[Kellan Vincent]

We are in the same position as a design/build company. There are two of us currently that do both project management and design. The last couple of years have been very slow/intermittent but this year we have been borderline overwhelmed to the point that my construction management time is taking 90% of the time I have for design work. After trying to get through our design projects, it leaves me very little time to work ON the business rather than IN the business.

I think the best strategy for anyone in the startup realm is to remain as lean as possible for as long as possible. “The Lean Startup” by Eric Ries is a good book for all entrepreneurs albeit it focuses on tech. Having too much work is never a bad thing you just have to figure out how to handle it and become efficient. Once you can get solid, repeating business from a couple of clients, it will help stabilize the base level of work for your company. We debated hiring interns etc but given the learning curve of teaching a new person your system, it may take time away from productivity rather than helping. Next year might be more reasonable.

Is there anything you are spending a lot of time doing that is killing your time? Bookkeeping? Back office work? Drafting? Possibly focus on something that takes a lot out of your day and contract that portion out. That way you can free up some hours without a huge training investment.

Good luck!

[Kellan Vincent]

I use/have experience with: AutoCAD with LandFX, Vectorworks Landmark, Sketchup

BIM, site modeling, smart planting tools, ability to switch between 2D and 3D within a single file

AutoCAD is pretty standard and pretty easy to grasp once you know the commands but to me it remains a bit dated with very limited 3D abilities. Sketchup is great for very quick modeling exercises but quite buggy with only so-so renderings out of the box. Vectorworks has a steep learning curve but has some powerful capabilities.

While AutoCAD and Sketchup have their place, I use Vectorworks almost exclusively. Its a powerful system with some great customer service behind the company. The digital terrain model tools and smart planting tools are indispensable. Very nice to be able to go from a 2D plan to a rendering quickly.

[Kellan Vincent]

I graduated in 09 with internships before that and currently I work in a design/build firm that is quite busy. We have a drought here in Texas which is severely injuring the build side of landscape minus people replacing their turf grasses with aggregate.

 

That being said, the reason for a lack of attention to land8 on my part is that it is just another thing to keep track of on a daily basis. Between client relations, general social media (promotion), dealing with media, as well as actual work loads, I sometimes lack the brain power to monitor another channel of conversation regularly.

 

And while it is a bit daunting to think of the huge firms and foreign work force, this is where people need to innovate. This is where people need to find a niche that is more protected. It is the nature of ANY business not just the design field. Up your technology, renderings, unique specialities. Don’t just throw your hands up at the fact that the big companies are winning the RFPs.

 

Good luck to all.

 

Kellan

[Kellan Vincent]

While I was not involved in the design phases of the project, on a cross country motorcycle trip I came upon this skate park while wandering around Manhattan. I completely loved how a normally unused space became an obvious ‘home’ for many of the kids in the area. All takes place under the on-ramp to the Brooklyn Bridge.

Here are a few of my photos…

*please do not distribute or use for any uses other than personal reference*

-k. vincent

[Kellan Vincent]

Hi Nick.

I seem to be in a similar situation as yourself, tho I have already set my choices in motion at this point. My family has a design/build business that has been established over the last 30 or so years. It was always a joke that if I didn’t get an education, I would end up working for it. 10 years later and after graduating with a BLA from TxA&M, I am working for the company after all with the eventual goal of becoming the new owner.

While this seems like a reasonable prospect, it is not without its downfalls. About 2.5 years ago I was looking at many of the big firms for our required summer semester-away internship etc. in hopes of possibly landing a “firm” oriented career path. The prospect of working at a reputable firm and building a solid career was great. After working a summer at a relatively influential firm in central Texas, I found that personally, I liked being out on jobs much more than I was getting the opportunity to do so. Getting stuck at a work station day in day out started to get really tedious, and my overall happiness was fading. While I know that many of us have to put in our dues, it seemed as if many of the higher level employees were doing much of the same thing.

About a year after that, I again applied to some of the bigger firms, but also started to rethink my impressions of my experiences the summer prior. After the recruitment sessions ended, I decided to work as an intern for our family business to get some more experience on the “other side” of the plans.

Currently I am quite happy where I am. One thing about managing a business is the much greater degree of responsibility. There is not a lot to hide behind, and it takes a great degree of determination to keep your head above water so to speak.

On the issue of licensing, this is one of the obstacles I am currently working on overcoming. It rubs me slightly the wrong way regarding the lack of options for people to become licensed without having to follow a traditional career path. It would seem to me that review boards would want less people practicing unlicensed and without any sort of continuing education, therefore would allow the ability for established companies to work on having their members licensed.

As far as Texas goes, I will need 2 years of experience before I can finish my licensing process. 1 year of that can be completed under guidance of a contractor, irrigator, engineer etc. The second is required under an RLA however. My current goal is to eventually hire an RLA on our staff once our design sector picks up, meeting the requirement for my licensing. Is it kindof backwards? Yes. But there aren’t a lot of options if I want to keep my family business alive. Meanwhile, I have my LEED accreditation and working on my Certified Arborist and LI certificates.

I do not regret my decision at all just know that any choice comes with certain consequences. Best of luck!

-k. vincent

[Kellan Vincent]

I would put in my suggestion for Vectorworks Landmark. I switched from a Sketchup/AutoCAD workflow at the beginning of 2009 and am simply amazed at its capabilities. While there is a learning curve involved, once you start getting the hang of using an integrated 2D/3D interface that produces both plans and renderings in equal capacity you wont want to go back.

You can check out my ‘folio for a few plans/renderings I have done with the software. I’m by no means ‘pro’ yet but might give you an idea.

Best of luck!

-k. vincent

[Kellan Vincent]

A contractor we work frequently with has a large herd of goats.

I might need to try this out!

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