One of the speakers at last week's PLSO Conference spoke of his unusual business model. This one does ALTA's and only ALTA's. He is licensed in several states and dispatches his crew, often by air, from their headquarters in a smallish PNW city to other, distant, cities to perform the survey. The field crewmen are also the office techs, so they draw up their own work. He seems to be very busy.
So is anybody else following a similar model? It seems to be working for him.
It's possible to run an ALTA mill without failing to meet the standard of practice, but the only operation I've seen that meets that criterion is one in which the licensee is both the party chief as well as a highly ethical professional. In other words, a one-crew outfit with a conscientious guy in charge. Every other firm I've seen that tries to do this makes a ton of money and leaves a ton of substandard work in their wake.
The biggest hurdle to overcome is the ALTA market itself. Most of the corporations that need them in quantity are looking for low prices, and there are plenty of bottom-feeders out there eager to assist them. The brokers only make matters worse.
When I hear "we only do ALTAs," I cringe.
This sounds like he runs on volume, the bottom line comes at year end, rather than one job by job basis. I guess he must have MSA's with a title company, or some sort of regional property manager or broker.
I really don't see a problem with this, as long as those minimum standards are met.
I can see it working if you took a long term approach to developing relationships with the right clients. The right clients being the acquisition team at large REITs like Boston Properties, AvalonBay, Vornado, etc. and big time commercial real estate law firms (The Reed Smith and DLA Piper crowd). People who will pay a premium for a relationship with someone they can count on for a quality product. I think counting on "making it up on volume" is like putting extra rounds in the revolver when playing russian roulette.
Mark, did you ever run into Mick Powers or anybody over at Red Plains when you were down here?
Mick has a similar approach, although I run into residential and commercial development plats that they've also done. What I have noticed about firms with similar structure is they tend to 'inflate and deflate' with the number of employees frequently. That in itself is something I would avoid, it seems to breed indifference among the staff.
The folks at SRB were in the same business. Yes, the same group that runs OSLS. The last place I worked got in on a national program, but the field surveyors refused to get involved.
Nope not possible. I call BS.... Only a person who does not know anything about boundary surveying could consider this a credible business model
I think this model is possible at least for some types of surveying. I am not sure about ALTA's, because I don't specialize in them, BUT I know of a firm that operates the same as you indicate with ALTA's and seems to do well.
I run a similar model with control work ONLY, you become proficient at something and that really helps to be competitive even with the travel costs. Since 1995, I have never had to have a return visit to the field because the crew forgot something, I am the crew and that makes a difference on how well you do the data collection on the initial visit!
Obviously construction staking would NOT fit this model and I would venture to say subdivisions, partitions or ANYTHING that requires a lot of return visits or interaction with local planning officials, etc.
Yes it is a viable business model for certain aspects of surveying tasks.
SHG
> Mark, did you ever run into Mick Powers or anybody over at Red Plains when you were down here?
Funny you should mention them. I never ran into them while in OK, but they now have a branch office in Vancouver, WA - just across the mighty Columbia River from Portland - and one of their engineers in that office is a former client/project team co-member.
I know of the firm you speak of, as we have been beaten out on a few proposals from them.
For example, 200 x 200 corner lot with 2 apartment buildings, parking lot, handful of large trees, typical facilities. Controlling monuments at the intersections of busy streets.
They bid it at $800, and are more than 3 hours away. We were easilly 3 times that price and are located down the street.
I am not going to say they cut corners or don't meet the criteria specified, but I can say that there is no way we could do it at that price. I would have a half day alone pulling deeds and recreating old easements.
I am dumbfounded on how they do what they do.