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Register Today for MCAA’s GreatFutures Job Fair

Find your next hire when you recruit at the MCAA GreatFutures Forum Job Fair. Registration is complimentary! You will have exclusive access to the members of our 60 MCAA Student Chapters, all seeking full-time, co-op and internship opportunities.

The Job Fair will be held at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park on Friday, September 20 from 8:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

Your decision to attend the Job Fair will be a Capitol investment!

  • There will be hundreds of students seeking full-time, co-op and internship opportunities.
  • September is the best time of the academic year to recruit the best talent.
  • The Mechanical Contracting Education & Research Foundation (MCERF) will award a $1,000 grant for each intern, co-op or full-time employee hired at the Job Fair…no limit to the number!

Register for the Job Fair

Visit the Conference Website

re-INSPIRE: Sustaining Growth Through Transformation at MSCA19

Join us at MSCA19 in Colorado Springs, CO from October 13-16, 2020. CEO of global consultancy ChangeLabs™ and popular presenter at past MSCA conferences, Peter Sheahan is internationally known for his innovative business thinking and thought leadership. He will help the audience re-INSPIRE themselves to grow in this every changing industry.

In an engaging, case study-rich presentation, Peter will help participants understand how to lead their organization in a rapidly changing and competitive environment, navigate the growing regulatory and disruptor challenges that put pressure on operations, and align behind a strategic vision to find opportunity. During his presentation, Peter will use real-world examples of individuals who have been able to move towards the edge of disruption and transform their teams and organizations by: telling themselves the truth and taking ownership for the changes in their industry, focusing on impact by unleashing a burning aspiration to innovate, and aligning on a shared vision of inspiration and growth.

Download the Conference Program

Need Guidelines and Training Materials to Qualify Signal Persons? Get this Guide!

MCAA’s Evaluator’s Guide to Qualified Signal Persons helps Qualified Evaluators train candidates to become Qualified Signal Persons.

In addition to helping Qualified Evaluators to understand their role, the guide:

  • Provides a list of training topics
  • Suggests effective training techniques
  • Includes training topics that need to be covered
  • Explains documentation requirements

The guide also summarizes the applicable parts of OSHA’s Standard on Cranes and Derricks in Construction, includes a visual reference of hand signals for crane operations and provides a basic knowledge test for Signal Persons.

Download

Want More Safety Resources?

MCAA has you covered, with a full range of resources to help you protect your workers from injury and comply with applicable safety regulations. Here’s where to find them:

On our Direct Links to MCAA & MSCA Safety Resources page, where they’re listed by category with links.

Go there now

In the Resource Center, where you can use the blue Refine Your Search bar to pinpoint exactly what you’re looking for.

Visit the Resource Center

Have questions or need personal assistance?

Contact MCAA’s Pete Chaney.

Explore the Latest from BuildingAdvice, MORSCO and More in MCAA’s Virtual Trade Show

MCAA’s Virtual Trade Show connects our contractor members with the members of MCAA’s Manufacturer/Supplier Council.

Participating companies highlight and link to new products, product lines, services, solutions or web pages of particular interest. Here are just a few of the recent additions:

BuildingAdvice, Inc. - MCAA Virtual Trade Show
BuildingAdvice, Inc.

SavingsTracker is a reporting service that allows for contractors to track energy savings and Energy Star scores from actions performed within the building, demonstrating a commitment to lowering operating costs.

Learn More

MORSCO - MCAA Virtual Trade Show
MORSCO

MORSCO is a leading U.S. distributor of commercial and residential plumbing, HVAC, and PVF, with showrooms across the country. Since our inception in November 2011, we’ve grown rapidly through a series of acquisitions and store openings. MORSCO is a private company sponsored by Advent International and led by a team of industry veterans.

Learn More

Need Something Else?

Find many more smart solutions in MCAA’s Virtual Trade Show!

Visit the Virtual Trade Show

Speaking of Smart Solutions

Visit the Smart Solutions Case Studies area of our website to learn how other mechanical contractors found their win-win with cost-saving and productivity-enhancing applications from members of MCAA’s Manufacturer/Supplier Council.

