LC/DBM provides landscape contractors with Educational, Imaginative and Practical information about their business, their employees, their machines and their projects.
Issue link: https://landscapecontractor.epubxp.com/i/110219
Above, Left: Church sees commercial fencing as a possible bright spot for the landscape contractor in 2013. He said, ���Businesses have become more profitable in 2011 and 2012, so they may spend money on needed and postponed improvements in 2013.��� (Master Halco) Above, Right: ���Personal security and safety will continue to be a growth area as consumers look to protect their assets. As a result, safety products, including fencing, automation, gates and more will be opportunity areas for fence contractors,��� said Church. (Alumi-Guard) Q: Do you see more growth potential in residential, commercial or municipal markets? It���s an interesting predicament ��� municipalities have less and less money to spend on improvement projects. With continuing pressure on the federal government to reduce spending, federal projects will likely be more difficult to come by. Lending has loosened during 2012, but may become tighter again in 2013 depending on how the US deals with spending. Businesses have become more profitable in 2011 and 2012, so they may spend money on needed and postponed improvements in 2013. Residential will likely continue to be a difficult market as virtually all consumers are dealing with increased tax burdens from the federal, state and local governments. Q: What challenges are AFA members facing? The last few years have been challenging for everyone; the AFA is no exception. There are fewer fencing contractors in business today than there were at the beginning of 2008. As a result, AFA���s membership has declined, though not as significantly as many construction industry organizations. Q: What benefits do AFA members receive from the organization? We have positioned AFA as the leading industry organization delivering education, knowledge and networking. The more value we provide to our members ��� helping them learn to do their job better and more efficiently, helping them differentiate themselves versus their competition in the marketplace, showing them new products and helping them make industry connections, the more they will recognize they have to be members of AFA in order to be as successful as possible. Q: How many members have joined the AFA? How many are Certified Fence Professionals (CFPs), and how many are CAGOI-certified? Nearly 1,000 companies are now AFA members. About 250 of the individual people that work for those companies are CFPs, and roughly 350 of the individual people employed by those companies are CAGOIs. Q: What are the benefits of certification? How do you become a CFP or CAGOI? Certified professionals have demonstrated their commitment to excellence. They are truly the cream of the crop in the industry. Being certified helps you to be more efficient as a fencer. It also helps you differentiate yourself among your competition. Becoming a CFP requires completing an application to demonstrate qualifications, and passing a CFP exam. The AFA provides a study guide, but the exam is quite challenging and covers general business, the fence industry and technical information. CFPs must demonstrate understanding of these categories as well as industry standards. Fence and access control professionals can be certified by meeting the two years��� field experience requirement, and passing a rigorous exam after completing a self-study course. Q: How do industry professionals join the AFA? Becoming a member of AFA is very easy, simply go to www.americanfenceassociation.com and complete the online membership application, or call the office at 800-822-4342. In addition to those mentioned earlier (education, training, knowledge, networking) we also provide access to business and industry products and services at deeply discounted rates, including credit card processing, car and truck purchasing/leasing, website/ marketing development, and more. We also annually publish ���coupons��� from leading industry suppliers, available only to AFA members. LC DBM Q: Where do you see the most growth potential? Access control will continue to have the most growth for fence contractors because it���s a newer part of the industry. Personal security and safety will continue to be a growth area as consumers look to protect their assets. As a result, safety products, including fencing, automation, gates and more will be opportunity areas for fence contractors. February 2013 33