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Welcome to my {mostly} annual restoration trends update. I have spent more than 30 years working in the restoration industry which gives me a relevant perspective on the business of restoration. The following list is meant to help restoration contractors assess their business strategies – and just be an overall interesting read. I believe these issues will be the top drivers of change, not only in 2019, but into the future.

All signs point to sustainability, safety and BIM technology when it comes to future success in the HVAC industry. But where do you begin? And most importantly, how do you keep building on what you’re already doing? Steve Jones — director of industry insights and research for Dodge Data & Analytics and keynote speaker at this year’s AEC BuildTech (April 30-May 2) — shows you the way forward to the future.

Thanks to Sir Isaac Newton and a story about an apple, we know that what goes up must come down. In the land of flooring adhesives, however contradictory to gravity, what goes down must come up. Many types of flooring are installed with adhesives and in most situations flooring adhesives should be removed following removal of the flooring.

In the disaster recovery and restoration world, the media used for blasting is determinative to project outcome. Many historic buildings have delicate surfaces that often require a softer media. In the cases of disaster recovery, how to remove soot, coal, char and other unwanted items without damaging the structure has always been the center of discussions.

What does the cleaning and restoration industry look like in 2019? That seems like a billion (maybe trillion) dollar question. If any of us knew the answer, we might very well not be reading (or writing) this piece.

This Q&A between R&R Editor-in-Chief Michelle Blevins and ARS Restoration Specialists Branch Manager Kori Medeiros details the importance of establishing key relationships and emergency response plans with local businesses, and being ready to get to work at any hour.

Over the last two years, I’ve focused on 25 companies. The companies ranged in size from around $250,000 to nearly $30 million in annual sales, and everything in between. 

They say familiarity breeds contempt. Perhaps that is the inspiration for this piece. Or maybe it’s just that after 17 years of dealing with the same issue, you lose patience with it. Especially when the solution seems so simple. At least on the surface.

During a structure fire, toxic smoke, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and particulate matter are generated from the vast array of building materials, contents, and household products that combust. These chemicals mix and interact with each other to create a vast array of carcinogens, poisonous gasses, acids, and other toxins that can cause acute and chronic illnesses, cancer, and even death.

The indoor environment is an inherently complex system. There’s the building itself, of course. The design, materials, systems, and so much more come together to create a home, office, retail space, hospital, school, and so on.