Catherine C. (Cathy) Blackford

From the Executive Director

The website of the Builders Exchange is a "work in progress", and we're interested in your ideas for making the site a valuable tool -- both for the construction industry, and for those who are our industry's customers.

In some ways, the Exchange itself is always a "work in progress." The trade association has provided services to contractors, architects, engineers and suppliers since 1892. Over the decades, those services have evolved as our profession has changed.

But one common need has remained the same: the need to communicate. In the 1890s, the Exchange existed as a physical gathering spot for builders to meet and talk daily about new construction activity in Columbus. An office telephone was a rarity, so lunch at the Builders & Traders Exchange was a requirement for doing business.

Over one hundred years later, construction news is available at the touch of a button. (Just hit our plan room link to the McGraw-Hill Construction Dodge website!) email, voice mail, video conferencing, digital jobsite photography, construction plans online, the Internet - these are the new "hand tools" that will impact construction productivity.

And we're looking for ways to use them even more effectively. Give us your thoughts on how the Builders Exchange website can maximize our role in industry communication.