YOU CAN'T RUN YOUR BUSINESS MUCH LONGER FROM THE SEAT OF YOUR PANTS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP86-00244R000200510020-7
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 12, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 11, 2002
• Sequence Number: 20
• Content Type: MAGAZINE

~~u ~~~'~ ~u~ c~u~ bu~ine~~ ~ucn ~ ,
A little bcIt tightening, more capable
management, sounder financial prae-
tices and less hanky-panky seem to be
the order of the day for those who want
to succeed in construction.
That was the message contractors
from across the country received in At-
lanta, Ga., last week at the Associated
General Contractors' (.AGC) first man-
agement conference.
"You look the way you did 50 years
ago," said Robert L. Kunzig, adminis-
trator of General Services Adminis-
tration (GSA). "The winds of change are
blowing. You need new procedures and
new attitudes." ,
Among the suggestions the confer-
ence produced were:
? Cut down on small expenses
(travel, entertainment, Christmas gifts,
company cars, club dues}. Project your
cash flow realistically. Improve your
cash position. Avoid hot money. Estab-
lish close communications with more
than one bank and seek lines of credit.
Don't diversify into or invest in unre-
lated fields.
? Build or buy a management team
that includes a professional financial
o rcer. r..-_
? Heavy and highway contractors,
whose machinery maintenance and de-
preciation represent 35% to 45% of unit
costs, should improve their main-
tenance records and supervision, and
employ mechanical supervisors.
? Place a remium on qualm super-
vision an~ ~~~er a~'~rmance seek ex-
ce once, an rewar in rviduals at al_1
eCvels on t e asrs o merit,
? Be rcce tive to new ideas, new
metho s new tee niques. rue systems
develop faster and more economical
ways to build.
Kunzi had br?ou ht several of his
sta~f to Atlanta to iscuss "GS~~~ s'new
contractor rocecrures w rcFi -Ti rncTu e
the use o~construction mana ors and
phased canst~ruetlon );NR 6/2 p. 50)
~rocedures~ihat are diving the AGC cones
corn. Although Kunzig said their use ls'~
urgent, his staffers indicated the proce-
dures are still in a state of flux.
Looking at the challenges contractors
face, Paul G. Bell, chairman of AGC's
GSA's Robert Kunzig
"Winds of change."
goals and objectives committee, said,
"We can no longer run otir businesses
from the seat of our pants." Kunzig
warned, "What won't change must go."
Bidding volume in Ocl~ober Weekly average
wks,
mo.t
yr.
10 moo.
'S9-
value
ago
ago
value
'70
tS mil,)
%
%
(~ mil.)
%
Total' ................
3,175
+9
+T9
25,063
+3
Hvy, consf. Total.......
1,419
+Z
+42
12,147
+13
Water use, control.....
424
+52
+72
3,523
+59
Waterworks.........
77
+53
+28
726
+15
Sewerage.......:...
166
+55
+38
1,325
+35
Treatment plants....
66
+112
+100
412
+95
Earthwork, waterways..
161
+45
+210
1,471
+145
Tranoportation.........
.$84
-4
+35
7,405
+2
Highways............
505
-35
+11
5,429
+5
Bridges .............
47
-44
-45
837 -
-31
Airports .............
87
+84
-77
540
-22
Terminals, bldgs.. , .
27
+15
-29
233
-15
Elec, gas, comm.......
86
-42
+72
960
-13
Other hvy. cone}.......
26
-25
-38
247
-47
Nortree. bldg.tolal...,.
1,494
+15
+2
11,887
-3
Manufacturing,,,......
37
-77
-79
1,195
-32
Commercial...........
401
+13
+9
2,850
+18
Offices ..............
278
+49
+22
1,785
+25
Stores, shop. Ctrs.......
82
-I5
-32
711
+1
Educational...........
592
+27
+22
4,446
+3
College, univ.........
303
+48
+17
2,031
+4
Medical ..............
180
+11
-24
1,669
-7
Hospital .............
114
+20
-43
1,265
-11
Other ................
310
+112
+50
1,754
-13
Housing, mulliunil'. ..
261
+33
+24
2,029
+B
Apartments..........
173'
+7
+1
1,400
+14
'Excludes 1-2 family houses, Minimum sizes included are: Industrial plants,
heavy and highway construction, 1',100,000; buildings, x500,000. t Based on
average week.
bull in ,based construction and the October con~racma~~ ri~ilvi~( ~Oeir1~~ ~i~1ca~'~30j/
constru?-,,etion manager wproce ure a
-- - - -
chance.
? Beware of organized crime. Resist
bribery, extortion and kickback de-
mands.
A sense of urgency. Most of the sug-
gestions were tagged as urgent.
Robert L. Joss, an Administration
economist, predicted another year of
economic sluggishness and profit
squeeze. Atlanta and Chicago bankers
King D. Cleveland and James A.
$ourke warned of the need to compen-
sate for the erosion of profits by in-
flationary wage increases, labor short=
ages and overtime, which they called
one of the industry's most critical prob-
A sharp rebound in contracting activity over October, 1969. In addition, AB',i
in October halted afour-month slide missile facility construction contracts
and pulled the 10-month's volume 3% gave a X200-million-plus thrust.
ahead of last year. highway awards, dawn seasonally,
On a seasonally adjusted basis, Octo- easily topped a year-ago volume
bet was the best month since last May. crimped by Washington's ja,vhoning
Moreover, bidding volume came within for cutbacks in state highevay a,rrn?ds to`
a whisker of matching the October help fight inflation. 'Though ferle:ral
record set in 1967 (L'NR's figures include highway 'aid is reined in slightly this
low bids for public works and contract year, awards to date arc up 6`~~ to a new
awards for private work other t=han high, but bridge lettings arc sagging.
homcbuilding). Ncw York ccintinues to rank first in
Octobers upswing featured a 52?h 1970 construction bidding volume rand
jump in water project lettings and had 13.7`7 of October's ,?olunrc. 1=or the
sharp increases in college, office and year to date, it has 1 1 i~~ of U. S. lniild-
hospital buildings. All of these types, ~ ing volume and 10.3`h of hoary and
lems. And Kunzig st/t1~~~t}- }~g1~2t~12+O~~~49s~~1~-l~~Pl$~'~~Lg~4F~0~1~0tETLAu~n volume.