The event was held in San Antonio, TX and was attended by more than 160 engineers, architects, and geotechnical contractors from around the United States. The conference was divided into social, educational, and professional segments to highlight the advancements in the foundation repair industry.  Among the topics that were presented during the short course seminars included Proper Foundation Design, Engineering Ethics, and Foundation Repair Methods.

The Foundation Repair Association (FRA) is a national organization that exists to promote high ethical standards in the practice of foundation repair, and to promote cooperation between the foundation repair industry and government.

The four-day installation training included hands-on training at several different jobsites, where the attendees received firsthand experience installing push piers, helical piers, slab piers, Geo-Lock™ wall anchors, CarbonArmor™ and PowerBraces™. The installation training also included 5 hours of classroom training where the attendees learned about the more technical aspects of the product installation.

The three-day sales training covered topics such as product features and benefits, interviewing the customer to learn about their wants and needs, proper diagnosing and inspection, and presenting solutions to the customer. Sales training attendees were also encouraged to bring their laptops to receive hands-on training on the exclusive Foundation Supportworks sales presentation and proposal generating software program.

It’s not very often that a group of business owners are able to come together, share successes, get advice about common challenges, learn about new tools available, and strengthen the connection they feel to one another. One can really feel the power that a network of the best foundation repair contractors in North America truly has at these events.

Foundation Supportworks presented on topics such as the impact of accountability within an organization, new sales and installation tools to help our businesses be more efficient, recruiting and hiring the most talented employees, internet marketing strategies, and much more. The Owner’s Meeting gave attendees some well deserved relaxation and sunshine, great laughs, and most importantly, a lot of good insight on how to reach new levels of success within their business!

Amanda Harrington, Director of Training and Development for Foundation Supportworks, said, “We are excited to have been recognized by the American Institute of Architects as an approved provider for their Continuing Education System.  The goal of our coursework is to educate the architectural community on various deep foundation solutions that are available and how those solutions interface with structures in varying soil conditions.  We are honored to have received this approval through the AIA CES.”

Along with the traditional format of classroom lecture, participants also held many small group discussions, observed demonstrations, and used a variety of hands-on activities to solidify the concepts and apply them to real-world examples.  This highly interactive training event created opportunities for in-depth discussion on employee problems and opportunities, role playing on how to address common employee situations, and brainstorming on ideas and best practices that could be shared throughout the Foundation Supportworks dealer network.

The three-day sales training covered topics such as product features and benefits, interviewing the customer to learn about their wants and needs, proper diagnosing and inspection of foundation related issues, and presenting solutions to the customer.  Sales training attendees were also encouraged to bring their laptops to receive hands-on training on the exclusive Foundation Supportworks sales presentation and proposal generating software program.  The software allows the sales professionals to effectively communicate and educate a homeowner on the unique features and benefits of each of Foundation Supportworks products.

InspectionWorld® is the annual home inspector conference presented by the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI).  The event, which took place January 4^th-7^th, was attended by more than 350 professional home inspectors from throughout North America.  The attendees were provided with 45 education courses in five different specialty tracks, plus a sixth track devoted to the 2012 International Residential Code.  The event also featured an exhibitor expo, where participants had the opportunity to learn about products and services being offered by more than 60 companies from across the country.

The American Society of Home Inspectors was formed in 1976 and is the oldest and most respected non-profit professional society for home inspectors in North America.   With over 6,000 members and 80 chapters, ASHI has provided home inspectors with the best in education, resources and professional networking opportunities.  Its mission is to meet the needs of its membership, while promoting excellence and exemplary practice within the home inspection profession.

The award was presented to Complete Basement Systems on November 4^th at the 2011 Associated General Contractors ACE awards banquet.  The banquet was attended by more than 550 contractors and industry leaders who gathered to recognize and celebrate the outstanding commercial construction projects completed within the last year.  The AGC of Colorado presented a total of thirty-one awards at the ceremony, including 14 ACE awards.  The 36 entries in 14 categories, submitted by 27 AGC member companies, demonstrate the outstanding creativity, skill and excellence of Colorado’s builders, architects, engineers, and subcontractors.

The Alta Vista Charter School was constructed in 1917.  In 2011, the school planned a “historic” renovation to 6,240 square feet of the existing building as well as construction of a new addition of 18,000 square feet (view case study).  Helical piles were selected as the ideal deep foundation stabilization option for this site given the subsurface conditions, groundwater levels, ease of installation and ability to efficiently size the piles for the various design working loads that were needed.  The team at Complete Basement Systems completed the job by installing 136 piles in approximately two weeks.

In addition to classroom discussions, those in attendance observed a presentation by the Vice President of American National Bank, who spoke on the importance of having a strong relationship with your local banking institute.  The presentation focused on banking issues that are relevant to foundation stabilization companies, including revolving lines of credit and regulatory requirements.

The training included many hands-on activities to provide real-world applications for the attendees, as well as a panel discussion where participants had the opportunity to “ask the experts” questions related to the accounting side of their business.