Vanessa Ball, a member of BAC’s Mountain West ADC, has been working in pointing-cleaning-caulking since 1993.

Over the years, she’s become extremely passionate about the craft, regularly studying new techniques and tools to improve her work.

“You can make or break a building with the caulking,” Ball said. “It stands out.”

Ball’s love of the industry inspired her to open her own union masonry restoration company, and she recently signed an agreement with BAC Local 4 IN/KY, after completing the International Masonry Institute’s (IMI) Aspiring Contractor class, which covers all the basics of getting started as a union contractor.

Her next step was enrolling in IMI’s Emerging Contractor class. This class is designed for established contractors who are ready to take the next step in developing their business, said Tom Elliott, IMI Director of Industry Development and Technical Services.

During a recent 2-day class at the John J. Flynn BAC/IMI International Training Center in Maryland, Elliott went over topics including business management, project management, estimating, contract documents, bidding, quality control, and quality assurance.

One of the biggest lessons he shared with the class: “Plan for the unexpected.”

“Have a plan A, B, C, D, and E,” he said.

Elliott is teaching a class that takes a deep dive into estimating later this year, which Ball said she plans to take.

“I need to learn how to do everything, even if I’m not the one who is doing it,” she said.

James Owens, HR director for signatory contractor Eschbach Brothers Masonry in Reading, Pennsylvania, said the class sharpened his project management skills. He added it was also helpful to be able to network with other contractors from around the country.

His long-term goal is to become one of the owners of the family-owned company, and he said taking classes like this one will help him get there.

“We’ve been around for 113 years, and I would like to see us go even further,” Owens said.