Building Builders

Dave Caputo is an entrepreneur and the former CEO and co-founder of technology company Sandvine, which navigated a CDN $562-million exit in 2017. Now, Dave has shifted his focus to creating Trusscore after a lifelong dislike for painted drywall. Trusscore is committed to disrupting the building materials industry by bringing to market a better-performing, more sustainable solution. In this episode...

* Note : Cal was still with Holmes Murphy & Associates when we recorded this episode. He is now working at the SAFE Project. Cal Beyer is a well-respected advocate for mental health and suicide prevention in the construction industry. On top of that, he has also conducted a ton of research on drug addiction in construction, with a big focus on opioid addiction. He has won several awards and ha...

Kathy Tuccaro is a full-time heavy equipment operator at a mine in Northern Alberta, Canada. In her career, Kathy operates some of the biggest equipment in the world, including the 797F Caterpillar truck, the CAT 24M Grader, and the D11 dozer. However, Kathy's life has not been without its struggles. In this episode, Kathy shares: Her story of transformation including how she went from being a nur...

Today’s guest is Ken Simonson, the Chief Economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, the leading national construction trade association. As Chief Economist, Ken presents vital information about the economy and what it means for construction. Through media interviews, presentations, and his weekly newsletter the Data DIGest, Ken helps contractors make informed decisions in the fac...

Construction contracts are complex whether you've been in the industry for one year or several. However, ignoring basic construction law principles can be catastrophic to your business for a variety of reasons. In this episode, we are joined by Josh Levy who currently serves as the CEO of Document Crunch, a contract intelligence platform for the construction industry. With a strong leadership back...

The size of the company you work for can have a direct impact on your career and learning opportunities. This was especially true for Barb who received her bachelor’s degree in Construction Management. She began her journey as a carpenter at a large general contractor, wearing her tool bags, physically building buildings and relationships, and had a successful career as a woman in construction.&nb...

The Gordie Howe International Bridge is a multi-billion dollar project that will connect Detroit, Michigan with Windsor, Ontario. This project is overseen by the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority, with Grant Hilbers being an executive leader on the team. Grant has more than 25 years of experience in the design and construction of large infrastructure projects and complex environmental compliance pr...

Growing in your career is something everyone wants to do, but it’s not easy. That’s why we interviewed Steve Dell’Orto, a 26-year construction industry veteran who began his construction career as an intern at one of North America’s most respected general contractors. By the end of this time there, he was a senior executive leading all projects on the West Coast. These projects included the Chase...

As any fleet manager and equipment operator knows, having a well-oiled and lubricated machine is crucial to decrease downtime and the need for repairs. Today, we are joined by Wendy Hakken, an oil and lube specialist working for Shell who specializes in lubricants for heavy equipment and trucks. With the motto of "lube it or lose it", Wendy helps fleet and maintenance managers ensure that all of t...

An unfortunate truth is that suicide is the leading cause of death in the construction industry. Construction workers are more likely to die by suicide than from being hit by a car in a work zone, falling to their death, and from electrocutions. Vince Hafeli is one of the leaders in the construction industry when it comes to suicide awareness and prevention. Sharing his personal journey with suici...

Building Builders is back with a new season launching on Tuesday, September 12th. Featuring guests ranging from contract lawyers, project managers, lubricant specialists, pre-construction executives, engineers, and equipment operators, this season is packed with amazing content and guests. Made for contractors, construction workers, heavy equipment operators, foremen, superintendents, and leaders,...

Join us for our last episode of the season as we sit down with HGTV influencer and successful entrepreneur, Bryan Baeumler. In this conversation, Bryan shares valuable insights and lessons he has learned throughout his entrepreneurial journey. From building his first company to becoming a household name on HGTV, Bryan imparts practical wisdom and experiences that can benefit aspiring entrepreneurs...

