A Must-Have For Anyone in the Construction Industry
935296
I am a General Contractor in Southern California. I use Google SketchUp for all of my remodels and when I asked around for a good book that would help me create and understand Architectural drawings, I was lead to Dennis' book. This is actually the third book of his that I own. Each one of his books are truly helpful in understanding how a house is built.

Dennis simplifies the concepts and techniques associated with home building to the degree where his book can be understood by anyone regardless of their current construction or architectural skills. His books look like comic books because there are more pictures than there is writing which is extremely helpful since I am not a visual person yet understand things much better when they are drawn out for me.

The best thing of all is that the author, Dennis, is extremely accessible. I have emailed him several times with questions and he never fails to help out. His wife Barbara, is very nice and always responds to my emails as well.

Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in either SketchUp, Architecture, or Construction. This book has saved me A LOT of time and money by giving me the ability to do things myself instead of subbing it out to an architect.
4912817
This book is a must have for any woodworker.  It has hundreds of joints classified by type with step by step instructions on how to execute the construction.  The book is designed to stay open so you can put it on a bench and keep your spot.  It also has many tips and tricks throughout which are quite helpful.
4533951
If you're in the project management or project controls industry, I highly recommend picking up a copy of Derek Graham's book. The detail and coverage of the topic is so complete I'm a bit amazed. Derek put the time in to footnote all of his research so you're also a complete list of other places to go for more info. It's worth the investment.
479068
I recommend this for any construction person. it is a must to have on the job site
shipping very fast. will buy again.
1144157
What a great product! Invaluable for take-offs.  (I work in the construction industry and this is an incredible tool when trying to complete a site survey as a one person activity.)  Wish I had found this product years ago!!
3626898
I have been using the National Construction Estimators for about 30 years now. I've found that their information is amazingly accurate. I first started using NCE for residential construction as a small contractor in the 1970s. During the 1980s and 1990s I used the latest revision for job costing at major government facilities. Since 2000 I have used the latest edition to cost out repairs and upgrades to apartment buildings, and steel structure warehouses.  Each year they get the latest prices and revise the book. This year is no exception, the 54th edition is full of facts, figures, rules of thumb, detailed material costs, and everything you need to figure construction work from the smallest job to the largest. Whether you want to add up each spike and yard of concrete, or figure estimated complete subcontract work, this book gives you the tools. Residential, multifamily, commercial, or government, it's all here.  Over the years I've found the NCE to be more accurate than construction estimating guides selling for far more, and worth buying a new edition every year.
1131928
I have the digital version right on my iPad in the iBooks app.  Given where I'm at currently with construction, Chapter 3 alone was worth the cover price: spline roadbed, clearances, track spacing on curves and more.  It's full of the kind of details that are critical while building, but nothing I'd ever commit to memory (or trust that I'd remembered it correctly!).

There are plenty of tips and suggestions to help prevent problems before they happen. New, creative ideas too. For example, I have an app on my phone that I'd never considered using in the layout room. It was free and more accurate than the tool I'd normally use.  Still, until reading in Chapter 3, I never thought to do this:
3653784
A must have in any safety library.  The information presented here, besides being easy to follow, is very in-depth and presents the reader with everything they need to understand the OSHA process.  The Back Stories located throughout the book give outstanding examples and explanations to assist in understanding what it is you read.  BRAVO!
3523432
I love this book!  Great instructions and visuals to make construction a snap!
4364438
This book has a lot of information in it, fantastic for any one that needs mechanical, metallurgical, or technical information pertaining to many commercial/industrial machine design, construction, and laboratory applications, a must have reference for the engineer, machinist, or technician. It is exhaustive as a volume this size can be.
 [all updates are inside of these type brackets, thanks for your support of reviews, they are a way to help others make wise purchases, just remember a good review = keep up the good work, a bad review = get rid of that crap, we don't want it. ( updated 11/30/2016 )]
4079077
My son loves construction equipment and this book is awesome!
4490569
This book is an absolute must-have for anyone starting out as an IT contractor or thinking about making that big transition. Blankson's insight and helpful hints are dead-on target and extremely valuable. This is a book you'll refer back to over and over again throughout your contracting career.
3001473
I got this for my two year old for Christmas and he reads it about 3 times a day, every day.

Kids are easy to please, here are my thoughts: This is a very detailed and thorough book.  It has the standard staples of construction sites, such as "B is for Bulldozer" but also things like "H is for Horizontal Borer".  Then it goes through and explains what  each thing is and what its used for.  The pictures seem like photographs stylized to look like drawings or artist drawings of photographs because they are very detailed.  Having plenty of construction site experience, this book is spot on.

I highly recommend this book.  Well done.
4579725
I teach a Construction Safety and Health course at the under graduate level.  The textbook we use is dated and very expensive.  As I looked for a replacement, I found this book.  After reviewing the contents, I am switching to this book as our textbook.  It is a great text for anyone wanting to know more about OSHA and how the law applies to the construction industry.  This text does a great job laying out the law and how to be compliant with a lot of useful resources to help any project manager. And it is a great price!
1953637
This book provides great insight and perspective about current practices in the Architecture/Engineering/Construction industry. The first-hand accounts are especially helpful to Principals, Project Managers and technical staff, to acquaint them with the preferences and practices of both sellers and buyers of professional services. Clearly, the findings indicate trends that are compelling and will help firms determine what practices and strategies they should consider for future success. It's an easy read, and is likely to be shared and discussed in many A/E/C firms. Book reports may seem old-fashioned, but I suspect there will be many firms who make this required reading and expect professionals to report on what they found to be new information and how they should implement in their firms. This is definitely worth the read.
3950118
This book manages to cover everything with a fair amount of detail, and keep it simple enough for owner-builders and do-it-yourselfers.  It's a great mix of detailed technical information and a simple, plain english introduction to the ideas.

Even if you don't think you need this book, you probably need it.  Useful for gardeners, builders, landscapers, and anyone who wants to help conserve resources.  If you live in an area with water restrictions or upcoming drought restrictions on water usage, this book will save your yard.
3553753
The most important tools I own are all bosh, this product has payed for it self right out of the box. It's extremely accurate, great options based exactly for general construction, holds up extremely well on the job, saves time on estimates while looking very professional, and helps workers stay safe instead of over extending on a ladder to get cut measurements you can simply push a button. While it took my crew and my self awhile to trust a lazer range finder, we have used it for finish dimensions on rough framing, wallboard, and even trim! It's amazingly accurate even more so than a fat max! Totally saves/makes me money!