Evolve or die, I was not evolving set in my ways, complaining about the situation but never thinking of a solution, just resisting the change that was facing me.
Not a good business model, while this seems to be the theme with the government agencies I deal with the small businesses like me are changing every year, hell, every month, that goes by.
The smack to the head came about 2 weeks ago, I complained to a good customer that this 48 hours turn around is difficult. They responded to my complaint. They took their business elsewhere and I immediately noticed.
I reached out to them and asked why they were not ordering from me, the answer was short and sweet, "You complained that 2 day turn around is too hard".
Damn, I owned myself.
I did not immediately reply, I instead, thought about the problem I had and what a solution would be. I have the people in place to actually make 24 hour turn around happen, why am I not doing that?
This business has changed drastically in the last 10 years, email, electronic signatures etc.. has all made things that would take days to do happen in hours even minutes. I needed to evolve and I needed to do it fast!!
What do I need to do this? How can I accomplish this?
I then emailed back and informed them they misunderstood me, they did I was only complaining. I pointed out I was making their deadlines so there was not a problem I was just not comfortable with the short deadlines.
After tossing some idea around in my head, I jumped off a cliff and further responded to my customer:
As a matter of fact, after you email I had been pondering how I can get you surveys faster than you need them. I am in the process of rolling out a system where you will be able to get your product in 24 hours if needed.
Then they started to order from me again, and man the orders cam pouring in, I got a good client back! Much needed in this time of uncertainty. When the Fed bumped up a quart point in September I noticed house sales slowed a lot, the stupid builders missed the memo and have kept be really busy for the last couple of months as they seemed to kick on an afterburner.
This is not good as they are creating a huge inventory with slow buyers. My work for actual home sales has dropped off drastically. With this second hike last week I am expecting a VERY slow January. This may be the bucket of water tossed on the housing market.
So you may ask, how did we evolve? Great question!! I picked up some new toys, first and most important I added on a new cel phone with 4g wireless hot spot activated. I now have a wireless network in my work truck.
Then I purchased this laptop, perfect for the field, a refurbished Panasonic Toughbook, with all the software I need for work. It is like I am sitting at my desktop when using this laptop. I even uploaded the software I need to make my field data collector talk to it so I can email data points to my drafter, this was a huge problem and bottle neck for me before.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-98Z4n6Z/0/d0ec471e/L/i-98Z4n6Z-L.jpg)
This thing is a beast, I think I can use it as a bulletproof shield too.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-5S79Rks/0/42f1895e/L/i-5S79Rks-L.jpg)
Then I decided to completely change how we gather field notes, I picked up a reMarkable tablet, they are expensive ($600) but so simple and made for one task that it does extremely well, worth it. Once complete I can transfer the field noted to the Toughbook as well including them in the email with the points.
The reMarkable is really cool. It only responds to stylus touches to dragging your hand or a template across does nothing. We LOVE it.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-rRjCqx2/0/ba899651/L/i-rRjCqx2-L.jpg)
Now we roll up to a job site, take the notes on the digital tablet, then shoot the job in collecting the points on our windows mobile device, once back in the truck we fire up the wifi and laptop, transfer the points to the laptop and meail them to the drafter who is waiting for that data to finish the job, he has already started the drafting early in the morning when we leave and just needs our data to complete.
By the time I arrive to the office the drafting is complete and I am just checking it.
Boom!
We told this one client what we were doing. We will roll this out next month to all our clients. This will put us way ahead of our competitors and make our days way more efficient.
Evolve or die.
It also sounds like it will be more efficient for you and lighten your work load too, sounds like a good move and all it cost was some depreciable assets - well done!
Smart move 4.gif.
Quote from: MiniDave on December 26, 2018, 02:39:07 PM
It also sounds like it will be more efficient for you and lighten your work load too, sounds like a good move and all it cost was some depreciable assets - well done!
Expense for this setup was paid for the first day in the field.
Quote from: 94touring on December 26, 2018, 02:53:33 PM
Smart move 4.gif.
Tanks!
I had no choice, we have to adapt. Everything is changing.
Good on ya for doing this! It was really interesting to read your story. Did you know there is a whole industry made up of people who are paid by companies to figure out how to do stuff more quickly and efficiently? Companies struggle at doing this themselves due to the "That's how we've always done it" mentality. Somebody brought in from the outside can usually see what people internally have become blind to.
I know you saved a TON of coin figuring it out yourself! Have you calculated not just the time saved, but how much money that equals saved for your business?
BTW, those toughbooks are rugged. We used those in deployed environments in the AF. 4.gif
Quote from: MiniGene on December 28, 2018, 08:52:42 AM
Good on ya for doing this! It was really interesting to read your story. Did you know there is a whole industry made up of people who are paid by companies to figure out how to do stuff more quickly and efficiently? Companies struggle at doing this themselves due to the "That's how we've always done it" mentality. Somebody brought in from the outside can usually see what people internally have become blind to.
I know you saved a TON of coin figuring it out yourself! Have you calculated not just the time saved, but how much money that equals saved for your business?
BTW, those toughbooks are rugged. We used those in deployed environments in the AF. 4.gif
I will answer more thoroughly over the weekend, I have not calculated the costs. I only know one thing, as far as I know, I am the only surveyor around here offering this service. THAT was my motivation, to offer something no one else is offering.
We put it to the test today, let me get a few fires put out and I can tell a story.
I get an email before 8 this morning from a very good customer.
She forgot to order a survey and the closing was today at 11:00.
I informed her we would practice our new setup on her.
I had one another job before hers then had to stop at City to drop surveys off to the inspection dept*, then finally arrived at the house at 9:45.
I email my drafter Scott the file before I left the office this morning, he was drafting up the platted lot and title block while we were driving there.
At 10:05 we were done measuring the house, I turned on my wifi and send Scott the house notes straight from the reMarkable device, then we set up the instrument and shot it in.
10:15 we were done shooting it in, I downloaded the points and emailed them to Scott and drove to the next house we had to work at, it was a 15 minute drive away.
10:30 Scott sends me an email that says,"Done Motherfucker"
I grab the laptop and head to the porch of the house, it was new construction so no one in it. I check over the drawing real fast, Scott is thorough and requires little review. 10:40 I am emailing the completed survey in PDF format to my customer.
Backing up a little, the realtor showed up with the buyers to do a final walk through before heading to the closing. They arrived at 10:00.
The realtor, like 90% of woman realtors was a chubby middle aged fucking bitch. Instead of being nice, she comes at us like a raging asshole.
"Who are you and why are you on this property?" is the first thing out of her mouth, no good morning no hello nope, straight to bitch. We have tape measure in our hands there is an orange safety cone behind my truck, there is no way in hell we looked seedy.
Mike ignored her, I never looked at her and did not initially respond to her, I just recited a bunch of numbers to Mike I had in my head as she had walked up and interrupted us.
Once Mike had his numbers, I did not stop measuring, I just said to her while measuring a wall, Nancy thought the bank ordered the survey, she realized this morning there was no survey, I am rushing it for her. It will be there for the closing. Then I turned to Mike and said 12 feet, and was measuring the next wall, she yells back at me, NOT 12 its closing at 11!! In a very nasty voice.
