Building a better future in construction.

Just before the birth of our first child last spring, my wife and I were at a small dinner party. Typically, during the normal course of conversation, professions were discussed. And nearly every time I said construction or building contractor, someone in the circle would talk about a person he or she knew in the business - i.e., a friend of a friend, an uncle, a brother-in-law, or the ubiquitous first cousin once-removed.

As the evening progressed, I was treated to stories about all varieties of small contractors who worked primarily on single-family homes, specialty shops, shingle roofs, etc. Some didn't even have offices, they worked out of their basements and garages. But what they did have - that many New York City contractors don't - are licenses.

I'm referring to such basics as rigger and site safety auditor licenses that reflect an appropriate level of professionalism. These licenses indicate that there is always someone present on a site who is actually schooled in the craft, and understands proper safety codes, as well as rigging practices. Professional insight may be derived from experience, but there is a foundation of knowledge built into the licensing courses and examinations.

Ironically, New York City is the anomaly here. Almost every town, hamlet or suburb in the surrounding areas has a minimum standard requiring specific licenses. In New York, only building permits are required, albeit ones that guarantee codes and standards are met. But they can't guarantee a standard of professionalism and skill from the contractor.

Beyond acquiring basic licenses, our firm encourages key personnel to attend the courses offered by manufacturers whose products we use. It is the best way to ensure proper application. In addition to my employees, I have taken courses and received official approvals from many of these manufacturers, including GAF, Firestone, U.S. Intec, Tri-Ply, Sika, Sonnenborn, and Master Builders.

By advocating better product knowledge and licensing standards, we are raising the bar for building contractors throughout the City. Our industry has changed tremendously over the years, and despite certain recent events, today's contractors comprise a better-educated and more professional group than many of our predecessors.

Moreover, there are many of us who take advantage of the latest technologies and use environmentally safe materials. For example, Bellet Construction is using a baking soda-based detergent to clean the facades of Bergdorf Goodman. It poses no harm to the people or cars traveling through one of the city's busiest intersections, cleans the surface better, and altogether eliminates the possibility of window etching, which often results the use of traditional, acidic cleaners.

To implement the installation of a state-of-the-art roofing surface at the Reuters Building at 116 John Street, we had to literally stop the news for a day - at least the traditional reception of it: The antennas were shut down so that my crew could raise the steel dunnage and permanently reposition the high-tech receivers off the new roof.

With the work now in progress, the job entails demolishing the entire roof down to the concrete skeleton in order make the kinds of repairs that will ensure proper drainage and eradicate the leaks. For this, we will use multiple layers of hot tar and felt, along with modified bitumen membrane. We're working on a turn-of-the-century building to give it another 100 years - at the very least.

For roofers and waterproofers, the new generation of ultra-sound infrared moisture detectors has given us an almost fail-safe tool for detecting leaks. Of course, with a lot of the guesswork alleviated, we often find ourselves having to talk the customers out of a repair, simply because we know they don't need it.

I recently gave an unusual estimate to a building owner who had a problematic wall leak: I told him to try new radiator valves first, because he probably didn't need my services. After getting over the shock, he explained that a few of my competitors had already recommended resurfacing the outside contiguous wall.

But by using my high-tech moisture detector, I saw no indication of a leak, only moisture emanating from the radiators. In cases like these, common sense can be as valuable as both education and the progress of technology.

So with a family history of 90 years in the exterior restoration business, I know how much this industry has improved. As per the recent calls for licensing, I am a confirmed believer in rigorous educational standards. We can only get better by knowing more about the remarkable products available today, as well as understanding the foundations of what we do.

My son will never drive a car without a license - he's got a few years yet - and I won't recommend a rigger without one either.