Unitized Curtain Walling & Supply Chain Management!

Unitized Curtain Walling & Supply Chain Management

Along with an excellent design team with a design for manufacture mind set, one of the other main key ingredients to executing a successful unitised curtain walling project is making sure you have in place and BEFORE you start an excellently controlled well-oiled supply chain. A unitised curtain walling project needs to be visualised and mapped as an assembly line starting at estimation and running right through design, procurement, manufacturing, installation to hand over on site. In order for the project to be successful this assembly line must be managed meticulously with as much precision and planning as an automotive line. With unitised curtain walling you really are “only as good as its weakest link”

Its only Unitised, a statement you perish on!

A unitised curtain walling panel is a completed assembled section of the external envelope which may contain some or all of the following curtain walling parts, Aluminium Profiles, Steel Profiles, Steel inserts, Aluminium Panels, Galvanised Panels, Insulation, EPDM, Glass, Gaskets, Steel brackets, Aluminium Brackets, Fixings and Sealants. To complicate matters even more, all of these parts can come from different suppliers from different countries with different lead times and some components may have multiple steps to go through in order for it to be fit for purpose such as fabrication then powder coating, not to mention that you have a curing time when structurally bonding glass to the unitised frames and they must remain horizontal. The fun part is ensuring that despite all this, all of the required components must end up on the production line at the same time with the drawings, otherwise the unitised panel even without only one screw cannot be completed.

What happens when your supply chain is uncontrolled?

“Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail” it really is that simple. Unlike stick curtain walling, a poorly managed unitised curtain walling supply chain usually shows up first in the factory which can result in some or all of the following issues,

• Production line is running only in some cells, its running slowly or fully stopped
• Incomplete unitised Panels scattered throughout the factory with missing components taking up space
• Double handling unitised panels in the factory, stacking them until correct materials finally arrive
• Overtime goes through the roof trying to pull the project back in
• Panels arriving to site in the wrong sequence that cannot be installed in the right sequence
• Complete confusion, site ends up telling the factory which panels they need first, Quality suffers
• Cash flow on project goes out the window (excuse the pun) due to delays
• Client not happy, staff not happy
• You lose future business

Then why unitised curtain walling

The benefit of unitised to traditional Stick Curtain Wall when you get it right is twofold, the installation costs associated with Unitised are far less than traditional Stick as there is far less installation involved and it gets installed in a far shorter period of time 15 panels – 30 panels per day, the Quality of installation is also far better as most of the installation work is actually carried out in a controlled factory environment before it goes to site.

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Elk Recruitment are connecting success and on the Move!

Elk Recruitment are so excited to announce that we have opened up our UK address in City Road, London. The reason for this, as stated by Clive Dunne of Elk Recruitment is

“To be close to the action currently experienced in the growing fenestration industry there, it is also what our growing Curtain Walling client base require from us as a specialist in our field so that at the drop of a hat an Elk Recruitment representative can be onsite to discuss/resolve staffing issues”

Growth has been consistent in the fenestration industry to date and this has been seen in many geographical locations such as the United Kingdom , the Americas and also a welcomed recent upsurge in the Irish market both in the commercial and residential Façade sectors. This increase in activity across the board does not come without its Ying & Yang which currently present in the form of skilled staff shortages which is now an issue for most organisations especially in the curtain walling arena.

Of these skilled staff shortages Senior Façade Designers, Façade Designers, Draughtsmen and Façade Project Management disciplines seem to be most hit. The other point to note and as a direct result of demand is there has been a noticeable increase in salary scales for these disciplines in the façade industry and there doesn’t seem to be any signs of slowing as demand continues, counter offers also now seem to be unfortunately the norm.

Elk Recruitment are looking forward to growing our presence in Ireland, the UK and the Americas going forward, the response and welcoming of our business to the Façade market has been amazing thus far and long may it continue, However in order for our partnerships to develop effectively we are quickly seeing that it is extremely important that our clients take a serious look at their upcoming projects based on current demand and plan their staffing requirements way in advance to ensure the right resources are available at Kick off.

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Elk Recruitment - The Facade Specialist

Elk Recruitment is a privately owned niche recruitment firm founded in 2015 with offices currently in Ireland and the United Kingdom. Our core competency is the placement of permanent and contract mid to senior level professionals within the Fenestration, Façade, Curtain Walling & Medical Device industry throughout Europe – Asia – North & South America.