Mike was closer to her at this point, he looks at her and points to the wall, and says to her, "No, this wall is 12 feet long and yes, your closing is at 11." Then walked away from her, I was already gone.
As we were emailing the notes to Scott I could hear the bitch on the phone calling the title company to complain to Nancy about the survey not being done.
I emailed Nancy already and warned her about the meltdown. She had the receptionist take a message. LMAO!!
I fucking hate realtors.
* Like most government offices this one is stuck in the 80's. What could be accomplished with a simple email cannot. We have to drive there, walk in and put a hard copy of the survey in a basket for them to take it out of. The same way they have been doing it for 40 years now. I once asked why they do not go to email and save everyone time and help stop wasting gas etc.. The man behind the counter proudly said it would never work he only checked his email once every few days. Oh the irony!!
Quote from: Whee on December 28, 2018, 11:40:52 AM
@Jims5543. Very cool. Thanks for sharing your story! Remember, you'll need to reinvent something else soon too as the world changes!
@MiniGene "Did you know there is a whole industry made up of people who are paid by companies to figure out how to do stuff more quickly and efficiently? " That exactly describes what I sell :)
I have to do it again this next year, with Win7 being phased out I am being forced onto Win10.
Much of my software is not compatible with Win10, while it sort of works, it is unstable and prone to crashing. The Cadd software crashes in a spectacular manner corrupting the .dwg file and rendering it unusable, ever again.
We already changed our accounting over to freshbooks. I will start shopping next year for new cadd software. What grinds my gears is that everything is subscription based. During the housing crash and subsequent years and years of the economy never taking back off, what saved me was low overhead.
Once I go subscription based I am already planning on just going full cloud based with my business. No need for a physical office. I can get rid of this commercial space I rent and run my entire business off a laptop in a coffee shop if I needed to.
I have also toyed with a mobile office, getting a Ford Transit van and setting up an office in it, getting rid of my actual office and current work truck, then using the van as a roving office.
I have lots and lots of idea rattling around this head.
If the economy tanks again I am very sure I will be getting rid of the commercial office space.
If you do that, where will Scott base himself?
Quote from: MiniDave on December 28, 2018, 12:14:14 PM
If you do that, where will Scott base himself?
This is another think outside the box moment. Scott does not sit in my office.
Scott was almost killed 2 years ago by some hack doctors doing a quad bypass on him. He is disabled now and will probably die in about 10-15 years from now. Scott is only 45 years old. He is a candidate a heart transplant, once that happens a 10 year clock starts ticking that signifies his life expectancy. 10 years is what a typical heart transplant recipient has to live. So every year he can stave that off, is another year added to his life.
Scott is my BIL (our wives are sisters) he used to work for me before the housing crash, he worked for me for 9 years, came on board knowing nothing, in 5 years was running my company.
After all the heart problems 2 years ago he was just sitting home, I was talking to him at a family function and he told me he is losing his mind out of boredom.
We hatched this idea he would help me with drafting, I purchased a nice laptop, loaded it up with software and handed it to him.
I pay him for his efforts, in return he uses his mind and is not losing it anymore.
I send him emails either in the evening or early in the morning with the work I need help on. If there is a rush job like this one I give him a heads up so he knows what is going on.
I asked if he wanted more work and he is all for it. It is not stressful at all and he rather enjoys the distraction.
Sounds like a great partnership!
Quote from: Whee on December 28, 2018, 11:40:52 AM
@MiniGene "Did you know there is a whole industry made up of people who are paid by companies to figure out how to do stuff more quickly and efficiently? " That exactly describes what I sell :)
Whee, after seeing the front of your house in the picture MiniDave posted, business must be good! 71.gif Ever think of setting up a San Diego division? I've been toying with getting a Six Sigma cert to help my job prospects out here.
Jim, this entire story is really satisfying! I'm glad that it's working out great for your business. I hope your upgrades go smoothly (even though, working in IT I know hope doesn't mean sheet! Back up all you can! LOL!) How much of your business is walk-in related or from people seeing your business name on your storefront? If your answer is nil, I'd drop it like it's hot and go 100% cloud and mobile!
Jim,
I was like you a few years back not wanting to deal with the expectations of the next generation of customers finally decided to evolve. We are on the third evolution since then.
we moved processes in-house that were outsourced for a faster turnaround. Got a landline that will accept text messages and photos. Have online payment options.
Most recently a complete website redesignhttps://bendrvrepair.com/ (https://bendrvrepair.com/) all of this has cost over 100k but we've made it back and business is good.
website analytics show over 200 calls a month made right from the mobile site call button the phone was slow before the redesign and mobile-friendly site.
I'm always up in the air if I want to keep evolving or scale back on good days it's easy to get pumped up and want to go big then other times I'd just as soon close it up or put it up for sale... But what would we do then?
Bingo Jeff!! Many of my clients are very old and a new crop is coming up to take their places, they want more tech and less fuss.
You seem to have solved that problem and like you, sometimes I want to expand, other times I just want to downsize to a 2 person company (with Scott drafting as 3rd since he is a sub) get rid of the overhead of the office, receptionist (Dori) etc.. and not stress so much.
to answer your question I do not need to have an office space, I get zero walk in clients. I occasionally have a client need to pick up an hard copy of a survey, alternative arrangements could easily be made. There is no reason for a proper commercial space anymore, most of my competitors work from their homes. Many break local community rules regarding that, as in, no employees can report to your home for work, no clients may arrive at your home for any reason. Everyone knows those rules are being broken every day and no one enforces those rules. That is what I am competing with, I used to be proud I have a legitimate office space except no one seems to care, they only want the piece of paper at a reasonable price and fast. My office costs me about $3000 a month to keep. Is it worth it? That is something I am contemplating now, I see no reason to keep it beyond 2019. Come 2020 I may close it.
Internets....Another evolve or die moment.
Since the days of the yellow pages, I have always had enough or more business to make me happy. The yellow pages rep would be dumbfounded when I told them I was not interested in a bold ad that would place me above my competitors. Word of mouth is gold and I had so many great clients that I did not ever need to advertise.
As the age of internet took off, I have had the same mindset, I have no website, do not need one, except now, I am thinking I cam make a website work for me. So that is my mission this year.
I am exploring a streamlined ordering process online (right now all orders are send via email) where a client punches in the information I need, then the website / server, assigns a PO or Job#, generates an invoice and I have the order sitting in a folder ready to be printed, possibly a text message sent an order was placed with the address of the property and due date.
If certain criteria is met, i.e. size of property, location of property etc.. then the invoice will generate, if not then a notification will be sent that the order is received and an invoice will arrive shortly.
I am also toying with a app for a smart phone too. My goal is to make it as easy as possible to order from me.
That takes me full circle back to the office space, one I have a website doing a lot of the work for me, assigning project numbers, invoicing and alerting me when an order comes in, I see no need to have a traditional office anymore.
In 2010 I was trying to go paperless, the tech was not there yet, now it is so I am revisiting that this year.