This section of our website also includes tips and ideas to help your company save money and enhance your productivity. Don’t miss it!

VISIT SMART SOLUTIONS

Find the Latest from Victaulic, SPX Cooling Technologies, IFS and More in MCAA’s Virtual Trade Show

MCAA’s Virtual Trade Show connects our contractor members with the members of MCAA’s Manufacturer/Supplier Council.

Participating companies highlight and link to new products, product lines, services, solutions or web pages of particular interest. Here are just a few of the recent additions:

Victaulic - MCAA Virtual Trade Show
Victaulic

It’s been 100 years since Victaulic was granted its first industry patent for mechanical pipe joining solutions. On its Centennial “Innoversary,” the company continues to develop groundbreaking technologies and drive new industry standards in performance and safety.

Learn More

SPX Cooling Technologies, Inc. - MCAA Virtual Trade Show
SPX Cooling Technologies, Inc.

New from SPX: the first 4 videos in the continuing series, “How to Install a Marley NC® Cooling Tower.” These quick guides document contractor best practices for tower installation – from start to finish!

Learn More

IFS North America - MCAA Virtual Trade Show
IFS North America

Digital Transformation can seem daunting, but with the right partner by your side, you can prepare for the future without compromising today’s business goals. Come see how IFS Field Service Management can help your service firm get the tools, the insight, and the vision to master digital transformation.

Learn More

Need Something Else?

Find many more smart solutions in MCAA’s Virtual Trade Show!

Visit the Virtual Trade Show

Speaking of Smart Solutions

Visit the Smart Solutions Case Studies area of our website to learn how other mechanical contractors found their win-win with cost-saving and productivity-enhancing applications from members of MCAA’s Manufacturer/Supplier Council.

This section of our website also includes tips and ideas to help your company save money and enhance your productivity. Don’t miss it!

VISIT SMART SOLUTIONS

2019 MSCA Sales Leadership Symposium – New class announced!

Due to popular demand, MSCA is holding a second Sales Leadership Symposium on September 17 – 18, 2019!  Taught by in-the-field industry experts, the Sales Leadership Symposium will teach sales leaders how to drive revenue growth and enhance profitability through a structured sales approach. Attendees will take home innovative ideas, crucial skills and the invaluable SALES LEADERSHIP TOOL KIT, which includes over 90 pages of resources to be an effective sales leader in the HVACR/Plumbing industry

The Toolkit Covers Topics Including:

  • HIRING
  • ONBOARDING
  • BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
  • SCORECARDS
  • COACHING
  • CUSTOMER CARE
  • NAVIGATING THE MSCA LIBRARY OF RESOURCES

WiMI Has Arrived!

The first annual Women in the Mechanical Industry (WiMI) Conference was held on June 24 – 26 in Chicago, Illinois. The conference was a huge success with over 160 women leaders from member companies in attendance. Mandi Wilkins, the Executive Vice President of MCA of Las Vegas, exclaimed the conference was “akin to two days of TED talks just for women. A lot of important education and reminders for us busy ladies. I can’t wait until next year’s conference, even though I am not sure how you will top this.”

Attendees were welcomed the first night by WiMI Chair Kori Gormley-Huppert and MCAA President Brian Helm. The opening session featured a captivating presentation by Col. Nicole Malachowski (USAF, Ret.), the first female pilot to fly with the Air Force Thunderbird aerial demonstration team. She provided a fascinating narrative of exactly what it took to be a woman vanguard and break tradition. Nicole offered actionable tools and real-world lessons about pursuing her dream and making choices; all while building a family and achieving success in a career where few women had gone before.

Tuesday morning featured Stacey Hanke, author of “Influence Redefined,” who presented a thought-provoking session on her powerful Influence Model, a step-by-step method for improving communication and producing the ideal type of influence—one that moves people to action long after an interaction is over.

Tuesday afternoon, attendees had the choice of various roundtable discussions on topics of particular interest to them. Topics included Work/Life Balance; Working in a Family Owned Business; Technology; Advancing Your Career; Leadership Strategies; Working in a Male Dominated Industry and Benefits of WiMI. The day ended with an enlightening panel discussion on recruiting and retaining women in the mechanical and HVAC industry moderated by Jon Finch, VP of Training at MILWAUKEE TOOL, and a panel of diverse women from the industry.

