Construction Brothers

(Today’s episode is a re-air from 2021, chosen in recognition of Fathers Day.)    It's time for some coffee with a splash of multi-generational wisdom.    Joining us today are our dad and our grandpa, aka “Pop.” These two bring a deep, wide reservoir of experience.    Pop started with Messer Construction all the way back in 1954, in part of a college co-op program. He moved on to the position of p...

Is a confession a confession if it brings you “a little sadistic joy”? We’ll let you make that judgment.    On the heels of last week’s episode about the importance of systems, today Eddie has a confession. A couple years ago he quietly dropped a subscription for Zapier, the management/automation software that Tyler loved when he was working at ABSI.     Eddie thought the software was really cool,...

Today we're talking to Lee Causey, the East Coast Innovation Leader for DPR Construction. Lee’s job, as he explains it, is to remove roadblocks and connect dots. When someone hears about a technology they’d like to try, Lee kicks into action and makes it happen.    In this role, he noticed people often chased the shiniest things rather than the most useful things. In an effort to make a data-based...

Systems are so cool… At least that’s how Tyler feels.    There’s a four-letter reason he loves them: ADHD. He has learned that systems hold him accountable.    Eddie is the grunt-and-get-it-done guy. This is often good, of course, but it can sometimes result in a failure to create a system early enough.     Tyler shares about automated folder-creation software that avoided organizational chaos.   ...

Welcome to The ConExpo Highlight Reel, starring Eddie and the Two Tylers! Yes, two is probably too many. We’ll make sure it doesn’t happen too often. Tyler Williams joins us this week to share some of the. Tyler, who is Field Innovation Leader at DPR Construction, was on the podcast a few months ago to discuss new tech in construction, and that’s the focus again today. ConExpo happens only every t...

Eddie shares today about all the shoulds that plague our days. You know you should eat your vegetables, maintain a balanced diet, drink water…   Making that actually happen is much tougher than just knowing that it should happen.   The same pattern is true within construction. It’s easy to know that you should show empathy, consider other people’s mental/emotional health.    The thing is that it’s...

If you work with concrete, you’ve probably dreamed of having the machines made by today’s guest.    Danielle Proctor is President and CEO of Construction Robotics, which makes two large and impressive rebar-related machines: IronBOT , which places rebar, and TyBOT , which ties that rebar.     Countless construction workers have put in their time tying rebar before moving on to other less backbreak...

  Ah yes, freshman year.    Today we’re talking about things we remember learning in our first year on the job.    Eddie starts us off:  His first lessons were about pacing. When you’re tying rebar, you don’t want to be starting at a sprint.    He discusses the home-life manifestation of this principle with the phenomenon of The Lowe’s Trip. When he enters a project slowly and deliberately, he avo...

Everybody’s talking about it, so today we are too. In this episode, we’re exploring the implications of AI for construction. (And yes, we know it's not Friday.)   (We touched on this topic in our conversation with Norine Bagate a couple weeks ago. Check out that episode if you missed it.)   Tyler shares what he’s read and seen about AI virtual assistants that can identify potential candidate (for...

We’re different.  Okay, that’s not news. Today we explore the differences in our routines, but then we talk about the value of routine--and the ways in which routines can go too far. Eddie shares about his effort to stay in routine despite the craziness of life. He’ll just get a routine going, and then something throws it off.  We talk about emotional/relational withdrawals and deposits. Tyler’s w...

It's not quite what it sounds like, but it's just as cool.   Angie Simon, former CEO of Western Allied Mechanical, joined us last year to talk about baseball analogies that can strengthen your construction game. Today she’s here to talk about an exciting youth-oriented construction-recruiting program that came up in that conversation: the Heavy Metal Summer Experience .    (Before we get to the su...

Today Tyler shares with us about his routine. Well, Tyler has a four-year-old and a two-year-old, so "routine" might not be quite the right word. Still, there are some patterns.    Two-year-old Hank is an early riser, but Dad needs his coffee, which means that Hank often starts his day with some TV.   Then there might be some reading (social media posts count as reading, right?) before helping his...