Quote from: Whee on January 01, 2019, 10:58:54 AM
I was in San Diego just before Christmas for business! I did Six Sigma a while back, as well as Lean and 7 step. I'm not sure the Six Sigma certification itself actually helped me much, but what I learned during the projects I had to run certainly did!
I was very lucky getting into the business I did. I came to the States with about $200 and one suitcase (the rest of my worldly goods were 3 cars I left behind in England). It was at the beginning of the .com boom and I got hired by Microsoft in a low-level job - about the only large company that would hire someone without a degree. I wasn't early enough for the famous Microsoft stock options, but I'm not complaining at all - I made a 17 year career of it there. I'll pm you to see if any of my connections in IT could be helpful.
Whee, I got your PM and replied. Thanks!! Your migration to the states must have been an exciting one. That takes some b*lls to do something like that with only that amount.
Quote from: Jims5543 on December 31, 2018, 09:08:05 AM
Bingo Jeff!! Many of my clients are very old and a new crop is coming up to take their places, they want more tech and less fuss.
You seem to have solved that problem and like you, sometimes I want to expand, other times I just want to downsize to a 2 person company (with Scott drafting as 3rd since he is a sub) get rid of the overhead of the office, receptionist (Dori) etc.. and not stress so much.
to answer your question I do not need to have an office space, I get zero walk in clients. I occasionally have a client need to pick up an hard copy of a survey, alternative arrangements could easily be made. There is no reason for a proper commercial space anymore, most of my competitors work from their homes. Many break local community rules regarding that, as in, no employees can report to your home for work, no clients may arrive at your home for any reason. Everyone knows those rules are being broken every day and no one enforces those rules. That is what I am competing with, I used to be proud I have a legitimate office space except no one seems to care, they only want the piece of paper at a reasonable price and fast. My office costs me about $3000 a month to keep. Is it worth it? That is something I am contemplating now, I see no reason to keep it beyond 2019. Come 2020 I may close it.
Internets....Another evolve or die moment.
Since the days of the yellow pages, I have always had enough or more business to make me happy. The yellow pages rep would be dumbfounded when I told them I was not interested in a bold ad that would place me above my competitors. Word of mouth is gold and I had so many great clients that I did not ever need to advertise.
As the age of internet took off, I have had the same mindset, I have no website, do not need one, except now, I am thinking I cam make a website work for me. So that is my mission this year.
I am exploring a streamlined ordering process online (right now all orders are send via email) where a client punches in the information I need, then the website / server, assigns a PO or Job#, generates an invoice and I have the order sitting in a folder ready to be printed, possibly a text message sent an order was placed with the address of the property and due date.
If certain criteria is met, i.e. size of property, location of property etc.. then the invoice will generate, if not then a notification will be sent that the order is received and an invoice will arrive shortly.
I am also toying with a app for a smart phone too. My goal is to make it as easy as possible to order from me.
That takes me full circle back to the office space, one I have a website doing a lot of the work for me, assigning project numbers, invoicing and alerting me when an order comes in, I see no need to have a traditional office anymore.
In 2010 I was trying to go paperless, the tech was not there yet, now it is so I am revisiting that this year.
I told yellow pages to fuck right off a long time ago their fees were/are stupid expensive. Our phone book is about like a magazine thickness these days so I guess I'm not the only one.
we work on word of mouth as well but I wouldn't compare a website to the phone book at all very different in what it can and will do for you. I won't say I couldn't survive without one but things are much better with the website and if you don't need more business so what just cherry pick the best jobs we've always been busy but being busy and making money are not always the same thing. We have our website company push the areas that we want more work and it works it also can w help discourage the type of jobs we don't want our web gal is amazing if you don't know anyone I can send you her info.
We went mostly paperless and went back it's just easier to have certain things in hard copy right on the desk in front of me. Our customers do however have the option of paperless.
I have also noticed a shift in our vendors starting to no longer accept credit cards or most online pay and requesting a good ole paper check I guess they are tired of the fees/other problems. I get 5% off if I pay with a check to my biggest supplier that adds up.
It's almost strange to me that with all the ways to pay and tech stuff that paper is alive and well swift steel only accepts cash and check they are the biggest steel supplier in the area millions a month but imagine the fees they save I guess I get it.
We are still using much less paper though. I refuse to go to online QuickBooks unless our internet becomes way more stable we invoice from it and it needs to be reliable we also have several add-on's that don't play well with online. So cloud-based is still out for us, for now.
Quote from: Whee on January 01, 2019, 10:58:54 AM
Quote from: MiniGene on December 29, 2018, 07:43:05 PM
Quote from: Whee on December 28, 2018, 11:40:52 AM
@MiniGene "Did you know there is a whole industry made up of people who are paid by companies to figure out how to do stuff more quickly and efficiently? " That exactly describes what I sell :)
Whee, after seeing the front of your house in the picture MiniDave posted, business must be good! 71.gif Ever think of setting up a San Diego division? I've been toying with getting a Six Sigma cert to help my job prospects out here.
Jim, this entire story is really satisfying! I'm glad that it's working out great for your business. I hope your upgrades go smoothly (even though, working in IT I know hope doesn't mean sheet! Back up all you can! LOL!) How much of your business is walk-in related or from people seeing your business name on your storefront? If your answer is nil, I'd drop it like it's hot and go 100% cloud and mobile!
I was in San Diego just before Christmas for business! I did Six Sigma a while back, as well as Lean and 7 step. I'm not sure the Six Sigma certification itself actually helped me much, but what I learned during the projects I had to run certainly did!
I was very lucky getting into the business I did. I came to the States with about $200 and one suitcase (the rest of my worldly goods were 3 cars I left behind in England). It was at the beginning of the .com boom and I got hired by Microsoft in a low-level job - about the only large company that would hire someone without a degree. I wasn't early enough for the famous Microsoft stock options, but I'm not complaining at all - I made a 17 year career of it there. I'll pm you to see if any of my connections in IT could be helpful.
Since you are not in the line of work I would say no, no one cares if there is an office some of my competitors are working out of their houses and doing fine.
One of the larger companies in the area felt the hit from the 2008-2015 era and pulled back into his home from a office front. Nothing changed for him.
No one cares, they care about 3 things.
1. Can you get it to me fast
2. Can you do it cheap
3. Will it be right.
Breaks every rule in the book, welcome to 2019.
Tomorrow I make the call to the salesman so I can make the jump back into GPS Surveying. I suspended in back in 2008 and hoped to get it back up in a couple of years I never anticipated it would take 10 years to need it again.
I also contact my 2 day a week helper and see if he is interested in coming on full time the first week of March.
Oh, did I mention I hired a guy part time? I did, he has been helping for about 2 months now, he is good, smart, hard working and loves the job. Plus he is super easy to get along with.
I keep bracing for another crash, that just will not happen, I was positive the fed was going to cause a housing crash, they have slowed it down a little but it is still cranking along, I cannot keep this lean anymore, it is impacting me on many levels.
