The Future Looks Bright: Meet the Young Talent on Our Team

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At some point in the last decade, you’ve probably read a think-piece or heard a news story about the downward trend of interest in careers in the trade industry. 

Fewer and fewer young people are picturing a future in the skilled trades, and that brings about serious questions about who exactly is going to build America’s homes, plumb the pipes, wire the electronics and HVAC units, and generally fix what gets broken in our country in the decades to come.

While the nation at large might wring their hands at the decreased interest in the trades industry, here at Schrader and Company, we see a crop of passionate, committed young people who strive to hone their craft to the highest of levels. These newest members of our team already demonstrate an elite level of skill, professionalism, and talent. We believe in encouraging the interest of young carpenters, and providing opportunity for them to grow, gain hands-on experience, and make a good living. 

We sat down with the newest and youngest members of Schrader and Company to ask them about how they got started in their chosen field, what they’ve learned on the journey so far, and what advice they might have for other young people just starting out.

Their thoughtful answers tell us something we all want to hear: the future of our company, and our entire industry, is safe in their capable, hard-working hands.

 

Austin S., Project Manager

I first became interested in  carpentry and building in high school. I took a lot of fine woodworking classes and a course called “Basic Principles of Construction”, where we built a few small things and then sheds at the end of the year. I ended up really enjoying it. 

I chose to pursue this career because of the enjoyment I get out of woodworking and crafting. I also knew that college wasn’t the right path for me.

Working with the Schrader team has taught me everything I needed to know to work my way up to project manager at 21. I’m still not done learning. There is much more to learn as this profession is always changing.

If you know college isn’t for you, never be afraid or ashamed of pursuing a skilled trades career. The knowledge that you take home every day will benefit you in the future guaranteed, and the skills you learn, you can use in every aspect of life.

 

Sean K., Project Manager

 My wife and I had purchased a house and started to do some large renovations to it. We hired out most of the work but I took on some of the smaller projects. Over the next couple of years I took on some larger scale remodeling projects and my passions switched from the work I was doing during my day job to the extracurricular projects I had at home.

I had graduated from college with a degree in economics and worked in the finance field for several years but I grew disenfranchised with the office atmosphere. I felt greater reward from working with my hands and problem solving on the renovation projects in my own home. I was tired of paying people to do the remodeling work I would rather be doing myself. With my wife’s support, I decided to make the jump and make a career change to learn carpentry and construction.

Working with the Schrader and Company team has put me in a great position to learn numerous aspects of the construction field.  I have been able to work on a variety of projects that have exposed me to different challenges and experiences. In a world that is going the way of mass produced kits geared to being assembled by anybody, it has been a privilege to be in a position to learn the industry from a company that still exemplifies craftsmanship.

The construction industry can be a very rewarding one. It allows for a full experience of being able to physically involve yourself in the work, but also to engage the mind when needing to find a solution to problems. There is also great enjoyment in being able to be a part of a project from beginning to end, and being able to physically see what you were a part of creating.

 

Nicco T., Apprentice Carpenter/College Student

Since I was a kid I was always building with LEGO, which led me to take several construction electives at Shenendehowa High School.

During my junior year of high school, my technology teacher  saw my interest and pointed me in the direction of the Hudson Valley Construction Tech program. Then during my senior year I was in a class to build a house with my teacher Mr. Verhagan, and I decided to apply for that Hudson Valley course. I am now starting my second semester there soon.

I could fill a page with the skills I have already learned being here at Schrader and Company for almost a year now, but I believe that the team has taught me that putting in hard work will pay off.

If this career path gives you satisfaction after looking at what you have completed after a day of work, then you should pursue this career.

 

Ryan C., Production Assistant/High School Student

I first learned of my love for carpentry and construction when I was thirteen years old building a workbench with my dad. Once I discovered working with my hands, I inherited some tools from my great grandfather and started to build things on my own, learning something new with every project.

 What made me want to pursue construction as a profession was working with and learning from my Uncle Marco, who is a very talented stone mason and an owner of Lazio Construction. He taught me about the different types of construction that I might be interested in and introduced me to Shrader and Company.

