Al Engelman of Engelman Construction, Macungie, Pa., will assume the role of president of the Tilt--Up Concrete Association’s board of directors at the association’s annual meeting in January at the World of Concrete.

He is a registered professional engineer and fellow of the American Concrete Institute (ACI). Engelman Construction completes an average of 100 decorative concrete projects each year, as well as approximately 65 other projects including 100,000-- to 1--million-- sq.--ft. warehouses. Engelman also served as president of the American Society of Concrete Contractors (ASCC) from 2001--2002.

How long have you been a member of the construction industry?

For more than 46 years. I graduated from the University of Detroit in 1958 with a degree in engineering. I founded Engelman Construction in 1974 and have continually diversified our firm’s offerings based on our client’s changing needs. For example, we began our precast operation in 1980.

Our firm provides a wide variety of services including tilt--up, decorative concrete, retaining walls, site work, precast products, foundations, slabs and superflat floors. We have completed residential, municipal and state projects. For the commercial industry, we have completed warehouse and industrial/manufacturing facilities, including sewage treatment plants.

What do you think has been the biggest change in the construction industry?

I have seen several evolutions in the construction industry during the past 46 years. Currently, more projects are moving away from being managed by a general contractor and instead are run by construction managers. Further, design--build is becoming commonplace, when just a few years ago, it was still seen as in its infancy.

What are the biggest challenges plaguing the industry today?

Human relations are a constant challenge. In recent years, it has become increasingly difficult to find qualified project managers. It does not seem that project managers are trained as well as they were in the past. Another challenge is the litigious direction our industry is taking. Contract language is adding more risk for the subcontractor, which makes it critical for us to carefully evaluate the terms of each project.

What suggestions do you have for alleviating these challenges?

I think it is crucial that concrete subcontractors get involved in the prebid process to eliminate some of the challenges that occur during projects. By getting involved early, we could provide our insight and experience to more accurately develop schedules and provide realistic cost estimates. Our knowledge of new technologies and equipment should be considered to provide owners with a cost and materials savings. I believe that it is hard to change processes and estimates if we are not involved in the earliest stage of a project. Further, subcontractors should be included in preconstruction and prepour meetings. We need to encourage attendance by members of all trades to ensure that everyone is aware of their responsibilities. Too often, attendance at these meetings is low because individuals assume that someone else will attend and let them know what they need to do. We need to work to end these assumptions to create a smoother project and increase safety.

What is the most challenging aspect of running a business in this industry?

As a business owner, human resources and safety are the most challenging tasks. Too many people do not have the skills necessary for completing good work. It is important to have properly trained employees to ensure that a jobsite is as safe as possible. Another challenge is the low--bid mentality that currently exists in the marketplace. In the past, your firm was measured on the quality of work that you provided, not just simply the fact that you were the lowest bidder. Further, it is often the contractor’s duty to uncover differences between the structural and architectural drawings. We need all trades to work together to end these blueprint and specification contradictions. This will also help eliminate scheduling difficulties that arise when too many trades are working on a job at the same time.