“At our core we are fully focused on the delivery of a value adding service, a service that we know is relevant to the façade and manufacturing industry”

Our in-depth knowledge particularly of the façade industry comes from having worked for aluminium/glass & steel façade, manufacturing companies for over 16 years domestically and internationally.  During this time gaining invaluable experience and insight into elements of the business such as Estimation, Design, Engineering, Procurement, Manufacturing and Project Management.  This practical in industry senior experience coupled with a very strong academic background, is what differentiates Elk Recruitment from its competitors in our chosen field.

We are an honest, reputable and knowledgeable company who prides itself on Quality and Service and will endeavour at all times to exceed the needs of our clients whilst also ensuring our candidates aspirations are met with the goal of forging lasting relationships.  We are also a proud member of the National Recruitment Federation and as such execute our recruitment process to the highest of standards and in conjunction with the N.R.F. code of conduct.

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Job Hunting

Job hunting can be a very stressful and difficult time for most of us especially when it’s the result of losing your job rather than choosing to leave.  As hard as it may be, try not to look at your current situation as world ending because it isn’t, instead look on this situation as the universes way of telling you loudly that what you were doing in the past needed changing, so take this time given to you to reflect and plan your next move strategically.

Most people at this point make a critical mistake, they don’t reflect or plan, they simply dust of the old CV and blitz the market place with it by loading it up on to every job site and issue it to every recruitment company known to man, this is a DISASTER and a fatal mistake.  Take the time to review your CV first and ask your self is this a document that represents me effectively? Am I proud of myself when I read this document? If not redo your CV and ensure it’s an excellent document, if you can’t achieve this on your own get help as it’s vitally important .  In addition get yourself an excellent LinkedIn profile and make sure it complements your CV and is up to date.

Identify the job that suits your skill set, if you don’t have the skill then upskill.  Seek out the companies you would like to work for and research them, check out their website, check out the latest vacancies on job boards and seek out recruitment companies that specialise in your industry or companies you would like to work for.

When the above is complete, connect & network in person, don’t expect the internet to do the work for you, you are one of thousands looking for a job so be different.  If you would like to send your CV directly to an employer or recruitment company, find out the contact name in that organisation and ring them in person, let them know you are on the lookout or interested in the job advertised and ask them if it is ok for you to send your CV to them directly, in doing this you are building a rapport and putting a voice and living person behind your CV.

Look at your job search as a project and remember don’t panic, reflect and plan.

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A Guide to CV Excellence Part 2

So welcome back and thank you again for joining me.

Saturday morning, the sun is shining and I have the fortunate task this morning of writing for you wonderful people.

Curriculum Vitaes like them or loth them, but never underestimate the importance of getting it right. During our last blog I gave you an introduction as to who am I, why I chose this blog and problems I see that people have with creating a Curriculum Vitae.  I also hopefully gave you an idea as to why I am qualified to write about this topic and I also asked you to review your existing CV, which I hope you did?

There are a number of key ingredients in creating an excellent CV, but most of them fall under two very important distinctive headings which are Layout & Content, layout we will cover today.  Layout is the visual impact & aesthetics of the CV, in simple terms when the soft copy of your CV is opened or a hard copy of you CV passes onto a reviewers desk it must automatically please the reader’s eye and subconsciously lure him/her to engage & read this fine specimen of a document, it can NOT be a chore or you will end up in the bin!

The Layout/Sequence I find most effective & logical, based on experience and feedback from both candidates and employers is as follows,

Soft Copy attached to an email

• I always advise job seekers to submit their CV as a pdf, as it comes across as a more professional document submittal when the email is opened.
• The CV should be saved as Name & Occupation CV (example: Clive Dunne Operations Manager CV)

Actual CV

• Sequence:
  • CV Title
  • Personal Details

• Summary Section paragraph (5-6 lines max written in the third person) followed by skillset bullet points
• Qualifications/Education

• Career History (in sequence starting with most recent)
• Prior Career History

• Additional Details

As you can see from the previous sections of CV shown, there are clean lines and indentations in the document as you scan through it and a logical sequence to the layout and most importantly it’s pleasing to the reader’s eye.

You might ask why I use yellow, well yellow is the one colour that gets noticed most.

http://www.moosepeterson.com/techtips/color.html

“Yellow – is the most visible color and is the first color the human eye notices! Yellow, the color nearest to “light” leaves a warm and satisfying impression, lively and stimulating and in many cultures symbolizes deity. Dark yellow can be oppressive while light yellow is breezy. Yellow’s stimulating nature and high visibility to the eye is the reason why many road signs are bold yellow (contrasted by black text). Yellow birds, flowers and skies are sure to be eye-catchers just because of the way the mind and eye works”

I hope you have enjoyed this session and found it informative and helpful, next session we will cover content

Have a great weekend.