 Working with the Schrader and Company team has taught me that the area of construction that excites me the most is remodeling and new construction. I have discovered that working on site rebuilding a project or starting a new one, and doing it the right way, has taught me more about my passion for carpentry than I ever could have imagined.

For people who are interested in the trades, I strongly advise them to learn more about the many different paths in construction. Once they’ve found what excites them the most, they should get hands-on experience and they will soon discover that there is never a day or an age where you stop learning something new.

Thank You for Your Support of the Regional Food Bank of Northeastern New York

2020 was a year that tested everyone’s strength and resolve. Yet even in the toughest of times, bright lights shine everywhere. One of the brightest beacons for us at Schrader and Company was you, our clients, and your loyalty, support, and generosity. This was never more apparent than when we reached out to you for contributions for our holiday philanthropic endeavor. Your response was, quite simply, extraordinary.

We made the decision to lend financial support to the Regional Food Bank of Northeastern New York. As we all know, food scarcity is a problem right here in our own communities, and the pandemic has put many New Yorkers in a more precarious position than ever before. We asked out clients if they’d be willing to donate during the holiday season, specifically to augment the Backpack Program, which helps alleviate child hunger by discreetly providing hungry children with backpacks full of nutritious and easy-to-prepare food on Friday afternoons so they have food to eat throughout the weekend. We committed to matching client donations up to $5,000 dollars.

You answered the call with the generosity and kindness we have come to identify as a particular trait of our clientele. Together, we raised more $22,000 for the Regional Food Bank, which will be used to fill the backpacks of more than 6,500 students in 240 schools across 22 counties.

We cannot thank you enough for your open-hearted and open-handed help. We are so proud to be in business with people like you.

Happy Retirement to Project Manager Kevin Connor

After more than twenty years of hard work, dedication, and exceptional talent, it’s time for us to bid a fond farewell to Senior Project Manager Kevin Connor.

Kevin came to Schrader and Company in 2000, after a long period of time working as an independent in the commercial field of construction. He quickly established himself within our ranks as a knowledgeable mentor, a thoughtful leader, and an imaginative problem-solver who was always beloved by our clients.

Kevin has led countless renovations in his time at Schrader and Company, bringing his tremendous skill set, reliability, and gentlemanly manner to any and all projects. Kevin has also been an influential and competent mentor to younger carpenters who have joined us over the years. His tutelage and example have helped new team members hone their craft to his level of excellence.

In 2010, after ten years with the company, Schrader and Co. founder Peter Schrader had this to say about Kevin’s contributions to the team: 

“Kevin is one of those leaders who inspire others by setting imaginative goals. All of us can learn from someone who thinks this way—a person who can sort through the noise and discover what has true importance in his life, define that in terms of a goal or a dream worthy of pursuit, and then go after it.”

Kevin’s next chapter will find him out west, where he can enjoy time with his family and grandchildren, and (we hope) lots of time for reading and well-earned relaxation. He takes our best wishes, and profound gratitude for his two decades of service and loyalty with him.

“Over the past twenty years Kevin has been a valuable and thoughtful sounding board, an exceptional craftsman, and a dependable, consummate professional, “says Ben. “He has represented what we want this business to be. Kevin’s profound impact on the company, and those around him, will last far beyond his time at Schrader and Company.”

 

Beauty in the Chaos

When the COVID-19 pandemic first arrived, we had no concept of how it might change our lives and our industry. As information began to circulate, we at Schrader and Company followed the safety protocols and guidelines set forth by the scientific and medical experts to keep our clients and employees as safe as possible.

While this curveball was one we never could have anticipated, we are so proud of the way our team rose to the challenge. This particular Project Spotlight is the perfect example of how we pivoted during the crisis, without sacrificing any of the quality or craftsmanship upon which we stake our reputation.

This extensive first floor renovation was a highly anticipated project for returning clients with whom we had already had a wonderful experience. This project began before COVID-19 hit our region and was completed during the pandemic, teaching us so much about how to effectively operate in this strange new normal.