A special thanks to all our supporters who contributed to the conference, and MCA of Chicago for hosting a special attendee event Tuesday night at Joe’s Live. Attendees took advantage throughout the entire conference networking and making new connections. Marie Patterson, a professor at Chico State University, said WiMI and the conference gives “the opportunity for women to help support each other; and it is important to engage and empower those younger to continue to strive for their goals in the industry.”

Networking expert, J. Kelly Hoey closed out the conference sharing unique opportunities in creating proactive and focused networks, and how to leverage the connections they made during the week after the WiMI Conference.

SAVE THE DATE! The second annual Women in the Mechanical Industry Conference is scheduled for June 15-17, 2020 in Austin, Texas!

Get Back to the Basics – People and the Project – at the Field Leaders Conference

Give your field leaders the skills they need to focus on growing company profits and brand when you send them to the Field Leaders Conference. They will return with an action item list, a fresh perspective on the latest tools and construction resources, and a network of other jobsite leaders. Choose your preferred city – it’s the same education, just two different a locations – to learn more and register now!

Safety Planning Is a Snap with this Guide

Pre-project and pre-task safety and health planning for construction should be an integral part of every construction project. Imagine how much easier it would be to protect our workers and make projects even more profitable if safety were automatically included in all existing construction planning processes. That’s what Safety Planning is all about.

MCAA’s Safety Planning Guide provides information to assist you with this task, whether you’re serving as the prime contractor or a subcontractor. Inside, you will find:

  • Step-by-step best practices for incorporating safety into pre-project and pre-task planning
  • Information to help you implement your plans
  • An effective 10-step task hazard analysis process
  • A list of the most common job hazards in the mechanical industry, along with injuries that typically result and corrective measures you can put in place to avoid them
  • A task hazard analysis report form

Download

Want Even More Safety Resources?

MCAA has you covered, with a full range of resources to help you protect your workers from injury and comply with applicable safety regulations. Here’s where to find them:

On our Direct Links to MCAA & MSCA Safety Resources page, where they’re listed by category with links.

Go there now

In the Resource Center, where you can use the blue Refine Your Search bar to pinpoint exactly what you’re looking for.

Visit the Resource Center

Have Questions or Need Personal Assistance?

Contact MCAA’s Pete Chaney.

Find Your Next Hire at MCAA’s GreatFutures Forum Job Fair

The 2019 MCAA GreatFutures Forum will showcase our nation’s history while focusing on our industry’s future when it lands in the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C.

The event includes MCAA’s 3rd Annual Job Fair, where the sharpest MCAA Student Chapter members will be seeking full-time and internship opportunities.

The Job Fair will be held at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park on Friday, September 20 from 8:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Registration to attend and recruit at the Job Fair is complimentary for MCAA/MSCA members.

Your decision to attend the Job Fair will be a Capitol investment!

  • MCAA members will have exclusive access to members of our 60 MCAA Student Chapters throughout the country.
  • This includes hundreds of students seeking full-time, co-op and internship opportunities.
  • September is the best time of the academic year to recruit the best talent.
  • The Mechanical Contracting Education & Research Foundation (MCERF) will award a $1,000 grant for each intern, co-op or full-time employee hired at the Job Fair…no limit to the number!

New Report Analyzes Impact of Lingering Pension Reform Impasse in Congress

MCAA, the United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters (UA), and Horizon Actuarial Services have released a new report, Multiemployer Pension Plan Reform Policy Issues (June 2019). The report analyzes how the impact of the lingering pension reform impasse in Congress adversely affects active participants in MCAA/UA pension plans and highlights inequities in benefit levels.

“Active participants face higher contributions and lower benefit levels as funding challenges mount and are left unaddressed by Congress,” the report and analysis conclude.

MCAA President Brian Helm and UA General President Mark McManus stressed in a joint letter on the report, “Congressional reforms must include judicious consideration and equitable balancing of the burden of reform on all stakeholders in the system, including current active participants, vested/inactives, retirees and their beneficiaries, and contributing employers so as to bolster the sustainability of the system going forward.”