Therefore I am hiring at least one guy if not 2 by summer. Plan is to run 2 crews by summer. Training the new guy to possible run a crew.
Glad business is booming. Jen had 5 job interviews this week, things aren't slow in her field either.
Quote from: 94touring on February 10, 2019, 05:14:45 PM
Glad business is booming. Jen had 5 job interviews this week, things aren't slow in her field either.
Yeah, it has been for a couple of years now, I figured by now the Trump bump would end. It has not and things seem to just be getting more steam. Instead of buying gold and bracing for a hard crash I am investing more into the company in an effort to give myself more freedom.
Life changes:
A month ago, my wife left me.... for a week to be by the side of a good friend who is going through a divorce. The friend invited her to come on a cruise she booked. At first my wife said no, because it would leave a lot on my plate, I convinced her to go, it was the second week of January. I am typically pretty slow in January, yeah... not this year.
Anyway, she went, and I realized half way through the week she was gone, we made our lives way more hectic than it should be. Our younger son is 15 and in 9th grade, he has never stepped foot in a public school. His entire life has been in a Montessori pre school, private primary and private High School. The education he is getting is remarkable and if all goes as planned he will be close to a 2 year degree when he graduated HS.
The problem is, the school he attends is 25 miles away. That is why we purchased he i3, to save on gas as we drive 100 miles a day just getting him to and from school.
The week was an eye opener for me on many levels, one was regarding my relationship with my wife, the other was my relationship with my son and also my approach to my business.
Before the housing crash in '08 I had a right hand man, he ran the place like I was there, therefore I did not have to be there as much. I just had to come in and review everything and sign off on it. If I did not like something either it went back to a drafter, or back in the field then to a drafter. I would come in at 9 am and leave around 4-5 PM M-F.
If I wanted to take a vacation I did, I would spend weeks at my vacation home in NC when I owned it, I would spend a week every year in my Timeshare in Atlantis, my only regret during those years was that I did not head over to Europe at all.
After the crash I put on all the hats, I was running the field crew, I was drafting, I was checking I was researching the jobs and processing the orders. I have a receptionist now (Dori) who does an OK job with the orders and barely acceptable job with research, I typically work on that myself.
I still run the field crew and up until a year ago did 50% of the drafting. Now I farm out 50% of the drafting and my son, who works for me drafts.
After me wife left me for a week I realized I have been in a rut for way too long, I refuse to believe the economy is back and will stay. I have to change that mindset.
Therefore I decided to make some big changes. I was using Nick 1 day a week I added him on to 2 days and I am going to make him full time soon.
Nick and I work on Wednesday together in the field while my son Mike catches up on the drafting in the office.
On Wednesdays, I leave the office at 1:30 in the afternoon, if the weather is nice I grab the E30 or E21 and drive it down to get my 15 y/o from School. I joined him up at the local LA Fitness and we have a racquetball membership. We play for about 30 minutes then we do some circuit training for another 30 then leave for home for the evening.
On Fridays, I send my son Mike out in the field with Nick, it is my day in the office. I take my 15 year old to school in the morning then pick him up in the afternoon heading to the gym again.
Again, if the weather permits, I take one of the fun cars.
My reasoning was, this 5 days a week taking him back and forth is insane, I wanted to give my wife a break from it and in the process spend some time with my son.
When my 26 year old was 12-15 years old we spent a ton of time together, I had lots of free time then because the business was running itself. I have neglected the younger guy due to me being so obsessed with the business. I decided to change that up some. We used to go to the park in the evening to play racquetball except the weather would cause a lot of cancelling and on hot summer nights we were not interested. Now we are indoors in AC and loving it.
Sometimes something shaking up the daily routine is good, makes you open your eyes and look around and realize you are in a rut and need to get out of it.
I took delivery of my new GPS setup Friday morning, did a 1.5 hour training session. Then left right after that to go fix a house stake out I messed up on Thursday. The builder moved the house back 5 feet in the lot.
Office Dori never pulled the old plot plan out of the file, as luck would have it I pulled out the old plot plan and staked the house 5' too far forward.
I took the GPS to the property, located the 4 hubs that were wrong, then calculated them 5' further back and staked them out.
The data collector is a Win10 tablet.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-jPJqD4q/0/fb1833a1/XL/i-jPJqD4q-XL.jpg)
Fixing the house corners in the field. I guess you could say I hit the ground running.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-nV4rcN7/0/460f27b2/XL/i-nV4rcN7-XL.jpg)
I sat down last night and played with the tablet some, trying to understand everything. My mission last night was to be able to export the points in a text file format that could easily be imported into my cadd program.
I was able to turn on background mapping that over layed my points on the lot I was staking the house one. Pretty neet!!
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-WgbkSWr/0/343d42c8/XL/i-WgbkSWr-XL.jpg)
Yesterday was a hectic day, as mentioned in the post above, I take my son to and from School on Friday, I left the office with a few files that still needed checking. I grabbed my Toughbook with me. I got to the school 15 minutes early, so I spent that time checking and sending a couple of the jobs. Then we were heading to the barber shop, I worked in the waiting area on another job and got it to 90% complete.
Once home I finished it up and sent it before 5PM since it was due Friday.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-GdcR8rH/0/1c390c39/XL/i-GdcR8rH-XL.jpg)
I am going to use the GPS some more on Sunday, really trying hard to get confident with this fast. It has been 10 years since I last used GPS, so I am a bit rusty plus the interface is completely different now.
Wow, this is a game changer, I spent the weekend playing with the tablet, since it is the one thing that is so new to me. The actual GPS location surveying stuff, been there done that. Gots me a t-shirt.
The interface.... all new and much different. Actually much easier, I keep expecting it to be more difficult, except it is not, and I cannot believe how simple this all is now. It used to be a battle.
I calculated some point to be set at that job I posted above, but here is the crazy part, something I forgot. Since I am always triangulating with satellites, ground bases GPS stations (up to 3 at a time / I pay $1500 a year to be able to do this) and cellular towers, I can attain millimeter accuracy. I can also just walk up to a job site with my calculated points, let me GPS get synched up (takes about 3-4 minutes) then proceed to just go to my calculated points and set them, no need to set points to use later, to coordinate with. This is something I forgot about an a HUGE game changer.
So this week, when I return to locate the formboards on this job site, I can set the property corners the land clearer wiped out.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-wvGc638/0/adcce718/X2/i-wvGc638-X2.jpg)
77.gif thats really cool stuff. I'm starting to feel like I'm in the wrong business.
Quote from: jeff10049 on February 24, 2019, 07:06:53 PM
77.gif thats really cool stuff. I'm starting to feel like I'm in the wrong business.
Ironic, that is how I feel.
I have received over 40 orders in 5 days. Wonderful great business is great!! Right, well, it just too much not sure how I am going to meet all the deadlines.
Then today at 12 noon one of my better clients emails, informing me they forgot to tell me their financing is FHA which requires well and septic located on the survey. I was actually glad it was not FHA when I was there because it was an older home and they are a PITA tracking down the well and septic.
