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Recent content by brandoncdg

  1. brandoncdg

    Engineer without an architect & vise versa

    The odd thing about all of this is you don't have to be a licensed Architect to design certain sized buildings. Kind of a useless system if you really think about it closely. Civil Development Group, LLC Los Angeles Civil Engineering specializing in Hillside Grading...
  2. brandoncdg

    starting a business

    I know one of the past companies I worked for wanted to stop doing engineering and they are passing on all of their work my way. It sounds odd, but I am sure this is not that rare to happen. Civil Development Group, LLC Los Angeles Civil Engineering specializing in Hillside Grading...
  3. brandoncdg

    Fee for small residential vs commercial

    We charge about the same for both types. Seems like the commercial projects get some crazy low bids though and I just walk away laughing that I would make more money at McDonalds than trying to compete with some of the people who can't get work and have to bid low. Not sure what the...
  4. brandoncdg

    Engineer without an architect & vise versa

    Some of the cities over here near Los Angeles allow Architects to design grading/drainage plans. It's only when the city forces a Civil stamped plan do we come in and redesign the original poor design. Lately Architects seem to be getting away with doing their own civil plans a lot more than...
  5. brandoncdg

    Services without contract

    Until we get a contract I don't think the client is serious about the job. Unless we have done work with them before and they paid on time I would never work without a signed contract. Civil Development Group, LLC Los Angeles Civil Engineering specializing in Hillside Grading...
  6. brandoncdg

    Organizing emails

    I use Thunderbird and I BCC every email I send to a gmail account. For large jobs I have a folder I move emails into so it's a bit organized and out of the big mess of the main inbox. If there are important emails I put them in an Email folder on our server under the project number with a...
  7. brandoncdg

    What Fees Would You Like To Command In An Ideal World?

    Besides the obvious increase in hourly rates, I would also like for some way to actually charge the proper amount of hours for a project. Especially when others decide to change their plans completely and expect us to do the major changes for free. Civil Development Group, LLC Los Angeles...
  8. brandoncdg

    dwg autocad E 2009 to 2006 error

    I would try converting the 2009 files using Autodesk Trueview which is free and see if that helps. Civil Development Group, LLC Los Angeles Civil Engineering specializing in Hillside Grading http://www.civildevelopmentgroup.com http://www.civildevelopmentgroup.com/blog
  9. brandoncdg

    civil engineering software

    I could take a flatly drawn CAD 500 lot subdivision with 10% grade streets and get an earthwork number from the Carlson software within 5 hours. If drawn all by myself I could elevate the whole thing within an hour. I was using this at the company before I started mine and it was magic on some...
  10. brandoncdg

    Job hunting skills and etiquette

    I generally respond to anyone saying thank you we will keep your info filed when we do decide to hire. Now what I have noticed from emails and resumes is that a lot of people do not always include their attachment on the first try. Something seems wrong about that to me. Also English and bad...
  11. brandoncdg

    civil engineering software

    Carlson is amazing for doing earthwork calcs, cut/fill numbers. Civil Development Group, LLC Los Angeles Civil Engineering specializing in Hillside Grading http://www.civildevelopmentgroup.com http://www.civildevelopmentgroup.com/blog
  12. brandoncdg

    Facebook???

    Check out my website. We have the little twitter, wordpress and facebook logos at the bottom. Does anyone ever go to them? No, just the blog, for us. But it's a good way for google to see your website and information in the whole internet scheme of things. It's more for SEO than anything...
  13. brandoncdg

    Sending out PDFs with signed stamps (?)

    A lot of places require wet stamps. It's pretty easy to look at a piece of paper and see if it was wet or printed. Personally I would never release scanned stuff with signatures ever. I already have seen just how cut and paste other companies are when they get ahold of other companies plans...
  14. brandoncdg

    Working in Australia

    This hits close to home as I was offered a job in Oz a few years ago, basically threw all my stuff away, and said my goodbyes. After the 3 month sponsored Visa process was days from being finished, I found out the job fell through. Some things I learned along the way. They are not like the...
  15. brandoncdg

    I am still using AutoCad Releases 10 with DOS. Plotter questions

    When I hear computer stuff from that 286-386 time period, immediately I think of the game, Strike Commander, which brought all computers for a long time to their knees. So what did the OP end up doing? Civil Development Group, LLC Los Angeles Civil Engineering specializing in Hillside Grading...

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