Wired to Build

The work looked right. The question is whether it was. In Part 2, Dr. Ahmed El-Rasheed gets into the mechanics of how electrical systems actually fail — and why more than half the time, the cause traces back to something that happened during construction. Not a bad design. Not a faulty component. The build itself. We go inside the insulation resistance test: what it measures, what it catches, and...

What does it actually mean to know electrical work was done right? Not hope. Not assume. Know. Dr. Ahmed El-Rasheed has spent his career inside the world of electrical testing and measurement. As Industry Director at Megger , he works at the intersection of power systems, field practice, and the instruments used to verify that critical infrastructure is ready to perform. In Part 1, Ahmed and Nick...

"Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast." You've heard it on a call, on a jobsite, in a review — and nobody ever asks what it means. We just nod. This Field Note is about why that phrase keeps resurfacing right now. The built world is accelerating — bigger projects, tighter schedules, less room for error — and the cost of getting things wrong is climbing. But most failures don't begin wh...

Most construction technology conversations ask the wrong question. They ask why adoption is slow. Jeff Sample asks something harder: are we even solving the right problem? Jeff is Senior Industry Development Manager for Trades at Bluebeam and host of The ConTech Crew — a technologist with 30 years in IT who found construction a decade ago and never left. His perspective crosses job sites, startups...

The industry knows the barriers. Community opposition. Workforce gaps. Power constraints. Access. Everyone in the room at DICE this week could name them. But naming barriers isn't the same as being ready to clear them. In this Field Note, Nick Caravella breaks down what readiness actually requires in data center construction — and why the industry keeps confusing hitting a schedule date with a...

Why does construction technology keep landing wrong — even when the tools are better than they've ever been? Jeff Sample has spent years traveling the industry as a host of the ConTech Crew and, more recently, as head of global industry strategy at Bluebeam . He's been in more contractor offices, job site trailers, and conference rooms than almost anyone in the construction technology spac...

Most conversations about AI in construction focus on what the tools can do. This one focuses on what it actually takes to use them. Marcus Turner has been building with AI tools in real construction and knowledge-work contexts for years. He is not predicting the future of AI. He is living in the present tense of it. In this conversation: Why domain knowledge is the multiplier and AI only amplifies...

Most conversations about construction technology focus on what the tools can do. This one focuses on what they actually do — to the people using them. Rob Sloyer is VP of Innovation and Strategic Services at KAST Construction , a Florida-based multifamily builder with over two decades building at scale. He's been close to BIM since before most companies knew how to spell it — and he's watched enou...

Last week on site, a quality program manager said something I can’t shake: “The work isn’t done until it’s documented.” In this first Field Note, I unpack what that actually means — not as paperwork, but as protection. When documentation is embedded in the act of building, it changes behavior. It protects craftsmanship. It reduces rework. And it shifts QA/QC from a phase at the end to a design dec...

Season 3 of Wired to Build begins with a foundational idea: You can’t improve what you don’t first understand. In this episode, Nick Caravella is joined by Matthew Byrd , founder of Reality Capture Network , to explore how clarity in the field shapes better decisions across construction, infrastructure, and technology. Together, they discuss: – Why understanding reality as it actually exists is th...

🔍 Episode Summary In part 2 of this month's episode, host Nick Caravella and Kyle Majchrowski dive into the theme of curiosity —a foundational topic from Kyle’s book Powerful Conversations . Together they explore how curiosity shapes leadership, project delivery, and personal growth. What begins as a question—“what does curiosity really mean?”—unfolds into a workshop-style dialogue on learning, v...

🔍 Episode Summary In this episode, host Nick Caravella welcomes Kyle Majchrowski , author of Power Full Conversations: How to Talk About What Matters Most in Work and Life . Kyle’s journey from subcontractor to owner-side leader shaped his belief that connection—not compliance—drives project success. Together, Nick and Kyle explore how empowering people to shape their own systems creates stronger...

🔑 Episode Summary: Welcome back to Wired to Build , a data-driven, technology-focused podcast digging into how building owners and operators use technology to manage the full lifecycle of their projects. In Part 2 of our conversation with ⁠ Jamie Lynn Cooke ⁠ , we move beyond AI hype and dig into what responsible implementation actually looks like. We unpack the differences between procedural sof...

