27
RIGGING REVIEW
FEBRUARY 2014
ACT
Tim Hillegonds
talks
to Becht Engineering’s
Joe Collins about how
blogging and social media
has become a mainstay
in the construction,
rigging and lifting sectors.
topics he’s touched on regarding rigging
practices in the the Becht Engineering
Blog.
ARE THERE BLOGS OR SPECIFIC SOCIAL MEDIA
TOOLS THAT YOU USE ON A REGULAR BASIS TO
STAY ABREAST OF INDUSTRY ISSUES? IF SO,
WHICH ONES AND HOW DO YOU USE THEM?
I belong to several crane and rigging
groups on LinkedIn and they email
notifications when a new blog or
comment that I’m interested in is
published. I read these every day. Some
are interesting and helpful, and many are
not. But it’s worth looking to see what
people are doing and saying.
CAN YOU THINK OF AN INSTANCE IN WHICH
SOCIAL MEDIA OR CONTENT YOU READ HELPED
YOU SOLVE A PROBLEM?
Not yet. There hasn’t been a specific
instance where social media helped me
solve a problem, but there have been a
few instances where the root causes of
accidents were being discussed, so I tuned
in to see what was being said. Honest
reporting of accidents is very valuable
for prevention purposes. We can all learn
from that.
HOW DID THE BECHT ENGINEERING BLOG
COME ABOUT AND WHAT IS ITS PURPOSE/
OBJECTIVE?
Our president, Dr. Charles Becht IV,
was the one that initiated the blog.
The purpose of the blog is to share
information that is useful to our readers
as well as demonstrating the high level of
expertise that the Becht team has.
Rigging and
blogging
The Construction Marketing Association
reported in late 2013 that 97 percent
of construction professionals use social
media in their marketing program,
and 93 percent of those professionals
manage everything internally. That
means that not only have construction
folks embraced social media as a
marketing avenue, but they’re also
actively contributing.
B
y now, social media should be
more than just a distraction.
For small businesses, heck,
even for large ones, social media has
evolved into a sort of content gateway.
When customers connect with a company
on social media, they’re giving you their
ear. They’re essentially saying, “I like you,
and I don’t mind if you talk to me every
now and again.” And that’s huge. That’s
what companies used to pay exorbitant
amounts of money to television networks
for. But now it’s done for little or no
money, which means that bridging the gap
between a business and its customers is
much, much easier.
But where does the construction
industry land when it comes to social
media? And, more specifically, where does
the crane, rigging and heavy haul industry
fall in terms of usage? As it turns out, the
steadfast resistance you might have been
imagining is actually nowhere to be found.
The Construction Marketing
Association (contructionmarketingblog.
org) published their survey findings and
reported that an amazing 97 percent of
construction professionals use social
media in their marketing program, and
93 percent of those professionals manage
everything internally. That means that not
only have construction folks embraced
social media as a marketing avenue, but
they’re also contributing to the current
trends actively.
I recently caught up with Joe Collins,
Heavy Lift Division manager, Becht
Engineering, about what they’re doing
with social media and some of the
About Joe Collins
Joe Collins, Heavy
Lift Division manager,
Becht Engineering,
is one of several
bloggers for the
Becht Engineering
Blog. He blogs about
topics pertinent to
rigging and safe crane operation. Collins
has 40 years of experience in the heavy
lift industry, with 20 of those years
as manager of Zachry Construction’s
crane fleet and lift operations. He is
vice president of the Board of Directors
for the National Commission for the
Certification of Crane Operators
(NCCCO), and he served as a member
of the Cranes and Derrick Advisory
Committee (C-DAC) to OSHA. To read
Collins and other Becht Engineering team
members, visit
/
latest.
