project performance. So, if you or your employer is requested to participate in this study, please give them your full cooperation.

Each chapter has been requested to review their current tax status. It has come to the attention of the BOT that many of the chapters do not have their own tax identification number, nor are they operating in accordance with the standard chapter bylaws. We will need to do a little housekeeping to make sure that we are in conformance with all applicable tax regulations. There will be a tax attorney speaking at the Chapter Operations Workshop held on Friday July 11th at this year’s convention to be held in Baltimore, MD at the beautiful Inner Harbor.

We have a new hire at the Society Business Office, Marie Jordan. Marie will be answering the phones and doing the bookkeeping. She does not sound exactly like the other ladies, so you should be able to hear the difference when you call. Please join us all in welcoming her to our organization!

Paulette R. Rutlen, CPE

National 1st Vice President

Northwest and Southwest Regional Meeting Continued…


Estimators in Today’s Construction Marketplaceby Tony RicheyDespite the ever-present economic woes construction put-in-place is expected to total $1.21 trillion in 2008 according to a recent overview released by FMI. The Southern California job market lends credence to this report and, as evidenced by the high demand for Pre-Construction/Estimating personnel, is showing signs of growth beyond 2008. There is also an apparent shortage of Estimators in commercial construction, which means this could be the perfect opportunity for quality Estimators with commercial experience to find their dream job. Out of the 635 construction professionals I spoke with in the Commercial Estimating arena, only 6 were in the range of 10 – 20 years of experience. The rest were in two groups. The younger group usually made up of project engineers, was either in a standard rotation put in place by their company to gain estimating experience or they were helping out because of the workload. The second group consisted of a variety of Chief Estimators, V.Ps of Estimating or Preconstruction Managers, and all had 20 plus years of experience. When asked the reason behind the shortage, there were three common themes. The main contributor to the talent gap was the market. In the late 80’s and early 90’s when the market softened, most firms didn’t hire estimators and some let go of the ones they had. “There is a shortage of estimators especially in what I call the mid level range. After the construction bubble burst in ‘89 there was a 4 or 5 year period of time where there was virtually nothing” says Bob Martin, Chief Estimator at McCormick Construction. “In

an effort to save money people put the estimating duties on the backs of the Project Managers to save money.” According to Bob, this gap is somewhat unique to commercial construction. “We are seeing a high supply of Civil Estimators, guys that can do all the road work and infrastructure projects but not Building Estimators which is what we do. We build buildings.” The second contributor is the rising importance of preconstruction. Preconstruction in the early 90’s was viewed in an entirely different light than it is now. John Cowles, Chief Estimator for Hathaway Dinwiddie, says, “People did not realize the value of their estimating departments and they didn’t realize the value of pre-con.” With 3D modeling and Design Build methods becoming the order of the day, preconstruction efforts are now viewed as critical not just important. This has increased the demand for preconstruction personnel in general and the value of “the estimator that can sell” has risen sharply. This is one of the rarest forms of construction professionals in the market. Generally speaking, the analytical mind required to perform in the role of an Estimator does not typically exist within the type A sales personality. Considering this gap in the workforce, finding a detailed Estimator skilled in conceptual estimating, who is polished and articulate and is comfortable in front of owners is quite a feat. Steve Nelson, Chief Estimator and Senior VP for Snyder-Langston say’s, “At the conceptual level you have to be both, it’s having an engineering mind and a sales mind. You also have to be able to communicate effectively to gain the trust of clients prepared to spend millions of dollars. If you

have found that type of person you have found a needle in a haystack.”

Another common theme expressed was the negative opinion of young construction professionals regarding the estimating role but that role seems to be evolving constantly. John adds “Especially coming out of school young people thought of Estimators as guys that would sit in a back room with little green visors on, counting doors. The fact of the matter is, estimating isn’t that anymore.” And Bob agreed, “The old time smoke filled rooms are gone. Most of us have gone 100% digital. Plans have gone digital, take off has gone digital and actually, we as estimators are the leaders because we are the first ones in. The industry as a whole is moving towards the BIM system and the estimating team will be the ones at the forefront of that new technology.”

With the present gap in the workforce and the high demand from a growing number of premier firms, I can’t imagine a more exciting time to be a Professional Estimator in Southern California. Tony Richey ([email protected]) is an Executive Search Consultant in the Construction and Real Estate Specialty Practice at Kaye/Bassman International. Kaye/Bassman places over 300 construction professionals per year, many of which are in the West Coast Region.


Advertising Opportunities

Business Card Ad: 1 Issue $15 6 Issues $60 12 Issues $100

Full Page Ad: 1 Issue $50 6 Issues $200 12 Issues $300

Employment Ad:

Each Issue $50

MembershipWith each publication, our electronic newsletter is distributed to over 150 individuals, members & non-members alike. If you know anyone that might enjoy receiving our newsletter, please pass it along and give us their e-mail address. If you are not currently a member and enjoy our readership as well as our events, perhaps you may want to consider joining ASPE for 2007 – 2008.

Page 12

Question of the Month1. What is the gross square footage of an exterior wall needing shiplap siding with a lap of 1 1/4” if the wall is 68’ X 11’?

A. 768 sf

B. 748 sf

C. 910 sf

D. 935 sf

The correct answer is C.

netSF / 4.79 X 5.83 = 910 sf

Website of the MonthOur ASPE Executive Director, Ed Walsh, has established a relationship with a new search engine, www.goodsearch.com. Every time a member uses this search engine, ASPE will benefit with a cash donation. This search engine is powered by Yahoo! Search. When you go to their homepage you will see the question, WHO DO YOU SEARCH FOR? Just enter the name of the organization you want to receive the donation, American Society of Professional Estimators. From that point on, every time you use this search engine GoodSearch will donate one cent to our ASPE. If you use their shopping feature, you can earn even more for our ASPE.

Please make www.goodsearch.com your search engine of choice. Every little bit helps! Even if it is a penny at a time.

Any Program Ideas?

If there is enough support

from the chapter, other

things that we can develop,

could include sponsoring

a golf tournament, hosting

an estimating academy,

or having a regional

meeting in 2008 with

other ASPE chapters. (This

years regional meeting

will be held in Reno).

In order to make our

chapter work for everyone

we are looking for your

ideas and input. What

topics would you like

to see discussed? What

programs would you

like? If you are a General

Contractor, Subcontractor,

Consultant, Architect

or Engineer, what topics

are you interested in?

Any suggestions that

you have, we would

appreciate your input.

www.aspenational.com


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