🔑 Episode Summary: Welcome to Wired to Build , a data-driven, technology-focused podcast digging into how owners and operators use technology to manage the full lifecycle of their projects. In this guest introduction episode, host Nick Caravella sits down with Jamie Lynn Cooke —an author, consultant, and educator who's helped organizations transform big ideas into operational reality. We expl...

Welcome to Wired to Build, a data-driven, technology-focused podcast digging into how owners and operators use tech to manage the full life cycle of their projects. In this episode, we’re joined by Itzik Malka , CEO and co-founder of 4M Analytics , who is building the first centralized subsurface utility database —a Google Maps for what’s underground. We explore: Why utility data today is unstruct...

Welcome to Wired to Build , a data-driven, technology-focused podcast digging into how owners and operators use technology to manage the full life cycle of their projects. In this Guest Intro episode , hosts Nick Caravella and Christy Hunt sit down with Itzik Malka , CEO and co-founder of 4M Analytics — a company on a mission to bring visibility to what’s always been invisible: the subsurface. Itz...

Welcome back to Wired to Build, the data-driven, technology-focused podcast that digs into how owners and operators use tech to manage the full life cycle of their projects. In Part 2 of our conversation with Matt Caldwell , Director of AI/Cloud Data Centers at Hyper Solutions , we dive into the future of data centers—from managing gigawatt-scale projects to reimagining manufacturing with transpar...

Welcome to Wired to Build, a data-driven, technology-focused podcast digging into how owners and operators use technology to manage the full life cycle of their projects. In this episode, Nick Caravella and Christy Hunt sit down with Matt Caldwell , Director of AI/Cloud Data Centers at Hyper Solutions, to explore the transformation of data centers—from modest megawatt facilities to today's massive...

The demand for data centers has never been higher—and it’s evolving faster than most can keep up. In Part 2 of our conversation with Kaylen Bushell , we go beyond her career story to dig deep into the operational realities shaping modern data center design. Kaylen shares why failure domains, redundancy models, and maintenance planning aren’t just checkboxes—they’re the foundation of uptime in an A...

🎙️ Episode Summary: How do you go from serving on the high seas to managing high-stakes infrastructure? Meet Kaylen Bushell—a data center strategist whose journey from the U.S. Coast Guard to leading hyperscale initiatives proves that the path to tech infrastructure leadership isn’t always a straight line. In this episode, Kaylen shares how adaptability, mission-driven thinking, and cross-discipli...

Welcome to Wired to Build , a data-driven, technology-focused podcast digging into how owners and operators use technology to manage the full lifecycle of their projects. In this episode, we’re bringing back Hannah Misch , Quality Manager at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) , for a deeper conversation about a topic that rarely makes it onto the schedule: vibes. From navigating multi...

Welcome to Wired to Build , a data-driven, technology-focused podcast digging into how owners and operators use technology to manage the full life cycle of their projects. In this guest introduction episode, we sit down with Hannah Misch , a civil engineer-turned-quality-leader at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory . Hannah brings over 14 years of experience across residential, industrial, a...

Welcome to Wired to Build, a data-driven, technology-focused podcast digging into how building owners and operators use technology to manage the full life cycle of their projects. In this episode, Nick and Christy dive back in with contractor, TV host, and fierce trades advocate Kayleen McCabe. From toolboxes in third grade to high school pre-apprenticeships and post-prison re-entry programs, Kayl...

🧵 Episode Summary: In this episode of Wired to Build , we sit down with contractor, TV host, and workforce development champion Kayleen McCabe . From growing up around tools and sawdust to hosting DIY Network’s Rescue Renovation , Kayleen’s journey is anything but ordinary. She opens up about her winding path through construction and television, founding the McCabe Foundation, and her unwavering...

In this deep-dive episode, we explore how digital twins are reshaping capital programs and facilities management. Chris Hussey of TransformXD unpacks the real-world applications of digital twins across design, construction, and operations. We discuss how to virtually prototype your facility, the ROI of integrating data early, the role of digital PMOs, and what it means to become your own “digital...