ELECTRI Updates

THE NEW REQUIREMENTS – Participants in last week’s ELECTRI Council Room webcast learned a lot about best practices and pain points on performing federal work, or work funded with federal dollars, that include Buy America requirements. You and your key staff members can review the Council Room conversation by clicking this link.

HOW DO YOU EVALUATE EXPEREINCE? - In selecting his workforce, Classic Electric & Consulting President Toby Mitchell knows that understanding and applying technology is far more important than the person’s number of years in the industry. He leads Classic Electric & Consulting with a compassionate approach to both staff and customers. Toby knows that success comes from building the brand into an exciting company where people grow and excel. Watch his Think Like a Leader interview here. 

WE NEED YOUR HELP - Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are crucial for the success of electrical contractors in the construction industry. They provide consistency, standardization, teamwork, and a common vision for project execution. With a shortage of workers and generational changes, SOPs are becoming even more critical. ELECTRI is launching a research project on “Setting up the project for success with SOPs” to define, assemble, deploy, and evaluate SOPs. We invite you to share this survey with your employees to help advance the industry. 

ELECTRI SOP Survey

IF YOU’RE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD – EC contractors across the country are taking advantage of new ways to learn more about industry advancements and – at the same time – connect with very smart young professionals interested in EC industry careers. ELECTRI’s Industry Connect is partnering with NECA Chapters and has three upcoming programs. We hope you will take time to join an event near you:  April 25 - Northeastern Illinois Chapter NECA, April 26-27 - St. Louis Chapter NECA, May 12 - Oregon-Columbia Chapter NECA. For additional information about these sessions or to learn how to schedule an Industry Connect for your NECA Chapter, contact Anna (Trapane) Jochim, ELECTRI’s Director of Future Workforce Development at 240-446-6294 or anna.jochim@electgri.org

KEEP IT VISUAL. KEEP IT REAL. – 360-degree photo documentation tools are a low-cost, low-effort means of having complete visual project records. On site, someone walks the job and captures 360-degree photos and videos. Then, software automatically organizes these photos and videos by location and date of capture. There is a new class of easy-to-deploy photo record-keeping solutions on the market. ELECTRI research, conducted by Thomas Czerniawski, has produced a Guide to 360 Photo Project Documentation. The results include an implementation checklist designed to provide a step-by-step guide for electrical contractors to deploy 360-photo management successfully. The checklist includes five key steps:

1. Organizational Policy and Strategic Plan
2. Technology Ramp Up
3. Execution - Suggested Standard Operating Procedures
4. Experimenting with Advanced Features

Access the complete project at this link to go straight to project results.

2023 ELECTRI Council Meeting

July 17 - 19, 2023

The American Club

Kohler, WI

ELECTRI is excited to announce that registration is now open for the July 2023 ELECTRI Council meeting at the American Club in Kohler, WI. The meeting will take place July 17-19.  Register for the meeting here. Once you register, you will receive the phone number to call to make your hotel reservation. All reservations must be made by calling the American Club directly as there is no online link.

Highlights of the meeting:

·    Keynote speaker Steve Richman, Group President, Milwaukee Tool   

·    Breakout sessions on a variety of topics

·    Discussion and voting on a new round of research opportunities

·    Golf at the famous Whistling Straits course (costs generously covered by Graybar)

·    Tactical Shooting activity (costs generously covered by BreezEV)

·    A tour of Milwaukee Tool’s newest facility in West Bend, WI. This tour will end at 1PM on Wednesday, July 19th. Transportation will be provided to the Airport or back to the resort by Milwaukee Tool. Please make your travel plans accordingly.

Make your plans now to join ELECTRI this summer for an exciting agenda. If you have any questions, please contact Laura Holmes @ Laura.Holmes@electri.org

YOU GET TO DECIDE – There are 14 NECA Student Chapters participating in ELECTRI’s 2023 Electrical Contracting Innovation Challenge. Next, our industry leaders get to review the project proposals and select the three finalist teams to make in-person presentations during the NECA Convention in Philadelphia. If you are interested in learning where the most talented, industry-ready students can be found, please consider volunteering as a member of the jury for the ECIC competition. For additional information, contact Laura Holmes at laura.holmes@electri.org

WELL WORTH WATCHING – ELECTRI’s recent ConTech and Coffee webinar focused on Material Management Software. EC panelists reviewed their Material Management software journey. The conversation covered how they chose the software, how it got implemented in their workflow, and how it was integrated from their previous material management workflow. To watch and learn from the discussion, click the link here.

ELECTRI International Quick Links

ELECTRI Meetings    ELECTRI Research    Council Room Sessions  Prefab 101 Videos  Think Like A Leader  

This year’s Fall Stand-Down will be May 1-5, 2023. Attached is some useful information to use during the stand-down.

In advance of the 10^th annual National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction (May 1-5, 2023), OSHA wanted to alert you to the following new tools and resources to assist workplaces in preparing for and participating in the Stand-Down:

·    OSHA Public Service Announcement:

·    OSHA’s video PSA is now available in English and Spanish.

·    Handouts for Workers:

·    Hardhat Stickers and Hazard Alert Cards are still available for order from CPWR. Place your orders no later than April 12, 2023.

·    Attachments – Attached for your use are the following promotional resources:

·    Talking Points for Promoting the 2023 Fall Stand Down (English/Spanish)

·    Signature Block Banners (English/Spanish)

As a reminder, anyone who wants to prevent hazards in the workplace can participate in the Stand-Down. Companies can conduct a Safety Stand-Down by taking a break to have a toolbox talk or another safety activity such as conducting safety equipment inspections, developing rescue plans, or discussing job specific hazards. See Highlights from Past Stand-Downs and reports evaluating previous events.