Project Planner Brian Taber and Project Manager Jeremiah Mills and Interior Designer Brooke Weinert led the team in multiple room renovations, including a kitchen, keeping room, and mudroom. New insulation for better energy efficiency was installed, a wall was removed between the kitchen and dining areas for a more open flow, and improved views made possible through room design and new window placement. Custom cabinetry by Shop Production Manager Robert Page makes the most of storage opportunities, particularly in the kitchen and mudroom. French doors, a new vaulted ceiling over the keeping room, and a more open floor plan make it easier for the clients to live in and entertain in their space.

All of these changes greatly enhanced the functionality of the first floor of the home, and the aesthetic choices, state of the art appliances, and finishing design touches guided by Brooke take the result to new heights. This is a stunning transformation, and one that the entire team remembers with pride.

Much of this work took place under COVID-19 safety protocols, which meant that Jeremiah was the lone man on site for part of the project. He did a phenomenal job managing such an extensive renovation in extraordinary circumstances. New best practices with regards to cleaning and sanitation were also employed to ensure maximum client and team safety.

For his part, Brian is especially pleased with how much the clients love the renovations to their home. 

“On every job, I can envision the end result, but sometimes the outcome is even more beautiful than I could have anticipated,” he said. “This is one of those projects, and I’m thrilled that these clients, with whom we love to work, are as happy as they are with their home.”

Giving Back This Season

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Dear Clients,

We are wishing you all a happy and healthy Thanksgiving. In this uncertain year, we are more thankful than ever for your support, loyalty, patience, and flexibility.

As we continue to weather the storm of the pandemic together, we are experiencing a healthy demand for our construction services as people look to make their homes true havens of comfort and peace. We are grateful to be able to continue our culture of giving back to our community this year.  With cautious optimism, we are undertaking a new philanthropic initiative.

Food scarcity is real, and right here at home in our communities. This may prove to be a more challenging winter than ever before for local families. We will be partnering with the Regional Food Bank of Northeastern New York to raise funds for their backpack program, which serves local schools and provides food donations to students and their families.

Schrader and Company will be proud to match up to $5,000 in funds raised by client donations. You can donate right here, or mail a check (see details in the attached image). We will collect donations until December 20, 2020.

We thank you again for your patronage and support, and wish you all a safe and happy holiday season.

Best Wishes,

Schrader and Company Construction Services

Surviving and Thriving During a Kitchen Renovation

Deciding to undertake a home renovation is an exciting moment.  Finally—after dreaming, saving, planning, and finding the right remodeler and the right time—the work can begin! But it’s important to carefully consider the realities of a project before the first hammer leaves the toolbox. All construction work results in some amount of disruption to the usual rhythms of daily life, and one of the most involved renovations (that benefits the most from some forethought) is a kitchen remodel.

We sat down with two different clients whose own extensive Schrader and Company kitchen renovations meant that their usual cooking workspace needed to be relocated and rethought for the duration of their project. 

Their inventive solutions and creative workarounds will benefit anyone who finds themselves in a similar situation. Their experiences prove that with a little flexibility, the right equipment, and a positive outlook, the construction phase needn’t be a painful one.

Without further ado, here’s a list of some of our clients’ best tips for surviving and thriving during a kitchen remodel:

 

Tip One: Creating a Mock Kitchen 

  • Set up a cohesive space in a different part of your home (dining room, living room, basement, garage) that works as a small galley with a miniature version of a typical kitchen. 
  • Consider a good location—if possible, near a utility sink, bathroom sink or tub.
  •  It’s also helpful not to have to move your temp kitchen around. Consider where it can stay for the duration of the project.
  • Think about stations for typical kitchen use, like a surface area for food prep, an area for food storage, an area for washing dishes, and a place to deal with food scraps and trash.
  • One client used a jelly cupboard to keep dishes, glasses, and some mixing and serving bowls handy.
  • Make a space for tea and coffee prep if that’s part of your daily routine. 
  • Big plastic tubs work well for pantry/food storage and keep pets and pests out. 

