Walls & Ceilings’ Editor John Wyatt speaks with Ricardo Vidal, Area Safety Coordinator of Orlando with KHS&S. We speak about COVID restrictions a thing of the past, or are some job sites & owners keeping COVID-like procedures. In addition, we chat about what safety areas are being emphasized on today’s job sites? Is there a particular regulation or area that is getting more attention than others now? What are workers’ main safety priorities? How does KHS&S involve workers in determining safety procedures? He speaks on when worker input improved a safety procedure; how involved is KHS&S executive management; how does their support help you do your job? There is plenty to be said. Vidal chats on this and more.

Walls & Ceilings welcomes back Kyle Rea to the fold for our latest regular of “If Walls Could Talk.” He is a special counsel at Adams & Reese LLC. For this second in the series, Rea chats about what our listeners can look out for, what are some types of fraud that can happen to you as a contractor and what are some of the tell-tale signs of those types of fraud? He covers: Falsification of Payment Applications and Invoices; Fraudulent manipulation of Change Orders; Material Substitutions and more.

Florida officials are lifting some restrictions on licensing to try and help people recover from Hurricane Ian faster. However, this may cause more harm than good, warns Trent Contey, partner at Adams and Reese.

We’re still learning more about the recently-passed Inflation Reduction Act, and the sustainability benchmarks that could lead to enormous potential business opportunities for roofing contractors ready to get to work. WC Legal Insights expert Trent Cotney, of Adams & Reese,  breaks down what roofers should be looking for and how not to let this opportunity slip by in this brief conversation.

In our latest podcast, Thomas Harris of PUR Consulting, discusses auditing and training.

The Federal Government is upping their support of existing building retrofits for energy conservation through federal and state level tax credit and financial rebates for energy conservation activities. For example, the state of Kansas now offers support for existing building owners who decide to reduce their environmental impact of their building portfolio.

As a result of current economic uncertainty and the lingering impact of supply chain issues, the residential and commercial construction build rates have slowed. It’s an experience that in these times, contractors look for new growth opportunities, new applications, they develop new skills and techniques to position their companies for the next recovery.

Some of the things they look for includes staffing – “Do I need to add new employee’s or can I train my current staff,” “Do I have the capability and bandwidth to take on a new market,” “What are the training requirements – access to training and support.” 

Ted Speers, head of The Patch Boys, is a trusted drywall repair franchise company, that provides drywall repair and installation, ceiling and plaster repair, popcorn ceiling removal and texture matching for commercial and residential locations. Founded in 2008, The Patch Boys has expanded to more than 120 franchise locations across the U.S. and the company has been nationally recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine, Franchise Connect magazine and Franchise Business Review for its fast growth and high-quality home-service offerings.