Concrete Pumping Software by DispatchThis.com

In This Issue:

• Improve Your Customer Service With Mapping Technology
• WOC 2008 PREVIEW
• National and Local Concrete Construction Trends (pdf)
• ACPA Education Conference
• Alliance Concrete Pumps — Entrepreneurs of the Year
• Sany to Build New Plant, Doubling Production
• For fun: Weight Lifting Concrete Pumper

While it might not always make sense for you to compete on price, it always makes sense to compete in customer service. Happy customers are repeat customers—good service can sometimes make a bigger difference to your customers' bottom line than a lower per yard rate. As we all know, getting to the right place at the right time is key to keeping your customers happy—and if you can do that while saving them time, all the better, right?

With this in mind we integrated mapping technology directly into DispatchThis. The first time a customer tells you where a job site is, you can plot it on a map. This way you know exactly where the job is every time you have to go to the pour. This saves you and your customers time because you don't have to track down the specific location every time. The easier you are to work with the more likely it is that a customer will hire you again.

Taking it one step further, our mapping tools allow you to see all of your pours on a map and get driving directions. Being able to see where your pours are can help with your morning dispatch and second round pours, saving your operators time on the road, and saving you money on gas.

Remember, excellent customer service is the key to word-of-mouth marketing, repeat business, and even prompt payment. Using technology like DispatchThis to better service your customers can help you do more with less. Contact us to learn more about how DispatchThis can help you serve your customers better!

World of Concrete 2008 promises to be bigger and better than before! As the first annual international commercial concrete and masonry construction show, World of Concrete will offer hundreds of new products, the latest equipment and technology innovations and an informative education program consisting of 90-minute and 3-hour seminars, indoor / outdoor events & demonstrations, plus resources and valuable information for industry professionals.

Highlights of the 2008 Show:

• The Best how-to educational programs in the business, based on recommendations of the newly created WOC Education Advisory Committee.
• A new track for 2008 in the 90-minute seminars is Green Building.
• The Women in Concrete Luncheon & Forum
• A two-day OSHA 10-hour Constructions Safety for Concrete Construction course.

In the months leading up to the show, we will be highlighting some of these and some others.

Registration for the WOC opens in September — visit our homepage for FREE WOC registration, and then come see us in booth #C6089.

In an effort to better serve our customers we have been working on ways to provide useful and illuminating information to our customers. The first of these documents is an analysis of trends in preivate residental, private non-residential and public construction.

From the document:

"As of June 2007, private residential construction consisted of 46.3% of total national spending, private nonresidential construction consisted of 29.5%, and public construction consisted of 24.2%. Historically, over the 5 years prior to March 2006, these percentages have been around 60%-20%-20%, respectively."

Please download the document here if you are interested in reading more.

The ACPA is hosting their first education conference, Pumping Knowledge Into Your Business, on October 12th & 13th in Westmister Colorado. Tailored specifically for owners and operators of concrete pumping businesses, this two-day conference contains seminars instructed by some of the industry's top experts.

DispatchThis Co-Founder James Nolan will be participating in panel discussing technology in the concrete pumping industry, "Sync-Up Your Business Using the Latest Technology". Other sessions include:

• What's in Your Wallet
• Insuring Your Business
• Maintaining Your Equipment
• Legal Issues Every Pumper Should Know
• The Business Success Blueprint
• You're Fired!
• Office Admin & Accounting Principles 101
• Is Your Business Ready for a DOT Audit?

Congratulations to Alliance Concrete Pumps, designated an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year regional finalist in the Emerging Entrepreneur category. The awards are based on 5 criteria: Entrepreneurial Spirit/Corporate Culture, Innovation, Personaly Integrity/Influence, Strategic Direction/Market Position/Industry Impact, and Financial Performance.

It's great to see an industry friend get some recognition in the world of business! Next stop: Nationals!

Read more about it here

It was reported last month that Sany, China's biggest maker of concrete pumps, will be doubling their capacity to produce concrete pumps. Going from 700 pumps a year to 1500 pumps, Sany hopes to keep pace with the substantial growth China is seeing. The increase will be financed through a sale of bonds.

More...

Read this article from the Frederick News Post about a concrete pumper who, after a hard day of work pumping concrete, goes to the gym to relax... I wish I found lifting 340 pounds relaxing! Read More...