They ask how soon I can get back. Decided to push them off to Monday. Wrong answer!! They are closing Monday (of course they withhold this info until it is a problem) so I have to try to get to the property tomorrow and locate it. Problem is it is about 20 miles south of me.....
Wait it gets better....
Another client, that has not used me in years, had be do a survey 20 miles north, I finished it 3 weeks ago, it was a rush job they were closing in 5 days, it too was FHA and I knew when I was there. I located the well and the septic tank but could not determine where the drainfield was and told them that. 3 Weeks later, yes... 3 Weeks later which is today, they email and tell us they have to show the drainfield, they hired a septic company to come out and they need me there NOW (3 PM) to locate it.
I was not in the office I was down getting my son from school.
Then they demand they have a revised survey with the septic drainfield whown by 12 noon Thursday. Fine.. I charged them a trip charge and will head there early tomorrow morning before we start our day.
Tomorrow is going to be interesting.
OH and I have about 12 other jobs to do in the field tomorrow, I am 2 days away from running 2 crews it cannot come fast enough.
2 days into running 2 crews, I am hopeful I will have a life again.
Have a meeting over a pint (my idea) with my big builder at 4 today. We are starting a 200 home subdivision very soon.
Best, idea, ever.
I suggested to the guy that runs the local office of my biggest client we meet up for a pint one afternoon and have a long overdue meeting.
We met up last night, very relaxed, we settled in, hashed out all our talking points, came up with solutions, then sat back and told stories for over an hour.
Cool ass dude, he lives on a boat in the local Marina, actually the Marina was 5 blocks from where we were sitting at the bar.
Learned a lot about him and his family, he did about me and my family. When we were done, he commented that my idea to meet up like that was really cool and we need to come up with some problems so we can do it again soon.
He asked if I wanted to take over all the work in Vero Beach (60 miles away) because he is sick of his surveyor up there and would love for me to take it all over. I declined too far away, I would be spread too thin.
I am nervous over our upcoming project, they purchased 300 lots in a subdivision with an option to buy 300 more, the subdivision will have 3 builders in it, and has over 1200 lots in it.
The problem is, it is 20 miles from my office and a good 40 minute drive one way.
I may be hiring again....
I use to fly with a guy who lived on a 60 foot boat. I nearly bought one and did the same thing.
Sounds like you need more staff.
Quote from: 94touring on March 07, 2019, 03:30:23 AM
I use to fly with a guy who lived on a 60 foot boat. I nearly bought one and did the same thing.
Sounds like you need more staff.
I knew a pilot online that did the same thing. Lived on a sail boat.
He was a triple threat, he was a licensed commercial pilot, licensed and up to date aircraft mechanic and a Paramedic.
He worked for someone very very very wealthy and flew his private jet all over the world when he was needed. Sometimes into remote areas where his last 2 qualifications would be very handy.
He owned a warehouse where kept his Porsche and motorcycle Collection.
I think we will be OK, we are only 4 days into running 2 crews, we are averaging 10-15 jobs a day. We are far ahead of the mortgage clients, so much so we are working on things due Wednesday next week now.
I am a little behind with the builders, every day that gets better, by the end of next week we should be caught up to them.
*edit #2*
I am also considering getting a second GPS unit, it is a huge time saver, I am working alone and can crush the work load. I may put an order in next week.
I need a dedicated hotspot modem to use with my GPS, right now I am using my cel phone with my wifi hotspot turned on.
If I want to send Mike out with it, he will need to take my phone, I would prefer a dedicated wifi hotspot for the modem.
The salesman told me about this item from Verizon. Another surveyor is using it and says it has amazing range.
https://www.verizonwireless.com/internet-devices/verizon-global-modem-usb730l/#sku=sku2540056?cmp=CSE-C-HQ-NON-R-AC-NONE-NONE-2C0PX0-PX-PLA-USB730L&cvosrc=cse.google.USB730L&cvo_crid=198324781386
Did some looking around and found this.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07JWGN9TK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/31%2BNPeevyfL.jpg)
It is interesting, it is not actually a hotspot that other devices can connect to, it send the internet through a USB port. No one can see it, it is like a cel phone antennae. Lighting fast though I am ordering a second one today.
This GPS is such a game changer that I ordered a second unit, both crews need to be running on it. I am a little sad after using it. You no longer need to know land surveying to be a land surveyor, any idiot can use this and be damn accurate. It has changed a lot in the last 10 years since I last used it regularly.
What I do love is that once you localize, you are accurate to 0.01' (1/8") or less, I have been seeing 0.005" (1/16") accuracy, this is accuracy on the FACE OF THE EARTH. Once I establish a job on GPS, I can walk back to that exact spot at any time in the future and stake that exact point merely by walking up with the unit and asking it to tell me where the point is.
I do recognize the huge amount of time this is saving and I also see the need for both crews to be on the same page. Therefore, I had to order another unit in order to get there. I am just a tad nervous, as I still need to find my IRA's and April 15th is coming fast. I decided to finance this unit, I hate financing anything, with the plan to pay it off by mid summer.
We are 1 week into running 2 crews, there have been some hiccups. i.e. I left the GPS software open all weekend on the tablet, when I got to my first job Monday, the battery was at 6% and fading. my day was cut short due to a dead battery, complete avoidable. I also have an inverter built into the Fj Cruiser, if I had the charger with me I could have plugged in between jobs. I owned myself on Monday.
We are tearing through the orders like no tomorrow. In another week we will be so caught up I expect we will be going out the next day on all orders coming in. Which is what I am after.
Anyone can use it, it's that easy? Great, can I borrow it? ;D ;D ;D ;D
I have a small 2-3 acre I need to sell and I would like to have the accurate plot of it.
Quote from: MiniDave on March 12, 2019, 08:12:02 AM
Anyone can use it, it's that easy? Great, can I borrow it? ;D ;D ;D ;D
I have a small 2-3 acre I need to sell and I would like to have the accurate plot of it.
Yeah, if you saw how much this thing cost you might be a tad bit nervous about playing with it. I am paranoid when using it and about to get insurance on both units next week.
When all is said and done I am into this GPS thing for over 30K. BUT, I see the value in it and the fact that 2 crews running it can do the work of 4 crews if needed.
Our plan right now is to leave around 7:00 each morning and be done by 12 noon all summer so we are not out in the 110° heat index every day.
We are kind of caught up, tomorrow I am taking the FNG out with me for a bit longer day. Friday I am in the office. We are almost caught up.
Quote from: Jims5543 on February 10, 2019, 05:49:46 PM
Life changes:
On Wednesdays, I leave the office at 1:30 in the afternoon, if the weather is nice I grab the E30 or E21 and drive it down to get my 15 y/o from School. I joined him up at the local LA Fitness and we have a racquetball membership. We play for about 30 minutes then we do some circuit training for another 30 then leave for home for the evening.
On Fridays, I send my son Mike out in the field with Nick, it is my day in the office. I take my 15 year old to school in the morning then pick him up in the afternoon heading to the gym again.
My reasoning was, this 5 days a week taking him back and forth is insane, I wanted to give my wife a break from it and in the process spend some time with my son.