 

Tip Two: Creative Cooking Workarounds

  • Our clients all agree that grilling (if the weather works) is a great tip. They also recommend an outdoor camp stove, a countertop toaster oven, a crock pot or instant pot, and a panini press or griddle. 
  • Often the existing refrigerator and existing microwave can be set up for use during the project.

 

Tip Three: Don’t Forget About Clean-Up

  • You’ll need a spot to put your trash and recycling, a spot to scrape dishes (trash, toilet, or helpful dogs are all good options when you’re washing dishes in a space without a disposal). 
  • Consider purchasing a cheap plastic utility sink for a shower. One client put a water-resistant folding table next to their utility sink for a dish drying rack, and installed a hand sprayer in the shower to help with washing dishes. 
  • Buy a strainer for the drain where you are washing dishes for small food scraps so you don’t clog your drain. 

 

Tip Four: Budget for Reality

  • It’s a good idea to keep a little discretionary food fund for the duration of the renovation. Realistically, you might opt for more takeout or dining out while your dream kitchen is being created, and even time savers like pre-chopped produce cost a little extra. It’s all about balance.

 

Tip Five: Keep Perspective

  • Good things take time. We’ll just quote one client directly who had this to say about her extensive kitchen renovation process:

“The two most important things to me for this time have been a sense of humor and a sense of perspective and gratitude. Yes, it can be frustrating. Things take longer. Messes are plentiful, and harder to clean up. But my little galley is nicer than many apartment kitchens, and nobody is going to cue the violins for me because I don’t have a dishwasher while I’m waiting for my Schrader kitchen. We are lucky to be doing this, and are living like this temporarily, for an excellent reason. We are grateful to be able to go through this process and look forward to the end product, and that gratitude allows me to keep the temporary inconvenience in perspective.”

 

Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

They say good things come to those who wait. When it comes to big home projects, sometimes patience is an excellent virtue.

In this Project Spotlight, we’ll take you behind the scenes of a major kitchen renovation that the homeowners undertook at just the right time for them, and in doing so, achieved the exact result they were hoping for, with no compromises.

We all wish we could snap our fingers and make improvements to our homes whenever the mood strikes, but in reality, home renovations require careful thought, budgeting, and flexibility. 

These clients knew their kitchen needed a major overhaul for several years before they committed to a remodeling project. But rather than do things piecemeal or have to make budgetary concessions, they elected to wait, save funds for their project for a longer period of time, and begin work at a time when an interior renovation would be less disruptive to their lifestyle.

These clients had done a mudroom and laundry renovation project with us years before. The kitchen renovation was next on their list, to completely overhaul the core areas of their first floor living space. 

While the kitchen layout stayed roughly the same, the wall between the family room and kitchen was widened greatly, to create the open cooking/gathering area that so many homeowners desire. Now when family meals are being prepared or guests come over, there’s no sense of being isolated from one another in separate spaces. 

In addition to new cabinets and countertops, upgraded lighting and refinished floors, new appliances and a spacious kitchen island were added. They also chose a new stainless steel Kohler Prolific sink with built in compartments for cooking accessories and drying racks for maximum efficiency. Now the clients can cook and entertain with ease. 

The homeowners were able to undertake this project when it worked best for their own timeline, and the renovation took place over the winter, when interior projects are often scheduled.

For the clients, their patience in waiting to renovate their kitchen has paid off. Rather than having to make sacrifices in budget or timing in order to have it done fast, they were able to achieve their dream result by doing their major renovation just once, at just the right time for them.

They are loving the new connected feel of their kitchen, and being able to make everyday memories together in their home.

 

 

How We Keep Our Saw Sharp

Investing in our Team Tools

In the construction and remodeling field, we know how important it is to keep our tools in pristine condition. As business owners, we apply the same philosophy to the running of our company. One of the things we do to keep Schrader and Company operating at the level of excellence we always aspire to is to regularly check in with the best professional advisors.

