Being a contractor is a responsible job. First, you must be capable to give your client exactly what they want and find a way to realize everything they want out of their building, no matter how absurd it may sound. On the other hand, a contractor is responsible for his or her workers, which is probably the most difficult part of this job. As a contractor, you need to have eyes and ears everywhere on the construction site, so you can control absolutely everything that’s happening. In order to achieve this, you need to be willing to work with people and develop your social skills. On the other hand, there’s a checklist that, legally speaking, needs to be filled out.

• Construction contract

The relationship you want to develop with your new client needs to be strictly professional at first. You won’t get anything out of that business if you want to be friends with everybody. This agreement between a client and a contractor is legally defined. The title should be a description of the work that is going to be done – an improvement of a home, a construction agreement or a construction contract. Then, you need to name both parties and give an address where the work will be done. After this, there’s a part of the contract that is actually a description of the work and the deadline that you've established. If there is a change, that also needs to be added. In the end, after the payment deal, there’s just the signature line.

• Notice of construction

The next step is a notice to the Ministry of Labor. According to the Regulations for Construction Projects, a contractor needs to notify the Ministry about any construction that needs to be done.

• Permits

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After you've handed over the notice of construction, the next step is collecting all permits you need. There are five.

1. An electrical permit

2. A plumbing permit

3. A septic tank permit (if you’re building a house)

4. A mechanical permit

5. An environmental impact permit (this one is optional, but it’s better to have it done immediately, rather than being sued later when you break a regulation)

• Drawing a construction plan

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If you have even the slightest pinch of imagination, you've already fulfilled the first condition to drawing a construction plan. The next step is getting all the supplies you’ll need while drawing it – a paper, a pencil and an eraser, a ruler and a calculator. If you find out that you want to keep on drawing construction plans, you should consider having a printer and a scanner. Also, you might want to get a specially designed table a comfortable chair. To get some ideas, look for buildings, internet sites or just take a walk around your neighborhood.

• Construction equipment

You have two different options for getting the equipment needed. If you've been doing the job for quite some time now, you should consider buying it. But, if you’re new to this business, you need to have a trial period during which you should try renting the equipment. You’ll have far lesser costs later if you decide to change your career.

• Register and test your workers

While you’re hiring workers, you should check out their experience so that you know what to expect. Before the beginning of construction, test your new employees by giving them few simple tasks to complete. That way, you’ll be able to evaluate their skills. When you make your final list of workers, you’re obligated to register them in the Ministry of labor.

• Health and safety at the construction site

Every contractor is obligated to take care of his or her workers. Working with heavy machinery can turn out to be dangerous and even fatal for the workers on the construction site. Before every work day starts, you need to be sure that everything’s in proper order. Your workers need to be safe while working – safe from burns, falls, getting hurt while handling motor vehicles or heavy machinery and being struck by falling objects. To prevent all this, you should be careful when getting equipment like access platforms. You should be aware of the height to which your employees go during the work. If you install stable access platforms, you can be sure that they will be a strong foundation to build your work on.

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