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george bernhart Posted: Apr 04, 2007 07:57 PM	Looking for a mentor I have been at this for about a year. Recently I have found out the really hard way I need some help for people with experience. I have had issues in the following areas: Employee issues Maintenance Growing the business Profitability Estimating jobs My biggest issue right now is that for the first 8 months or so I worked everday, but I am the main sprayer again and selling has taken a backseat. I also need to find out the best way to go after commercial insulation and commercial roofingwork, I have no idea at this point. My fear is that if I cant stop being the "I do everything guy" I will never make any money at this. Any help would be really appreciated.
Thomas Kasper Posted: Apr 05, 2007 08:28 AM	I think it is called growing pains. Does your foam supplier have any experts, that can help on the job? best of luck keep on foamin
Aaron Scurlock Posted: Apr 09, 2007 04:41 PM	Have you ever done amy commercial roofing work? Its a whole other beast. Better get a couple decades experience if you havent before you start foaming over problems.
Gerry Wagoner Posted: Apr 10, 2007 04:32 PM	It is a case of "only the strong survive." The questions you asked are all good ones, and finding the answers to them will build strength in your life. most of us can identify, olger
Posted: Apr 11, 2007 07:28 PM	theres a song out there...something about... welcome to the real world, she said to me.. condesendingly... it dont matter whether you were laying tile... sellin smokes and gas or sprayin foam... your questions are those that one pontificates upon no matter what the venture... labor issues is a constant(would be a good topic),,if you run equipment it breaks, & it DEMANDS regular maintanance to operate at peak performance,,,,performance ='s profitability....growing pains is good pain,,profitability,,,no matter what it is..its never enough.. :) estimateing jobs...keep your eyes wide open all the time... i have been at this for 8 yrs,,i work my ass off...my main sprayer makes just about as much SALARY as i do...my company makes GOOD money... i dont require that much to live on,,or pay taxes on,,,for that matter...(i have what i require,,and in most cases what i desire,,if realistic and practical)... if you want to be paid for every hour you put into building a business,,,work for someone else and help them build thier's... learn to walk before you try to high jump... commercial will eat you alive if you dont know how the system works,,,and they will devour you in one little bite... believe in what you do learn all you can about what you do do what you do with uncompromised passion learn even more about what goes on about you specially if it doesnt appear important... keep your eyes wide open all the time i make $4.00 per hour...my wife says less... i do alot of everything,,, somethings better than others,, i love what i do... good luck in your venture..
Posted: Apr 11, 2007 08:07 PM	Something about your post came to mind today. You did not mention needing help with finding new business. If that's not a problem then the rest are fixable. Something I'll be trying this year is to screen a lot of people before hiring one. It works when screening for good tenants and I think it's the way to be when hiring.
george bernhart Posted: Apr 12, 2007 04:25 PM	Hi Guys! My husband wrote this message at the top of this page. I was the one who introduced him to this forum. I'm a devoted housewife who for 6 months, has been quietly soaking in all your knowledge, while he spent long days trying to keep a crew and be the crew 5-6 days a week. I'm sure Im not the only wife out there trying to find ideas to help our HARD working husbands. I have even been his crew in crisis. I've shared many ideas with him, and he was always glad for the info. A little background... He did do his homework before jumping in. Although he worked for corporate America for 20 years, he always had an entreprenuial spirit. During his career he had many patents under his belt, but as it is with the big boss, you don't really own what you create. Being a man who was more comfortable getting his hands dirty than sitting behind a desk, he looked into building homes. He had seen the writing on the wall, and 6 months after building and selling his first home, he and 200 of his coworkers in Corporate America were laid off. By then he knew that he wanted to concentrate on energy efficient homes, and that led him to sprayfoam. He was excited about its possibilities, and surprised how few companies offered it. He decided then that he would Spray his own homes. His background is in research and development, so after learning as much as he could, he sprayed his next two homes out of a trailer he outfitted himself pulled by the families suburban (not really made to pull 7,000 lbs.) He was hooked and put all his energies into sprayfoam. We downsized our life to afford this new adventure. From day one he had more jobs than he could handle. There