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A Guide to CV Excellence Part 1

I think it makes sense at this stage to give you a brief history of who I am and what qualifies me to blog about this topic which I am very passionate about.

I am 40 years of age, married to a beautiful wife and we have three amazing kids, along with a dog, horse, 2 cats a rabbit and 3 fish, there is always noise, dirty football boots, ballet, Xbox, iPad, tears and laughter and that’s what we do to unwind!  My professional career started in business over 16 years ago. During this time I have completed a Master’s Degree, worked as a direct employee at group level, been a management consultant internationally, professional profiler and most recently a business owner of a recruitment firm that operates globally.  I love what I do and really enjoy working with people and sharing the knowledge I have gained to date in the hope it helps somewhat.

Over the past 2 years I have created many CV’s for family and friends and friends of friends and eventually as word got out, I was being asked by professionals across multiple industries such as hair and beauty, Arts, Golfing, Construction, Armed forces, Manufacturing, Senior Management, Electrical etc… to assist them in creating a professional, legible and promoting CV that would get them noticed, and to date the results and feedback from employers and candidates has been excellent.

So why the Blog? During these past 16 years and despite the plethora of free information available, 1000’s of CV’s have passed my desk for junior and senior candidates and most of which are simply terrible! in layout and content. To this day, it still baffles me as to why a candidate would expect to get to an interview when it is quite clear to the reader that they have put little or no effort into the presentation/content of their CV knowing that this document will unfortunately determine whether they get called for that interview or not.

I think the reason for this is twofold,

1. We don’t weight the importance of our CV or take it serious?
2. We don’t understand that layout and content is a game changer?

Your CV is your professional passport, your representative voice pre interview and this document will determine largely your fate.

Over the next couple of articles which I hope you find both useful and interesting, I would like to cover some CV basics with you, such as Layout, Colour, Headings, Tone, Career History, Achievements, Social Media, References and Hobbies and getting to know your CV.

So do your career a favor, blow the dust of your CV and ask yourself,

Does your CV impress or depress a reader?

Does your CV represent your current skillset?

Are you excited and proud of yourself when you read your CV?

As a document does its professionalism represent your professionalism?

Does it match the Job I am applying for?

Would I hire me based on this CV?

Thank you for reading and I hope you will find the coming articles helpful,

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Multicultural Management

Multicultural Management in the context of international business is discussed as a key attribute and a “success factor” for businesses, managers and teams in today’s globalised business arena (Kelley School of business, 2011, P.A Cassiday, 2005, Y.Y Kim, D P.S Bhawuk, 2008, R. Ma, D G. Allen 2009). For both Multinationals, expatriates and lone workers through the advancement of transport, communication, Information technology and reduction in flight costs in travelling abroad in recent times, taking a post in a foreign country or conducting business across foreign borders is a feasible growth opportunity for some enterprises and unfortunately a financial necessity for others. For the individual, whether you’re a practitioner of management, engineering, medicine, manufacturing, education or construction, your country of origin’s current economic situation need not be the be all and end all in determining the financial stability of your family or indeed be an over ruling factor in preventing your career advancement prospects (The Bent of tau Beta PI, Spring 2005).

The increase in expatriate workers in recent times has arisen from a combination of factors such as globalisation’s, labour shortages in many countries, as well attractive higher salaries and tax benefits available in some countries (HSBC Expat Explorer Survey 2012). Globalisation has created many opportunities (Mitroff, 1987, Eric T-S Pan, 2005) but having the ability to be able to manage within and adapt to a culturally diverse environment at grass roots level or at managerial level will impact on the level of success of this opportunity both for the company and for the expatriate.

In order for expatriates to be successfully integrated into a multicultural organisations, it has been identified through various studies driven by the growth in international business, that there is a need for cross cultural training “At the present time there is a greater need for effective international and cross cultural communication, collaboration and co-operation not only for the effective practice of management but also for the betterment of the human condition” (Culture Leadership and Organisation, the GLOBE study of 62 societies) of individuals in a multicultural context (Dr. Lee, Hung-Wen, M.G. Harvey, N. Miceli, 1999). Multinationals such as IBM, Heineken and Johnson &Johnson , colleges (S. Ledwith, D. Seymour, 2010) and training houses have had to quickly adapt to this evolution in multicultural management requirements and implement/offer specific cross cultural training programs to students and expatriates under many different titles such as “Re-patriation Training” (M, G Harvey, 1997, M Harvey, D Ralston, N Napier, 2000) “Cross Cultural Training” (A, Esther Joshua-Gojer, 2012) Multicultural Training, Diversity Training, Cross Cultural Leadership, and Cross Cultural Adjustment. Although success rates of these training programs is suggested as questionable, the main emphasis of these multicultural training programs is in the preparation of the individual to work effectively from a cultural perspective in their new place of work.