The joint UA/MCAA letter accompanying the report calls for Congressional action this year, with McManus and Helm citing UA and MCAA full support for the Common Sense Principles for Multiemployer Reform issued by the National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans (NCCMP) and a broad coalition of employer and labor groups across the country.

The report analyzes pension and benefit levels for a sample of representative active participants in plans who began their careers in the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s and “reveals that current active participants are contributing more and receiving lower benefits as compared with their predecessors.” The analysis concludes that, “Policy makers should be mindful of these inequities when considering potential changes to the funding rules and should make every effort to minimize the burden placed on the current generation of plan participants.”

MCAA is releasing the report in a meeting with the new Director of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), Gordon Hartogensis, on June 26, 2019, at the PBGC offices.

After that, MCAA and the UA will be distributing the report to Congressional Committees with jurisdiction over pension reform in anticipation of an upcoming hearing on the issue before the House Ways and Means Committee shortly after the Fourth of July Congressional recess.

For More Information

Contact John McNerney (MCAA) at 301-869-5800 or Ben Ablin, ASA, EA (Horizon Actuarial Services), the principal author of the report and analysis, at 240-247-4542 for additional information or assistance with any questions.

Find the Latest from Jay R. Smith Mfg. Co.®, The Harris Products Group and More in MCAA’s Virtual Trade Show

MCAA’s Virtual Trade Show connects our contractor members with the members of MCAA’s Manufacturer/Supplier Council.

Participating companies highlight and link to new products, product lines, services, solutions or web pages of particular interest. Here are just a few of the recent additions:

Jay R. Smith Mfg. Co.® a Member of Morris Group International - MCAA Virtual Trade Show
Jay R. Smith Mfg. Co.® a Member of Morris Group International

Siphonic action is independent of pipe pitch or gradient and smaller pipe diameters allow maximum use of open space and reduce material costs. Discover more products that save you time on the job.

Learn More

The Harris Products Group - MCAA Virtual Trade Show
The Harris Products Group

Solders are typically considered a plumbing product. But, did you know low-temperature tin/silver solders have higher strength and ductility than typical plumbing solders? This makes them suitable for most residential HVAC connections.

Learn More

Need Something Else?

Find many more smart solutions in MCAA’s Virtual Trade Show!

Visit the Virtual Trade Show

Speaking of Smart Solutions

Visit the Smart Solutions Case Studies area of our website to learn how other mechanical contractors found their win-win with cost-saving and productivity-enhancing applications from members of MCAA’s Manufacturer/Supplier Council.

This section of our website also includes tips and ideas to help your company save money and enhance your productivity. Don’t miss it!

VISIT SMART SOLUTIONS

Neptune Plumbing Presidents Adam and Michael Wallenstein Win Entrepreneur Of The Year® Award

Congratulations to Adam and Michael Wallenstein at Neptune Plumbing, who received the Entrepreneur Of The Year® Award in the East Central. Considered to be one of the most prestigious business recognitions for entrepreneurs, the award celebrates those who are building and leading successful, growing and dynamic businesses. “This award is a huge honor for us. We’re an industry that is often considered ‘stagnant,’ and to receive recognition for our growth and innovation is a great accolade,” said Neptune President Adam Wallenstein.

Download Your New Membership Directory & Buyer’s Guide Today!

The full-featured digital version of our Membership Directory & Buyer’s Guide enhances the look and feel of our directory with digital-only benefits to help you:

  • Network on the go with linked email addresses.
  • Connect with the companies, products and services that interest you using linked web addresses.
  • Get where you’re going…fast…with bookmarks and a linked table of contents.
  • Find advertisers instantly with a linked advertiser index.

MCAA’s Membership Directory & Buyer’s Guide is free as a member benefit. Printed directories are in the mail and will arrive to members within the next two weeks.

Download Your Copy

Have updates? Please share! Contact Jan Grillo for assistance.