Megan Tanel is the President of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, the company behind North America’s largest construction trade show, CONEXPO. She joins the Building Builders podcast to talk about the new infrastructure bill (IIJA) and its impact on the industry, as well as some ideas about how to change trade school to make it more desireable for young adults. Key Moments: The importanc...

Randy Blount entered the construction industry at age 17 working for his family contracting business. He was thrust into a leadership role at age 21 when a cancer diagnosis sidelined his father from the company. Taking lessons from a number of early mistakes, Randy maintained the business until his father’s passing, at which time he purchased the company and took over management of daily operation...

Monica is an experienced safety trainer and consultant in the construction industry. With the goal of making safety more fun for everyone, she talks about some of the trends of safety in construction, as well as some of the challenges. Topics include new safety technologies, the importance of behavior-based safety, and why there's no country-wide standard for training. Key moments include: New saf...

Having a child while still in high school, Matt Panella (@mattbagswood) got into the trades earlier than he was expecting. His father and grandfather worked in concrete and framing, so it was a natural career path, and he's taken the opportunity and run with it. Now with a YouTube account with over 300,000 subscribers, Matt is educating the youth on what life is like in the trades. Both the highs...

Mike Simon ( Dirt Perfect ), is a well-known YouTuber in the contractor and excavation industries. Having started in November of 2017, he had pretty lofty goals for how he would build his channel. But what's the story of the man behind the channel? Where and how did he get his start? And what lessons did he learn along the way? That's what we set out to discover on this episode of Building Builder...

Mack Plovie has spent his whole life around heavy equipment, machinery, and mining. With his father and grandfather both working for CAT dealerships in Western Canada, several key moments have shaped him and his career. Listen to learn more about the different experiences that have given him some great memories including gold panning, having a CAT key at the age of 12, working in remote mines, ope...

Managing a construction project in an active hospital is no easy task. With so many complications around dust, vibrations, and safety, there are often more logistical concerns than on an average construction project. Fortunately, we had Josh Van Eyk , a Project Manager at EllisDon speak with us about these complexities. Josh is the Project Manager of the Cambridge Memorial Hospital redevelopment s...

Despite having no affiliations to the blue-collar world previously, Daniel Yates ( @bluecollarbrands ) has found himself going around construction sites telling the stories of those building our world behind the scenes. In this episode, Daniel shares some of his favorite stories of the people he's met, their pride in the work they do, and how the construction industry can do better to highlight th...

Jennifer Todd is a 15-year veteran woman in the construction industry. She was also the youngest Black woman to acquire California’s CSLB General Engineering (A) license. Today, she is the President of LMS General Contractors. We had her on the show to talk about her experience founding a company and how her law degree helped her navigate the early challenges involved. We also discuss what some ar...

Priestly Demolition has had its fingerprints on demolition projects across North America for the past 50 years. Having grown to over 500 employees, Priestly has contributed to some historical projects including the Toronto Pearson International Airport and CN Tower. Now, they're working on projects like the Rogers Centre upgrades and remote mines. These projects have involved several unique challe...

The life of an equipment operator has many ups and downs. Whether it's the feeling of having the streets to yourself and new challenges to overcome or the long, dark hours of snow removal in the winter, it's never easy but always rewarding. In this episode, one of DOZR's team members, Scott Clark, talks about his equipment operator life before DOZR and his transition to construction tech. Key Mome...

People who work in the construction industry don't always get the respect they deserve. That's a problem, especially when 40% of the current workforce is set to retire by 2030. So how does Aaron Witt think we overcome this major challenge? Create better leaders, highlight the traits that make construction unique, and bring a culture of care to the companies that continue to build our world. Key Mo...

Whether it's understanding cash flow, getting in touch with insurance companies or the right vendors, or even making time to figure out how to grow their company, there are a lot of areas where small contractors and business owners need help. That's why Luke Payne and Luke Eggebraaten have combined their skills and knowledge to create the Dirt Bags Podcast and University. In this episode, we touch...