Sometimes something shaking up the daily routine is good, makes you open your eyes and look around and realize you are in a rut and need to get out of it.
I have to admit, so many times I want to call my wife and tell her I cannot get off early and to go get the kid instead of me. Then I say to myself, no one ever wishes they worked more.
So I force myself to leave work at 1:30 pm, drive down to get the lad and take him to the gym. We play racquetball for 30 minutes then do some weight training for another 30 minutes.
Some days I take the rest of the day off, others I come back to the office for an hour or two. I am usually back in the office at 4:00 if I need to be back. I am almost done and ready to leave for the day.
Typically I have some work to check in the evening, I break out my laptop at home and go over some jobs later in the evening, usually the 15 y/o is next to me in the kitchen either doing homework or going over something for a test the next day.
So how easy is the GPS to use?
Nick is my new guy, never surveyed before coming to work for me.
I spend 15 minutes this morning showing him the basics of the GPS and the Win10 Tab interface.
Then set him loose all day, he ran the GPS while I worked on drawing up and measuring houses. Which prefer to do alone.
By the end of the day he was proficient running it.
I am pretty sure I could take my 15 year old out and have him run it in the same amount of time. As a matter of fact I am taking him to the 20 acre job tomorrow and plan on letting him run it.
Took delivery of the second GPS unit today, complete game changer. Ironically, the salesman agreed with my sentiment. You no longer need to be a land surveyor to survey land. Any idiot can fire this up and do a good job, it is idiot proof. Which will make my life better as I can monitor the idiots. ;D
That killed 2 hours of my day today, I am WAY behind with a lot of deadlines coming Tues. next week, I am trying to get ahead so I can take a long weekend road trip.
Before... @ around 7:30pm
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-QTBNVbN/0/ad37148f/XL/i-QTBNVbN-XL.jpg)
After.... @ 11:30pm and some whiskey
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-vdwJqDV/0/ca0f098d/XL/i-vdwJqDV-XL.jpg)
Time to get some sleep before the alarm hits at 05:50..
Never assume.
I assumed when I placed an order for 200 pieces of #5 rebar cut in 18" lengths, they would be bundled in manageable amounts, like typically 25 pieces.
How wrong I was, I handed the purchase ticket off to the yard guy, he disappeared in his forklift, then arrived with this.....
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-krKR5wX/0/3aca6b99/XL/i-krKR5wX-XL.jpg)
Lesson learned....
18 March took delivery of second GPS unit.
8 April so caught up to everyone we are a week or more ahead.
Running one crew again tomorrow then 2 again on Wed.
By the end of the week I hope to be beyond a week ahead of my builder.
OK the tablets wee pissing both of us off. They kept turning off the USB port which basically shut off our wireless data. We would have to unplug the wireless cel phone adapter then plug it back in.
Another annoying feature was the tablet going to sleep after 4 minutes. Sometimes you need more than 4 minutes to find a property corner, then you grab the GPS and it is asleep and it takes a couple of minutes to wake it up, connect to the cel network to get GPS data then communicate with satellites and finally start collecting data.
We started diving through the tablets last week and found out we can turn on the USB port so it does not power down until the unit does.
We also changed the power settings so the tablet will not sleep for 20 minutes when I battery.
What a difference, what was 30 minutes a day wasted fighting with the tablet is now productive time. As the 100+ heat index days of sumer slowly approach we are happy to be finishing up earlier.
Man, we are slammed busy, turning away work even with 2 crews.
Still coming to terms with this GPS, I do not know if my salesman is stupid, and my peers the same.
The results we were getting were not impressing me. While just OK for lot surveys and boundary work for mortgages and builders. I was not seeing the precision that was sold to me for tight construction staking.
The salesman was useless as was a friend of mine in the business who just said.. "ooohhh no I would not use GPS for tight work"
I was about to pull the trigger on a 25K robotic instrument, then I got pissed. I just spent close to 50K on something that I was told would do a certain job and it was coming short.
So we changed a few things and to be honest it was eye opening. We most likely were NEVER this accurate when using convention equipment pre-GPS oblivious to that fact.
I changed 3 things.
1. We plumb up the GPS poles every week to make sure the bubble level on them is perfect.
2. We changed the program in the GPS software to give us the ability to collect a random amount of observations then average them. We chose 20, one second observations that are all averaged then stored as onepoint.
3. I purchased two bi-pods for our GPS poles, this takes the last bit of human error out of this entire deal, we plumb up the GPS rod with the bi-pod then collect a 20 second observation.
The results are astounding, we are down to 0.01 to 0.02 feet accuracy. Good enough to do tight stake out work again.
Once again, evolving..
It is insane how busy we are and all my clients are ramping up production.
We are humming along, I fired the useless Marine and I just hired on another new guy, we are running 2 crews solid now. I am amazed we are pumping out more work than 3 crews did in 2007.
This GPS was a godsend.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-PfL4GXs/0/48bcc02f/XL/i-PfL4GXs-XL.jpg)
I just want to say bi pod.
It is kinda sexy isn't it?
Sorry for the lack of presence here, I am working 14+ hour days and most weekends so not time to goof off.
Thought I would share this.
Quote"I choose a lazy person to do a hard job. Because a lazy person will find an easy way to do it."
― Bill Gates
I was talking a few months ago with a surveyor friend of mine. He mentioned his one party chief is the laziest mutherfucker in the world. Out of his laziness comes moments of brilliance.
This is one of those.
He asked how I recovered paved over reference points, or as we call them, permanent control points (PCP's) confused I replied, I use a chisel and smaller heavy sledge. He laughed and told me how they use a battery powered angle grinder with a diamond masonry blade on it.
I kind of forgot about the convo until about 2 weeks ago where I was having a run of paved over control points. So I shopped for a battery angle grinder that would use the same battery as my hammer drill that I keep in my truck to set nails in concrete.
I finally got to use it today, you could hear my maniacal laugh for blocks as I made short work of recovering a nail and disk under the pavement. What would take me 15 minutes to do now takes me about 1 minute.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-VshVBp5/0/d168b9ca/L/i-VshVBp5-L.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-qMDkBZk/0/855e302b/L/i-qMDkBZk-L.jpg)
How do you find them, metal detector? After you uncover them, do you cover them over again, and if so, with what?
Yes a $500 metal detector to be specific. I just purchased this one as my 10 year old one is showing signs of failing.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000KAZPIW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
You can see the paint mark, I locate the nail then place a paint mark so I can come back and cut out the nail.
I try to have nothing in the road with me except what I positively need, as the roads are active and I am typically in the centerline.
I never thought of using an angle grinder. That metal detector looks like a modern version of what we used 20 years ago.
Quote from: 94touring on November 19, 2019, 07:37:45 PM
I never thought of using an angle grinder. That metal detector looks like a modern version of what we used 20 years ago.