When Scott Peper is not being overwhelmed with the duties of parenting three daughters, he’s focused on his work as CEO of Mobilization Funding . He also wrote The Big Book of Cash Flow , which aims to help commercial subcontractors and general contractors to navigate the financial aspect of successful projects.    Cash flow in the construction world is not like it is in most other businesses. Sco...

Today, in the first of a very short series (if two episodes can be called a series), Eddie talks us through the daily pattern that keeps him going.  Eddie is a man of routine. You’ll hear about a day that kicks off with a 5:30 alarm and includes a healthy supply of coffee among other things. There are some smoothies in there, as well as some ice cream. (Of course there’s also a collection of thoug...

Today’s episode includes a visual demonstration, so you may want to consider watching the Youtube version.   After a short story about deadly dumpling shenanigans, we shift to today’s guest, John Fay.   John is the founder and CEO of Låda Cube (pronounced Lauda Cube). Låda Cube produces pre-fab cassettes that are used in the place of conventional stud-and-drywall walls. John starts out with a revi...

A few weeks ago, we talked to Dr. Michael Bottlang about the rotational force that causes the majority of severe head injuries.   This got Eddie thinking about an earlier experience where we purchased hard hats for a demo and ended up with Type I hard hats when we’d intended to get a Type II.   Many contractors have chosen to shift to newer styles of helmets without looking at the protection data....

Norine Bagate is a teacher–not by profession but in practice. Professionally, she’s the founder of NWB Consulting, a technology-based firm that develops software aimed at helping owners ensure that projects are completed as smoothly as possible.    Here’s a quick rundown of Norine’s professional history:  Earned an architecture degree from University of Texas at Austin Moved to New York and worked...

Long-time listener, first-time caller–like the actual, very first caller! A couple weeks ago we announced our new Construction Brothers call line and invited you to leave a voicemail with a question or insight. A few of you stepped up, and today we address one of those questions. The question: In regard to leadership, which matters more: relationships or results? We discuss the fact that the clear...

We start with some light chat touching on “the crud,” night-snacking kids, and nosey people who tell you to eat salad.    Then we get to today’s substance: how to fix a stalled project.   Smooth progress determines profitability. So we try to work ahead, but before you know it… here come the RFIs.   Next comes a list of items that can hold a project hostage:   Operating-room lights Operable partit...

Today we start out by stepping into our time machine and looking at contrasting growth spurts in the Campbell home. We see 4-foot-11-inch teenager Eddie diligently chucking up those three-point attempts.   Then we fast-forward a few years. There we see 14-year-old, Tyler, making the most of his 6 feet and 2 inches not on the driveway basketball hoop, but on the violin.    Nature’s timelines can se...

(This episode contains several visual elements. Although we’ll provide some links below, consider watching the Youtube version if possible.) Welcome to The Headbanger’s Ball, where we talk about the fashion, the price, and the effectiveness of construction headgear.    Between 2003 and 2010, 2,210 construction workers died because of a traumatic brain injury ( CDC.gov ).   Dr. Michael Bottlang was...

Today we take a break from our usual Friday routine to talk to Ken Flannigan and welcome Dell as a partner of the podcast.    Ken worked in construction for several years before transitioning to work on the software and work stations that enable the industry to do what it does.    Eddie shares about the computer choices he’s made as a small business owner. He’s always aimed to keep the best equipm...

Rich Racz has been working as an engineer within the construction industry for seven years. He started out in Massachusetts and then jumped over the entire continental US to settle in Portland, Oregon.   We start today’s conversation with some talk about engineering classifications. Rich is a PE working on an SE. This means his license is in professional civil engineering, but he is on his way to...

“You used to call me on my cell phone…” Well, you didn’t “used to,” but you can now.   The Construction Brothers are now available by voicemail!    “By voicemail?” You say?    Yes, by voicemail. Here’s what we have in mind with this dedicated phone line: We want to hear from you. We want to know… What problems are you dealing with on the jobsite? What’s causing headaches in the office?  What indus...

The story of Andrew Brown’s life in construction starts on September 11, 2001. Andrew was a 23-year-old IT worker on Wall Street. When the towers fell, Andrew and a friend decided that they had to help. They headed toward Ground Zero and somehow made it through all of the checkpoints.    After watching so many tradespeople pour themselves into the rescue efforts–most of them with little PPE, Andre...