MCAA Change Order Publication Receives NECA’s Full Endorsement

The 2018 of edition of MCAA’s highly regarded construction management publication, Change Orders, Productivity, Overtime—A Primer for the Construction Industry, has received the National Electrical Contractors Association’s (NECA) full endorsement.

NECA endorsed the contents of the publication as being just as applicable to the electrical construction industry as they are to the mechanical piping and plumbing trades, furthering its use to benefit both associations’ memberships and the industry as a whole.

The publication has become a standard in the construction industry and is widely relied upon by mechanical and other specialty contractors, attorneys in construction practices, and consultants.  The 2018 edition includes new material that:

  • Clarifies the process of selecting labor inefficiency factors, which will prove particularly useful for those using the MCAA Factors to prepare loss of labor productivity equitable adjustment requests
  • Explains how you can avoid being cited for potentially costly concurrent delays to a project. The chapter also provides information to assist contractors in defining and identifying concurrent delay in a project schedule.

The publication’s lead author, Paul Stynchcomb, CCM, PSP, CFCC, collaborated with Doug Patin, Esquire on the concurrent delay chapter.

This latest chapter, like the others in the publication, was peer reviewed by a panel of MCAA contractors. Peer reviewers for the new chapter were: Robert Beck, President of John W. Danforth Company in Tonawanda, NY; Steve Dawson, President of Harrell-Fish, Inc. in Bloomington, IN; Brian Helm, President of The Helm Group in Freeport, IL; and Adam Snavely, President and CEO of The Poole & Kent Corporation in Baltimore, MD.

Read NECA’s Press Release

Download or Purchase Your Copy

The UA-MCAA Labor Relations Conference Makes the Labor-Management Relationship a Win-Win for All

Join your UA and MCAA colleagues for education geared toward making the labor-management relationship a win-win for all parties. The 2019 UA-MCAA Labor Relations Conference: Succeeding Together will take place October 29 – 30, 2019, at The Mirage in Las Vegas, Nevada. This conference provides the unique opportunity to see both sides of the coin as labor and management collaborate on sessions and panel discussions to give attendees an in-depth look at what makes our relationship so important. Registration is now open!

The conference, jointly hosted by the United Association (UA) and MCAA, will feature panel discussions focused on topics such as growing apprenticeships, developing a joint labor-management strategic planning committee and retention of workers.

Acknowledging the importance of engaging the future of our organizations, the UA is asking all locals to bring one apprentice to the conference this year. MCAA will be hosting a breakout session with these apprentices to give them an opportunity to really dig into and ask questions about the management of the business with MCAA leaders one-on-one. Because apprentices are not only the future of the UA, they are the future of the MCAA as well.

To maximize our time together, MCAA is asking its members to plan joint dinners with their local labor partners following Tuesday’s reception. Exchanging ideas and experiences is how we will continue to thrive in this industry we all love, it is how we will be Succeeding Together.

The AEC Best Practices Conference Highlights Tools for Success

If you’re an MCAA affiliated association executive and have been thinking of attending the AEC Best Practices Conference but haven’t registered, register today! Spots are filling quickly and this is a conference you are not going to want to miss. The 2019 program is full of education including sessions on how affiliated association executives can help their contractors connect with student interns, cross-generational collaboration and engagement and updates on MCAA provided resources and tools that can help an association executive make the most of their job. The AEC Best Practices Conference provides MCAA affiliated association executives with best practices education that empowers them to better serve their board and contractor members.

reDISCOVER Best Practices at MSCA19

The Peer Group Forums at MSCA19, October 13-16, 2019 in Colorado Springs, CO, will give attendees the opportunity to talk about topics of interest and concern within the HVACR and plumbing industry. This collaborative environment is a valuable way to rediscover best practices with peers and leaders in the field, providing invaluable knowledge and resources to help advance their business.

This year’s sessions hit on relevant industry needs such as recruiting and retaining the best employees as the company continues to grow. The new reality of workplace needs and how to retain staff through employee engagement and culture. Reconceptualize concepts and ideas for empowering your techs. Attendees will listen to sales insights as well as trends and best practices in automation and renewals.

Wednesday’s Peer Group Forum will be broken down by company size to ensure relatable and relevant discussion based on the 2019 MSCA benchmark survey.