are 157 builders and just a couple foamers in the local assoc., and only 3 builders kept him busy everyday for 8 months. He knew that he needed to be selling himself, but was needed at site to keep things running. Two months ago the jobs ran out. There are new guys in town underbidding, but he cant and wont. With all that it cost to start the business (he bought a box truck, the trailer situation was scary)we are barely keeping our (mom,dad, 4 kids, 3 dogs) heads above water. We havent paid ourselves since last October. Most of the profits have gone back into equipment that has broken. He has had time lately to market himself (emailing, calling, & going to jobsites). He had his product in a parade home last November and will again this June. He gets lots of positive feedback when talking to the community and area builders ( Many builders wanting it for their own homes but not willing to build with it yet.) He has visited jobsites where sprayfoam was improperly installed and has concerns about the reputation of the industry, but he does not bad mouth other foamers as I have read on this site. I find it funny that the local fiberglass and cellulose co.(in business 20+years) have called him to ask the newby how to do sprayfoam. He pays his crew well(maybe too well), and not gotten alot of loyalty in return. I tell him it is his integrity that will make him a success. He believes in the product, but has concerns about providing for his family. I don't want him to give up on his dream, and am renewing my nursing license to try to make this work. I got the feeling from reading some of these replies that you got the feeling that he was afraid of hard work, and that is so not my husband. His questions sounded general, but he really was just trying to open a dialogue to get into more specific stuff. Hopefully he will forgive me for butting in. Stephanie By the way, the weight loss industry needs to hear about sprayfoam. My husband was a gym rat. He hasn't been to a gym since foaming and is fitter than ever!
Mike Sharpe Posted: Apr 13, 2007 11:59 PM	George where in East Texas are you located i am in DFW. I feel your pain stick in there it will get better.
Posted: Apr 19, 2007 05:42 AM	George, Read the E Myth, a book that really helped me. I am very new to foam but the same business principals apply. This may sound CRAZY but stop worrying about what others charge and concentrate on what you need to charge. Competing on price will mean you are competing with people who are going out of business! Work out what you need to charge to do a top job and make a profit and bid the job accordingly. When the customer says "can you do it a little cheaper" say "sure what would you like me to leave out!". Remember dropping your price they will actually think that you were charging too much to start with....STICK TO YOUR PRICE !!!! its what you need to survive, pay your men well, pay taxes and insurance , and the company to make a profit. I really believe that most business issues we face are related to price, or rather charging enough to pay all the above. Staff issues, think what it was like in "Corporate America" and treat your guys differently. DELEGATE !!!! you will be suprised what people can come up with if you entrust them with some responsibility. They mentaly buy in to the business. Take them all out to lunch and work up a company manual, about how a job should be sequenced and exactly how things should be done, let them give suggestions, listen to what they say. When you hire someone talk to them about how their future could be in your company. Because you are now charging enough, the profitable company you own has opportunities for advancement. Your happy employees will now do your advertising for you and will attract good employees by word of mouth. I dont mean to offend you brother but if you keep doing everything yourself you will burn out quick smart. Imagine how your employees feel when you are doing everything ( the boss doesnt trust me to do anything). and your kids will grow up without knowing their dad. Step back and spend some time working on the business instead of in the business. Educate your customers in the products and system you use , you are an EXPERT in your field and a far safer bet than those dudes who show up in beaten up trucks comming to undercut your price. You also have the backup of a loyal partner and thats a huge asset. Try to find a retired sucessful business person to mentor you. There are lots of retired or semi retired people who would just love to share their experience with someone who asks them, use that resourse. Contact your local business development agency to get in contact with someone. The defitition of stupidity, doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results! Its not working the way things are now so make the changes.
Posted: Apr 19, 2007 08:30 AM	We can help in this! If you are still looking for someone to get advice from, help with customer service, bidding, etc, call me at 580-366-4288. This is what I do - no cost - that's right, no cost.
