Insights Magazine

Crimping, done correctly and according to manufacturers’ specifications, is reliable and effective, but the process is not nearly as simple as it looks. Crimping electrical connections reliably on a mass scale actually requires a fairly sophisticated blend of mechanical engineering and electrical engineering in order to work well.
Read More

Welcome to 2019, a new year, and hopefully a happy and prosperous one, at your business and at IEC. It is truly an honor and a privilege to be elected by my peers to serve our Association in another capacity; that of National President.
Read More

The Apprenticeship & Training (A&T) Committee welcomed several new members in January. Three members cycled off the committee: Joe Chandler of IEC Dallas, Brian Haines of Pyramid Electric, and Dale Weis of Encore Electric. Their replacements are Kathy Gurba of IEC Southern Colorado, Jake Jackson of IEC Rocky Mountain, and Cesar Ramirez of Precision Power Solutions.
Read More

In June, IEC held its third Certified Professional Electrician (CPE) exam of 2018, this time at host chapter IEC of Greater Cincinnati. Three of the chapter’s apprentices passed the exam and Training Director Kevin Collins could not be prouder. In addition, one apprentice from Dayton IEC/MECA also passed.
Read More

IEC National’s annual Apprentice of the Year (AoY) competition is the biggest event IEC apprentices prepare for all year. It’s a grueling three-day competition involving early mornings, long days, and timed events judged with watchful eyes. If that doesn’t sound stressful enough, it takes two and a half days and about 60 volunteers to prepare the competition area.
Read More

While the economy has been expanding for the last nine years, some economists predict a slow-down or the next recession to begin around 2019 and onwards. Here at MCA Inc. working with our contractors we believe, based on the collective backlog and barring any major catastrophic events both naturally and socially that we may see the next slow down around 2022-2023.
Read More

Some may argue that an important attribute of a qualified individual in the electrical industry is the ability to recognize electrical hazards. An electrical hazard is a dangerous condition that could result in electric shock, arc flash burn, thermal burn, or arc blast injury. The first step to success is to understand what electrical hazards are and then to realize that not all electrical equipment or applications are the same. The journey to recognizing electrical hazards is not necessarily straight forward but there are some basic concepts that once understood can make a difference in success.
Read More

Consistency is a key ingredient of success in many activities – including investing. And one technique that can help you become a more consistent investor is paying yourself first.
Read More

Read More

Building on the jobsite has always had productivity challenges. Clash, material mismanagement, adverse weather conditions, injuries, wasted motion, and many other factors lead to inefficiencies that cost you time and money. And as a result, generally speaking, less than 50 percent of time on the jobsite is productive. That means less than half your employees’ time is spent contributing to a job’s profit margin.
Read More