I think we both used the old school Schonstedt at almost $800 I will pass and go with the new, shockproof, waterproof models from other companies. They rest on their laurels too much.
https://www.engineersupply.com/schonstedt-magnetic-locator-model-ga-52cx-includes-case.aspx?utm_campaign=Schonstedt%205%25%20Off%20Selected%20Products%20%28Q5TkgX%29&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Engaged%20%283%20Months%29&_ke=eyJrbF9lbWFpbCI6ICJqaW1zNTU0M0BnbWFpbC5jb20iLCAia2xfY29tcGFueV9pZCI6ICJMOWJSVTcifQ%3D%3D
(https://www.engineersupply.com/Images/Schonstedt-Instrument-Company/ES157-schonstedt-magnetic-locator-model-ga-52cx-includes-case-new-md.jpg)
The angle grinder is a godsend.
That's the one!
Quote from: 94touring on November 19, 2019, 07:53:17 PM
That's the one!
Frustrated with the sub surface units crapping the bed early. I broke down and purchased two $700 Schonstedts (after rebates $900 new!!) for both crews.
Now the cool part... I upgraded again... more when I have time as I am still working... this is my new co-worker.
I has a robot, more later because it is a hybrid robot tied into my GPS and is like being a super hero.
I have a few minutes, the internet is acting up at work and making uploads horribly slow.
How the robot works.
I paid a little extra for what they call a hybrid robot. It is intertwined with the GPS, as in the software in my Win10 Tablet allows me to jump back and forth between the GPS and robot when needed.
I needed it on a 5 acre job I did this week.
All the front property corners were under heavy tree cover impossible to get good GPS reading on.
So I would set the Robot up in a place where I can see one property corner in direct sight. (or more if possible)
I initialize the instrument and walk away from it 100' or so and tell it to shoot a distance to me, it does, then I take a GPS reading on that spot getting Latitude and Longitude of the point it just located, it can be a random point, just wherever I decided to put down the rod with the GPS on it.
Then I walk to another point about the same distance away, preferably in a different direction (I try to go 90°) and repeat, I have it shoot me, then I take a GPS reading.
With those 2 points having GPS coordinates on them, then the instrument knowing the angle and distance both of them are at in relation to each other. It can perform what is called a 2 point resection and figure out where the instrument is in GPS world, and know where everything I am locating with it is too.
I also did this to locate the house and detached garage, I just plopped down the Robot, initialized it, walked away and did a 2 point resection and it was on GPS coordinates or state plain coordinates.
Here is another cool trick, I can use my tablet to tell the Robot to switch from prism shots to prismless, where it uses a laser to get distances to hard objects. I then run the instrument myself and can take shots of the corners of the house (shoots = locations) I stood behind it and located the house and garage in about 1 minute taking about 10 shots. As fast as I can aim and tell it to shoot a distance was all it took.
On Friday last week at 430 in the afternoon one of my good clients, ordered a 5 acre survey and wanted it by Wednesday this week. I freaked out because we were supposed to be clobbered by a tropical storm Monday and Tues. As it would turn out Monday was a decent day, and Tues was the bad day.
Of course I picked Tues. to do this job. I ended up working in sideways rain while measuring the houses. Then I waited for about 30 minutes in my truck for the bad stuff to pass and was able to get out in the drizzle and finish it. By the time I finished the sun was coming out, of course.
It took me 3 hours to survey this job, in the old days using conventional equipment (Like what I sent Drmini) it would have been an 8 hour job easy running a 2 man crew.
I did it alone.
When I was out in the back of the property I thought to myself I should probably start carrying my gun. Just in case a Panther or Bobcat or Coyote decide they do not like me out in the sticks with them.
I also keep my eyes peeled for rattle snakes. I am probably deaded if one bites me out on acreage, not sure I could hike back out in time.
This robot is a second best purchase I have made for this business, it is a close second to the GPS. Another huge game changer.
Just read through this whole thread for the first time. Surveying classes in college were my absolute favorite part, absolutely loved going out in the field. Now the equipment is smarter than the surveyor most of the time.
Can the robot carry you out if a snake attempts to dead you?
Quote from: 94touring on November 14, 2020, 07:43:30 AM
Can the robot carry you out if a snake attempts to dead you?
Danger!! Danger!!
I should record the Robot going into full retard mode. If if loses me it starts flailing around looking for me. I can switch to control to my tablet, then aim it back at me and let it lock back in.
I can also take a GPS reading where I am standing and tell the robot where I am, it will turn straight to me.
I have to be careful passing around trees and objects that block its view, if it loses lock with me it gets kinda funny.
There was an option to add a $4K radio link to them that keeps them locked no matter what through some sort of witchcraft I do not understand. I opted to pass on it, so far I can manage it very well and feel no need to upgrade it.
Quote from: cstudep on November 13, 2020, 02:31:13 PM
Just read through this whole thread for the first time. Surveying classes in college were my absolute favorite part, absolutely loved going out in the field. Now the equipment is smarter than the surveyor most of the time.
A good friend of mine, who is also a surveyor graduated the University of Florida with a 4 year degree in Land surveying. I remember sitting next to him in a CE class when have a degree was new. The instructor asked if anyone had a degree my friend raised his hand, he was the only on in the class with a Land Surveying Degree. The instructor asked why he chose land surveying, my friend quipped right back, my guidance counselor told me I was too stupid to be an Engineer.
I about fell out of my chair laughing. Some of the old timers in the room were not amused.
My favorite part of my day is working with my toys in the field. I cannot wait to get out and start in the morning. Some days are mundane others are adventures. The cool thing is, you never know what kind of day you are in for. I love that. I love the constant changing scenery.
I am in the middle of my least favorite part of the day and sadly it is long from over... drafting up all the work.
I would rather be outside.
Quote from: Jims5543 on December 26, 2018, 02:31:19 PM
Then I decided to completely change how we gather field notes, I picked up a reMarkable tablet, they are expensive ($600) but so simple and made for one task that it does extremely well, worth it. Once complete I can transfer the field noted to the Toughbook as well including them in the email with the points.
The reMarkable is really cool. It only responds to stylus touches to dragging your hand or a template across does nothing. We LOVE it.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/General-Pics/n-PspN3q/i-rRjCqx2/0/ba899651/L/i-rRjCqx2-L.jpg)
Now we roll up to a job site, take the notes on the digital tablet, then shoot the job in collecting the points on our windows mobile device, once back in the truck we fire up the wifi and laptop, transfer the points to the laptop and email them to the drafter who is waiting for that data to finish the job, he has already started the drafting early in the morning when we leave and just needs our data to complete.
We now have 2 ReMarkable tablets, I let the mortgage crew have the new one, I took the old one.
The new one is thinner and more intuitive than the MK1. It has a stylus that has a digital eraser on the back of it, no more changing icons to erase to clear a line out.. It also has at least 4x the battery life of the OG one. It also lets the stylus stick to the side of the tablet via a magnet which is really helpful.
The crew loves the new one and said the old one is garbage compared to it. Wish they were cheaper I would buy one for me too. I will muddle along with the old one, I tend not to take notes as much as my tasks per day are mostly construction related.
(https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-kQv62G7/0/9398605e/X3/i-kQv62G7-X3.jpg)
Is it anything like an etch a sketch? ;D
I guess I will put this here. I had the most profitable year in business in over 12 years.
