It has been rumored that the construction industry is filled with the most romantic people on earth. We dig the romantics out there. Valentine’s Day is a bit of a respite from winter’s grip on construction projects. YouDig? offers you 7 things we love to make your heart beat a little quicker this cold winter’s day.
1: Proper Courtship.
We love comprehensive due diligence. How many problems with your project partners would have been avoided with a couple of extra steps on credit worthiness, capacity, reputation or references? You can’t hurry love.
2: Passion.
We love a culture of passion on a construction project. The intense desire to see the project rise from the plans and develop into a productive use. Once a project is underway, there is no replacement for a passionate team of professionals working together and burning the midnight oil to drive the project ahead.
3: Partnership.
We love a stable partnership on construction projects. All partnerships are built on one fundamental concept summarized as follows: “You take this… I take that!”. Never forget, partners who respect each other’s contributions and share have a much better chance to stand the test of time. Don’t be greedy. Work together and share the joy!
4: Resiliency.
We love tough sons of guns. Webster’s says resiliency means “the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness.” YouDig? says resiliency for construction means knowing in advance that solving the inevitable problems is complicated and highly nuanced. When you as a project partner “just can’t take it anymore,” “take it some more” and push toward a solution.
5: Security and Safety.
Home Sweet Home… We really dig it. A stocked fridge, a warm fire and a cup of tea if you wish. In construction, we dig a safe workplace where the project players consciously strive to an injury-free project and keep everyone safe so they can go home and sit by their own fire.
6: Empathy.
We love a beautiful design that is well planned and suited toward its intended purpose. The main reason is that we have seen other designs that were poorly planned and not suited to their intended purpose. Architects and engineers, dig deep with your clients and be determined to fully understand the intended use. Ask questions like it’s your job… wait a minute… it is your job.
7: Birthdays.
We love the cornerstone. The birthday of a building! Nothing is more exciting than to witness the culmination of our other six loves generate a community asset, a business office, a hospital, a school, a park or whatever or wherever your crazy romantic construction dreams take you.
John Swansinger is the author and founder of YouDig and is a partner in Buckingham, Doolittle & Burrough, LLCs real estate and construction practice group. He works with contractors, developers and construction owners on construction law issues including construction contracts, commercial agreements, construction litigation, subcontractor issues, insurance liability, breach of contract and more. He can be reached at jswansinger@bdblaw.com or 216.615.7356.
YouDig is an online resource that connects the construction community with vital issues affecting the industry and is a component of the business law firm Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLC that is specifically geared toward construction.