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The Power of Written Values
Everyone has values that they hold sacred to running a moral and ethical business. Why? They can be motivated by deep personal conviction. Others may look at values as a best business practice. Either way, if you put them in writing and integrate them into your company culture, they will produce tremendous results.
Changing Channels
If you're paying attention to us as much as we are you, you'll notice that there are some changes in this month's issue. After studying the results of this year's readership survey, we discovered three important themes that led us to reorganize our editorial content in 2006. Based on your survey responses, we have created three distinct channels of content — Best Practices, Solutions and ...
Silence is Golden
Your average house is a very noisy place to live. Forget crying babies and vocal teenagers; think of all the fans, blowers, pumps, HVAC equipment, washers, dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators, freezers — cycling on, cycling off, all day long. Home offices and media rooms add to both the noise level and the need for quiet.
Contract Check-Up
A contract is never complete. For remodelers, who are used to projects with a beginning and end, that can be a difficult concept to accept, says Tom Cooper, who teaches a contracts course for NAHB. "Because situations change, laws change and because of things we haven't thought about [yet], we continually revise these documents," says Cooper, a professor emeritus of building science at Alabama'...
Mission Accomplished
JG Development of Blue Mounds, Wis., builds and remodels timberframe, post-and-beam, panelized and log homes. It belongs to Wisconsin's Energy Star Homes program and has "grown to be the company out in this area that will do anything," no matter how daunting, says owner Jeff Grundahl. "Usually I'm the first one to tell customers not to tear down," says Grundahl.
2006 Economic Forecast
Building material prices are expected to remain high throughout 2006 as a result of the effects of Hurricane Katrina, according to the Association of General Contractors. Widespread shortages of natural gas and crude oil following Katrina caused a 20 to 50 percent spike in the price of PVC piping, roofing and insulation, which is expected to remain near those levels in 2006.
Letters
Curbless construction On page 18 of the universal design article in your November issue, you show a picture of a curbless shower. Our firm has been contracted to create such a shower. We would appreciate it if you have any further information or could point us in the right direction to obtain more information on how to design and construct such a unit.
Parting Worlds
In his time living in this home, infamous Depression-era political boss Tom Pendergast thought of the basement simply as an escape route. Fearing attempts on his life, he had a tunnel system built behind the walls. The current homeowners sought a bold, bright, kid-friendly basement inspired by two cherished art pieces.
Show & Tell
Keeping consumers safe, warm and dry is at the top of the residential construction industry's priority list right now. New types of housewrap, foundation wrap, vapor barriers, sealants and sheathing all tout their increased ability to keep out moisture and keep down homeowners' utility bills. Nearly every window and door manufacturer is adding to or introducing an impact-resistant line of produ...