A Visit from the NAHB
March 2022
Part of the work of the HBRAME is to track and testify on any legislation that can affect the residential construction industry in Maine. If you watch this one minute clip from the recent work session debate of LD259 (fast forward to the :40 mark) you can see for yourself how the HBRAME testimony can make an impact. There are a number of pieces of legislation in Augusta that we spend time tracking, researching, and testifying for. If you are not a current HBRAME member, please join today so we can increase the impact our Association is making in Augusta.
LD259 proposed to add a $10 surcharge per ton of construction demolition debris.
Spending Time in Augusta
The HBRAME welcomed Samantha Davis to Maine earlier this month. Samantha works for the National Association of Home Builders. Samantha visits with state HBAs to make sure they have all of the support they need from the National Association. A big topic of conversation right now is the move to Real Time Processing of membership applications. New members will begin to receive their benefits within 24 hours of signing up.
Samantha Davis (L) from the National Associaiton of Home Builders Operations Team visits with HBRAME Executive Officer Melanie Merz (R)
Tell us a little bit about your business & your involvement in it AZEK Exteriors and TimberTech are both manufactures of building products engineered to resist the test and time of weather. I am the Area Sales Manager for the state of Maine. What do you enjoy most about your work? What I enjoy most about my work is working with the people of Maine. Maine is where I was born and raised and it is a privilege I get to cover this beautiful state. What does being a member of the Maine Home Builders & Remodelers Association mean to you? Being born into a family owned construction business I find the HBRAME is important to be a part of because it gives the hard working honest people of this state a voice in their industry. Tell us something about yourself outside of work. Hobbies? Civic involvement? Family? Outside of work I am typically enjoying mother nature with my wife Alyssa and Daughter Cora. A typically summer you can find me hiking, camping, jeeping, on a softball or soccer field, or on my motorcycle. Winters are my favorite in the mountains on my snowmobile or on my skis. I am a member of the Kora Shrine in Lewiston and a Freemason at Tranquil Lodge #29 in Auburn.
Member Spotlight: Carl Skilling - Area Sales Manager for AZEK Exteriors and TimberTech
Interview Continued Next Page
An Interview with Carl Chretien As recently reported, a home under construction in South Portland collapsed during a period of heavy gusting winds. Luckily, the crew working at the construction site had already left for the day and no one was harmed in the accident. The event is still under investigation by the South Portland Code Enforcement office. HBRAME board member Carl Chretien visited the site shortly after the accident took place on February 23rd and he shared his observations with me for this article. Melanie Merz: Carl, thanks for sharing your observations about the South Portland project, but I must ask - why were you there!? Carl Chretien: (laughs) Aside from being in the industry and building for 38 years, I am a 3rd party inspector and certified as a code enforcement officer as well as a plumbing inspector. Visiting a site like this helps me in my work as an inspector. MM: I understand, for clarity though, this is not an official inspection or report, you are just sharing your observations as a bystander who has as much working knowledge as a person who might investigate an accident like this. CC: Correct, I am sharing my unofficial observations and opinions. MM: Have you ever seen something like this happen before? CC: An incident like this has not happened recently, but there was a similar occurrence that happened 6 years ago in Saco. It was a similar site, new construction, and the trusses fell over because of improper temporary bracing. MM: What did you observe in South Portland? CC: I saw the site shortly afterwards. My assumptions about how this happened, as a bystander and someone who inspects buildings professionally is that there was a lack of temporary bracing throughout the building. These types of code deficiencies likely would have been fixed after they were found at an inspection. Inspectors don’t visit job sites everyday, only once a project meets certain milestones. MM: So you believe this was preventable? CC: It’s likely that it was, but I’d leave that decision up to the official inspectors. There are very simple things that builders should be doing, installing more temporary bracing, installing nuts and washers on the ankle bolts for the sill plates, installing uplift hardware similar to hurricane clips. MM: As someone who