Once a year, we meet with our attorney, accountant, insurance/financial advisor, marketing expert, succession advisor, and a fellow local business owner/advisor to dig into the topics that will make us better. We create an agenda that allows us to ask these experts our questions about the latest changes in each of their fields, brainstorm new ideas, take on constructive criticism and feedback, and set new objectives for our company.

This regular check-in ensures that we are always up to date on the ever-evolving changes to the systems that impact our industry. Our annual advisor meeting keeps us accountable to our overarching mission and business goals, and provides dedicated time from the busy pace of daily operations to think about our future and legacy.

We benefit so much from the wisdom of these trusted experts, and we pass those benefits right down the line to our clients through a more polished, seamless, and professional experience with Schrader and Company.

This is just one of the ways we “keep our saw sharp.”

 

Supporting the Future of Our Industry

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Schrader and Company knows that our current success and the future of our entire industry depends upon the talents of those in the skilled trades. Without a pool of highly-trained, motivated, and career minded construction professionals, plumbers, HVAC specialists, and manufacturers, homes cannot be built or remodeled.

There have been many reports in recent years on the decline of interest in skilled trade professions, with industry leaders sounding the alarm that we all need to do more to inform and support young people who are interested in a rewarding career in the trades.

To that, Schrader and Company supports multiple local scholarships for high school graduates to encourage them in their pursuit of their skilled trades career goals.

Schrader and Company was part of the Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Rotary Committee to establish and create criteria for the “BHBL Rotary Skilled Workforce Scholarship”. The 2019 winner, Justin Stiles, is now working for a local HVAC company, and is continuing his education and training. The 2020 recipient was Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake graduate Brendan Flynn.

The Peter H. Schrader Construction Industry Scholarship, awarded annually, is given to a Scotia-Glenville high school graduate who has expressed interest in a career in the skilled trades and has demonstrated the strong work ethic prized by our company founder. 

 We also have a new field team member for the summer, Nicco Tebbano, who recently graduated from Shenendehowa High School and plans to go to HVCC for Construction Technology in the fall.  We are enjoying working with Nicco, and helping him build his on-site skill set. Nicco was recently interviewed by CBS Channel 6 News about the work experience he is gaining this summer with Schrader and Company.

We want to do whatever we can to attract and support new talent in our industry. We believe there is both a great need and opportunity for young people to enter into the trades for a very rewarding career.

It’s All in the Timing…

The team at Schrader and Company is here to assist our clients with a wide array of home renovation and construction  needs—ranging from extensive remodels, additions and custom homes, to interior modifications or custom cabinetry. No matter what kind of improvement you have in mind for your home, our goal is to help you realize your vision.

To that end, one of the most important things we can do for all of our clients and potential clients is provide you with a clear sense of our process, so you know what to expect the first time you give us a call or visit our showroom.

A primary consideration when undertaking a home improvement project is timing. You have a busy life to lead, and planning out the most convenient time for a project is a crucial first step.

If you reach out to Schrader and Company for a smaller home improvement project, such as a small bathroom, door or window replacement or other minor modifications, any time is the ideal time to call. Depending on our schedule, we generally experience shorter lead times to get these kinds of projects underway.

Our more extensive renovation and construction projects, which involve collaboration with architects, the creation of a design/build agreement, and many design and selection decisions, generally can take several months to plan. Those months are put to efficient and critical use, as we formulate an intricate and finely-honed plan. We do this so that once work commences on your project, it is full-steam ahead, with minimal lulls, delays, or wait times to further inconvenience the homeowner.

Additionally, as all of us living in the northeast know, weather also presents its own factors which must be negotiated. Spring, summer and early fall are great times for exterior projects like porches and decks. Winter is the ideal time for interior work.

The most important first step in the journey to a home you love is making that initial call to the most trusted experts in construction and renovation. For over 47 years, Schrader and Company has been proud to serve our community and bring our clients’ visions for their dream homes to life. 

We hope you’ll give us a call to start the conversation about your project as soon as possible!