Mark Allan Cocntracting

Apr 1

WHO NEEDS A SHED? We built a shed for an apartment complex in Gainesville.

Apr 1

Just a little progress update of the Verizon build out. Should be wrapping up this one soon and starting on the next in Glenwood when permit gets approved. There are more we hope to continue to work with them in the coming months as well on Peachtree & Alpharetta.

Apr 1

We've wrapped up at the ABA Clinic in Austel.

Mar 10

"AI is going to take our jobs." AI is coming for your job. If you let it. Not me. Not mine. What I think people get wrong about that graphic.. AI isn't coming for your job. AI is going to supercharge your impact. Enable you to do more with what you have. The question isn't whether AI replaces ...Read more

"AI is going to take our jobs." AI is coming for your job. If you let it. Not me. Not mine. What I think people get wrong about that graphic.. AI isn't coming for your job. AI is going to supercharge your impact. Enable you to do more with what you have. The question isn't whether AI replaces you. It's whether someone with AI is going to. And nobody's asking AI to swing a hammer. The disruption isn't on the job site. It's in the office. Estimating, communication, scoping, contracts, client management. I'm not going to sit here and tell you we use AI in some profound way at Mark Allan Contracting. "How I use AI to 10x my revenue." No it didn't. Shut up. We use it to communicate with clarity. And make sure we don't miss things. Because we are human. Especially in estimating. Estimating is one of our biggest bleeds. Tens of hours sometimes. Multiple trades, site visits, incomplete scopes. So we've been playing around with using Claude for creating ball park estimates. Just a detailed prompt. Square footage, current condition, scope of work, use type, location. Describe the work in excruciating detail. We've checked it against real estimates on multiple projects. It spits out a number, so far it's been within an acceptable margin of error. If you're in the early stages of a project, try this before you call a contractor: "I'm planning a construction project. Here's everything I know: Space size: [square footage] Location: [city, state] Current condition: [cold shell / grey box / vanilla box / existing buildout] Scope of work: [describe in as much detail as possible — are you building walls, what kind of flooring, drop ceilings, what kind of electrical, are you doing significant plumbing moving around, HVAC, etc.] Use type: [restaurant / retail / office / medical / industrial] Give me a rough cost estimate broken down by trade. Flag anything that could significantly affect the number. This is for ballpark purposes only. Ask me some clarifying questions before proceeding." AI is an assistant to 10x your productivity. Not steal your job. I think the next phase of AI in construction is building point tools. Creating an app to solve a very specific problem. I created an app for my gf this week to help her save 10 hours a month. I'm sure I'll create something soon for Mark Allan and share it with y'all.

Mar 9

My favorite game in construction is the Budget Game. "What's your budget?" "I don't know.. I don't like giving numbers. What is it going to cost?" Game on. "What if this cost $100,000? Would that work? Because if you want to spend $100,000 we can create a scope that fits that but if it is $40,00...Read more

My favorite game in construction is the Budget Game. "What's your budget?" "I don't know.. I don't like giving numbers. What is it going to cost?" Game on. "What if this cost $100,000? Would that work? Because if you want to spend $100,000 we can create a scope that fits that but if it is $40,000, we need to know where to stop. We're going to spend hours on putting together a number, we need to know when we should stop or what to prioritize." "Well… I have $10,000.." "If we're looking at a $10,000 we may need to talk about fresh paint." Her head falls. Realizing her vision is way out of her budget. $10,000 doesn’t touch it. She's not alone. The number of times construction costs genuinely surprise people. I get it. Construction is expensive. Doesn't mean that project still doesn't make sense. It may just change how you go about doing it. There’s many options. Adjust the scope. Prioritze what will move the needle. Attach the rest in phases. Negotiate TI allowance with your landlord - this usually comes with increased rents & a longer lease Look into financing. Construction loans exist if it pencils out. Even if the construction seems expensive, you still need to ask yourself one question.. What does this improvement actually do for my business? Run the numbers. Can you recover the cost in 3 years or less? If yes, it's worth a conversation. If not, let's talk about what the money could do elsewhere with less risk or a quicker return.