Michael Flander Posted: Apr 24, 2007 01:13 PM	George, My job at Endisys, literally, is to provide tech support and training on protective coatings equipment. If you go down, and need help, please do not hesitate to give me a call! We have several customers in your area, and I know the area well as I spend time in Texas at least once a year. With all that you have to worry about when running a business, the equipment should be the last thing on your mind after you purchase it. Good luck! Mike Flander - Endisys
quentin Posted: Jul 02, 2007 08:23 PM	Lots of good advise I am seeing. I think the problem is that we need to know the situation so it can be discussed properly and no one was intending to make you feel your husband wasn't working hard enough. Any business will have a LOT of growing pains and you being supportive is important since a spouse that either doesn't care or is actively fighting it can kill a business. I know that one first hand. I think the points about not trying to undercut others and promoting himself as an EXPERT with charging an appropriate price is important./ Also he may just need to look at what he is paying those working for him. Probationary periods are not uncommon to make sure they actually work out and are willing to work as well as the carrot of a nice raise after it can help. Also delegating the those who work hard and know as well as show an interesting in learning more is an important thing. Point out to a good employee that if they can help manage the actual work, then it allows him to manage getting MORE work so they can all have steady pay instead of looking for jobs in a few months. Also contact a local SBDC and check for mentors there. www.sba.gov can link you to the local SBDC center and mentors that volunteer their time, experience and etc to help you.
Greg Pruitt Posted: Jul 07, 2007 06:23 PM	He you still have questions, I would be gald to discuss them with you,I understand what you are going through.979-229-3493
Posted: Aug 03, 2007 12:20 AM	George, How's things going? Well I hope. Just curious.
philip mullins Posted: Aug 03, 2007 11:37 AM	being new to spray foam i am limited in the amount of technical advise i can offer. but having been self employed for several years now, i can offer a few tips that you may find helpfull. imho,the best thing that anyone starting a buisness can do to make things manageable and profitable is to hire a GOOD accountant. that is the best single piece of advice i have ever recieved. it will help in more ways than you can think of. also, ttreat your employees like employees. not ur freinds. when i started my own buisness i wanted to be different than the people that i had worked for. so i treated my guys very well. and suffered for it. be fair, but be stern. always let them know exactly what you expect from them. and dont put up with any bs or they will walk all over you. in the construction industry it is always the hard asses who have all the money. and as an employer your number one responsibility to your guys is not to help them out as much as you can. it is to keep them working. and you can only do that by getting your moneys worth from them. andguys worth having will respect you for that first, and learn to like you later. i now have 3 guys that i consider family. and they understand that i am running a buisness. and what kind of a future do they have if the company doesnt make money? i have other employees also but, i dont trust them. i cant afford to. when selling ajob, be it spray foam or any other service, let your customer know that as a contractor you can only sell them 3 things; quality, price, and time. but, they can only have 2. anyone promising all 3 are lying. never trust a builder. i work for the home owner and fight with the builder on thier behalf most of the time. and surprisingly enough, quite often the builders i fight with the hardest refer me jobs. but, i still dont trust them. they want to do a job as quickly and profitable as possible. most do just good enough to get paid and hope to make it through the 1 year warranty. so they are not interested in a better product. and if you ever do convince a builder that spf is a good idea, he'll put his bro-in-law in a rig in a week.
Scott Snyder Posted: Aug 03, 2007 04:12 PM	"and if you ever do convince a builder that spf is a good idea, he'll put his bro-in-law in a rig in a week." That is certainly a true statement. New to the industry but self employed since '86, I feel one of the most important aspects of this business to making sure to call the prospect back and follow up each and every sales presentation. Good luck to you in your new business.
Posted: Aug 13, 2007 10:53 PM	Hand the gun over. I know it is a hard thing to do. They will learn the hard way. Just watch and trust. Then go sell! I just hired two guys that never had seen foam sprayed. I stayed on the jobsite for two days and showed them everthing I know. What a relief. I trust them and they do everything I expect. If I do get a call, I know that I can talk them through anything. They know the ship is tight. Quality is key. They know without ever being in the industry that this is the future. Be willing to teach and set ego aside. You will benefit greatly and not have to worry about having an MI. Good luck!
Posted: Aug 30, 2007 10:33 PM	Why don't you try posting an announcment or post something in the classified section? Thanks, Damian dlardieri@SprayFoamMagazine.com 732-8996500