Even though there is an awareness in recent years on the importance of Multicultural Management (D, Shanahan 1996), many companies still “do not provide or give very limited cross cultural training” (S. Ghafoor, U. F. Khan, F. Idrees, B. Javed, F. Ahmed, 2011) as a result, expatriates are suggested as failing and experiencing the difficulties of working in cross cultural environments. Working in a foreign environment can be a difficult experience (Truax, 2008) and a study by (Buckley and Brooke, 1992, Christensen and Harzing, 2004) suggests that failure rates of the expatriate to be high for a variety of different reasons from both a professional and personal standpoint. Expatriate failure can also have a negative monetary impact on the company, for instance in the (Journal of Contemporary Research 2011), it is reported that failure rates of expatriates has a reported $2billion per year negative impact on US multinationals (S. Ghafoor, U. F. Khan, F. Idrees, B. Javed, F. Ahmed).

It is also important to point out that the challenges faced and negative impacts of working in a culturally diverse environment are not only experienced in business management, it is also well documented in education among teachers resulting in suggested “Diversity burnout” (Moshe Tatar, Gabriel Horenczyk, 2003), in psychiatry (A. Quesrishi, F. Collazos, M. Ramos, M. Casas, 2008), international project management (E. G. Ochieng, A.D.F. Price, 2010) as well as operations and manufacturing to name but a few. So in taking a position abroad and to be able to adapt efficiently and successfully within a culturally diverse environment in today’s world is becoming more and more the norm and seen as an expected prerequisite in both professional and personal development (The Bent of tau Beta PI, Spring 2005, N. Adler 1995).

The business world has evolved and the need to understand human behaviour in a cross cultural context by means of successful Multicultural Management is crucial in modern day management (G. Hofstede, 1991, F. Trompenaars, C. Hampden Turner, 1998, P. R. House 2004, Schwartz 1990), “All experts in international business agree that in order to succeed in global business, managers need to be able to respond positively and effectively to practices and values that may be drastically different to what they are accustomed to”(Culture Leadership and Organisation, the GLOBE study of 62 societies). What the above quote and introduction indicates is, Globalization is here and now and having an impact on everyday business. Modern managers at some point in their career may work abroad, but the skills of being able to manage abroad in a Multicultural setting is extremely important and not having those skills can have an impact for the individual and the company.

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When is it time to change jobs?

I get asked this question a lot, when is it the right time to change jobs, careers or start a business, the answer is not an easy one to determine and in my opinion varies from person to person and is completely up to the individual to conclude although to me there are some very obvious tell-tale signs its time and this question needs some deeper contemplation.   

For sure, we are only on this planet for a short period of time and a large portion of our lives are spent in work or thinking about work so based on this fact alone and at a basic level work should be an enjoyable and productive experience or at the very least it should meet our basic needs and make our lives and the lives of our loved ones comfortable, if not? there is something we need to change and change quick.

At a deeper level, whilst in work we all have motivating factors for being there, whether that’s progress, success, control or money there is always a reason.  Bottom line, if you are in work and your motivating factors are not been met then it’s time to change no matter what. Time waits for no man, so if its fear that prevents you from making the change, understand that death awaits us all whether we like it or not and this for me is the one statement that helps me refocus and gets me through difficult decisions or situations, so find your statement!

“Your fear may be becoming what you know you can be, whilst my fear is not becoming what I know I can be”

I never had it easy and everything I achieved even now is only achieved through grit and determination and do you know what? I would not have it any other way as it makes you strong, “it’s not about how many times you can get hit, it’s about how many times you can get hit and keep getting up”, same applies to your job, if it’s getting you down and not meeting your motivating needs day after day, don’t accept it, change it! Understand that this is life’s way of telling you you need to change something and remember life is short so don’t be afraid of failure, failure is important for our progress.

It’s important to point out that taking the decision to change job, career or start your own business might not be something that can be executed immediately.  It may take time to plan and a change in mind-set may be necessary but taking that decision only takes an instant and trust me, making that decision will change your life forever.  It won’t be easy and it will be hard, but trust your gut, be brave, listen to what your heart is telling you and most importantly you owe it to yourself to be the best person you can be and use your time on this planet to be the best at whatever profession you choose to do and if you don’t feel that right now? then it’s time to do something about it, say yes to your potential.

“Live full, die empty” – Les Brown

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