has been building for nearly 40 years, what are some other best practices for securing a job site to prevent this type of accident? CC: As we frame the building we make sure we are using all the required hardware as we go. We make sure the nailing pattern on the sheathing is done properly. We would keep temporary bracing in place until such time as the permanent structure is in place and we follow the requirements of truss manufacturers or code enforcement requirements. There are also a number of best practices that builders can learn about temporary bracing that are not necessarily in the code. If an inexperienced builder is out working on their own, they learn on the job or they learn from serious mistakes. MM: Are you suggesting this project was built by someone lacking experience? CC: I couldn’t say, I don’t know who the builder was, but I would say that being a builder requires making judgment calls. There are protections we put in place on a job site, like closing all the windows, if the weather is predicting high winds or wind gusts. But if we’re tracking the weather and we know the way of the prevailing winds then maybe we make a judgment call that we’re in the clear. But we see stuff like this happen with rogue winds that come from the south rather than the north. MM: Ok, so we can’t assume that this accident is due to an inexperienced builder then? CC: We can’t assume anything. It could be the case that the builder was less experienced or it could be the case that the workforce shortage prevented an experienced builder from getting all of their temporary bracing in place or using hurricane clips, closing the windows, all of that type of stuff. We’ll have to wait for an official report. MM: How could this be affected by the workforce shortage? CC: A lot of these tasks that I described to you are typically delegated to a more inexperienced employee or an apprentice to finish up. Many builders are unable to find the next generation of workforce to work on the job site, so they don’t have those extra sets of hands to complete the best practice items on the list.
To coincide with Women In Construction week and Women’s History Month, this month we took to our social media channels to recognize the many women who are actively pursuing careers in the construction industry here in Maine. The women recognized were nominated by their colleagues to help raise the awareness for other women in Maine who may consider the opportunities available in the construction industry. There’s still time to recognize women working in the construction industry in Maine! Visit this form to nominate your colleague today.
Women Build Maine
A Gift for Chuck Fowke
Golf Tournament, Sanford Country Club, June 23, 2022 The golf committee is pleased to announce the HBRAME will host the first annual HBRAME golf tournament on June 23, 2022, kicking off at 1pm at the Sanford Country Club. Learn more about tickets or sponsorships HERE or reach out to Melanie Merz or David Elkas.
2021 Maine Remodeling Data NAHB recently released remodeling data by zip code for 2021. The top 3 most profitable towns for remodeling projects: 1. Cumberland Foreside 2. Cape Elizabeth 3. Yarmouth The full report is available for all members for $199, or you can become a Remodeling Council member for $100 and receive the full dataset for free. For more data about which towns in Maine are the most profitable for remodeling, visit this link to access the report.
Overheard in the High Volume Builders Monthly Meeting Each member of the High Volume Builders Group was asking for more information about availability of trade partners, framing, roofing, plumbing, foundations. There are often times they need to fill in when others are unavailable.
Legislation We're Tracking LD 259: “An Act To Improve Solid Waste Management” LD1977: “An Act to Require Registration by General Contractors for Home Improvement and Construction” LD177: “An Act To Improve Labor Laws for Workers in Maine".
HBRAME board member, and Maine Representative to the National Association of Home Builders Board, Carl Chretien, presented outgoing NAHB Chairman Chuck Fowke with a Maine made Dove Tail bat at the annual meeting of the NAHB Board of Directors held during IBS in February.
Headlines from the Home Builders & Remodelers of Maine
March Events
Welcome! New Members Les Fossel - Old House Restoration Returning Members SPB Plumbing Cottage Advisors Wally J Staples Taggart Construction Parksite Azek Windsor Construction
JLC Live Residential Construction Show Expo - Providence, RI March 26th - 27th
Tom Drew Retirement The board of directors recently announced the retirement of Life Director member Tom Drew. Tom has been a dedicated member of the NAHB and served on the Board of Directors for the HBRAME for many years. Thank you Tom for more than 30 years of service!