The crazy part is I am doing that with 1/5 of the staff I had 12 years ago. My gross revenue for the year rivals 2007, before the housing crash, in 2007 I had about 15 employees, now I have 3. Granted I spent close to 100K streamlining and adding tech to do that. My truck alone has over 50K in tech in it, that eliminates the need for a co worker, it paid for itself in less than 2 years.
I have been handing out Christmas bonuses over the last 3 weeks, one to each employee per week. Looking at their faces when they see a bonus that equals over a months income and in some cases, 2 months, is awesome! Best part of owning a business are these moments.
The worst is laying them off, especially when you like them. I really hope I am not laying off anyone in the next couple of years.
Completely unrelated to politics, so do not read into this, purely based on prices.
Vacant lots here spiked at an alarming rate. 4 months ago you could grab a 1/4 acre lot for 25-30K, now they are 60-80K..... not good, this is reminiscent to 2008 for me.
I already started circling my wagons a few weeks ago, I am pretty sure a huge crash is coming, I am glad I have a lot of gold, silver and lead on hand.
The RE market is priming itself for a big fall. There are also a lot of factors in play I am purely looking at house pricing and it is not a pretty sight. Overvalued is an understatement.
Quote from: 94touring on December 14, 2020, 07:10:14 PM
Is it anything like an etch a sketch? ;D
LMAO!!
Ummm no....
Lets recap the week so far....
I had a Monday from hell, I am sure of it.
In addition to Gmail being down (I am reading news Google is down today as well) I had a shitastic morning.
Monday is garbage day, my 0500 task before I leave for the office is to gather up the trash and take it to the curb. We have a pooper scooper setup for the back yard consisting of a scooper with a winn dixie bag on it. Then a baby diaper can that holds the poop until trash day to keep order down.
While getting all the shit bags a piece must have fallen and I stepped on it with my flip flop unknowingly.
I took the trash out to the curb, shit included and drove the office, I did not smell anything foul on my way in, but I did have my window open.
I get to the office walk around turning on things for the work week, getting ready to make some coffee, I walk to the bathroom to rinse out a mug and happen to look down, I see a smudge, like Mr. Hanky and scooted by. I immediately realized it was from my flip flop and then notice the shit over the edge of it. Then I look back across the office and see the dabs of shit from every step I took all over the office.
I spent a good 15 minutes running around cleaning up sit marks all over the floor.
Yay for Mondays!
Tuesday? Worse than Monday? Possibly. At least there was no shit..
- Lost my work phone ( more on that later)
- client orders a survey that requires me to survey 1 square mile and thinks they can have by Friday
- Client I have not heard from in 20 years reaches out and wants me to stop what I am doing to survey his properties in Palm Beach. LOL!! No happening
- Client who I have never worked for before needs to be present when I survey his 5 acres. Needs me to coordinate my movements so he can meet me there on Wed. - I am telling him I need to push his surveyors show off for at least a week, maybe 2.
- Stupid bitch cunt that works for my big builder and handles closings.... we do not hear from her for a month at a time. Then she pops up and orders 30-40 final surveys and wants them all in 10 days.
I just sent her a polite email and told her some of them would be impossible.
- Because bitch cunt sucks at her job, the title company that closes all the houses goes around her straight to us to bail them out when she is doing what she does best, nothing. I put my foot down and told them they need to go through her, its her job to make sure they have what they need.
- My ditz client forgot to order a survey again. Crunch time tomorrow. She orders more from me than entire offices, when she says jump...... I jump.
- The girl that works for her mom and dad called the office today and cried to Dori that a mean lender demands a survey today or else she cannot close a file Monday next week. Unbeknownst to her, it was a previous survey for us, we "rushed" it and delivered it the same day looking like hero's.
- Big builder has pissed of the County and cannot get Certificate of Occupancy on several houses in one community due to drainage problems. The bitch cunt orders finals this week and claims they are closing on Friday the super is frantic and trying to sort all the properties out at once, and thinks I have nothing to do but stand and wait for him. Fuck both of them.... cunts!!
- This evening I am in the process of drafting up 7 plot plans for builders who all want them.... NOW!!
- I have several more boundaries in my office that have to be drafted up before Monday. Weekend Fun!!
- I have another 15 finals to draft up that are all "closing" next week. More weekend fun!!
- A new city rule was implemented on 1 Nov, I have to survey every property they want to put a pool in at. I have a backlog of about 10 pool surveys, some are over a month old.
- There are easily another 40 jobs that need to go out in the field and we are struggling to get to them.
I start to rage them remember 2010, I was sitting in my office watching movies hoping an order would come in and I would have something to do.
This is a good problem.
BTW - I Cannot wait until tomorrow!! I am sure it will bring all kinds of excitement.
Oh and the title company what wants a survey by Friday? After I pointed out the task they put before me... they were very accommodating and gave me 1 extra day.
Woo!
I'm supposed to work tomorrow provided we don't get snowed out.
The client that wanted to meet me at the 5 acre survey brought a side by side with him. I was planning on taking my FJ Cruiser out on the property and giving it a proper 4x4 workout, we got to abuse his machine instead. So, I was stressing over coordinating for nothing. I guess I am just stressed out lately.
Met some surveyor buddies for beers last night, it was nice to blow off some steam with them.
Sounds like prime opportunity to post beers in the drunk thread.
Seems I am ahead of my time.
FloRida passed a $15 Min wage law.
This year in Sept. we bump from $8.30 to $10 an hour min. then bump a dollar a year until we hit $15.
At $15 an hour my robotic total station pays for itself in 9 months. Not my intention but to be honest kind of glad I went this route now.
I am toying with doing another Section 179 next year to get the other crew a robot too.
I am hesitating because I can see the writing on the wall, I will be laying off late in 2021. At least one is going and he is the field helper, I may or may not replace him with a robot. Most likely I will keep the cash in reserve and not spend it and just let him go.
My older son and I were talking, we are going to see an ushering in of robotics in the next 3-4 years. I see many industries changing.
Who would want to work as a plumber making $15 an hour when you can get a low stress gig at Publix or Target for the same pay?
Office Dori already makes over 15 an hour, I have a field helper who I pay 40 hours a week no matter what he works that this will impact. See, he works 20-30 hours a week and get paid for 40. He makes good money when you back out hours worked vs. take home.
When I am forced to pay him $15 an hour he will go on a time clock and only get pad for the hours he works, that is if he is not laid off in a year or two. Same goes for office Dori, if things get as bad as I am anticipating. She will be gone too.
I am so close to erasing my debt from 2008-2015, maybe 4-5 more months. Then I get into protection mode, I learned a lot in 2008-2010 and will not repeat the same mistakes.
Hey Jim,
It's been a while since I've posted on the board--anyway, rereading some of your posts on this subject. More than a year has gone by, I'm interested to hear what your thoughts are with the time that has past.
I did recently read an article about how big wall street firms were buying up parcels of land to build single family homes to own as rental properties (since the market has been pushing a lot of previously would-be buyers out of the market). What's your take?
-Gene