Overview
If you have always wanted to own your own consulting business, now you can - with Criterium Engineers. We work hard to help engineers like you to establish or expand an independent and successful consulting office.
National accounts, affordable insurance, electronic resources, peer support and established systems are a few of the ways we support your practice. Excellent locations are available in the U.S. and Canada.
Forty-five years of experience, more than 70 offices, and expanding services await you. If you have the talent, motivation, engineering and communication skills, we offer the personal satisfaction of your own business with the support of a national company behind you.
National accounts, affordable insurance, electronic resources, peer support and established systems are a few of the ways we support your practice. Excellent locations are available in the U.S. and Canada.
Forty-five years of experience, more than 70 offices, and expanding services await you. If you have the talent, motivation, engineering and communication skills, we offer the personal satisfaction of your own business with the support of a national company behind you.
Products & Services
Criterium Engineers is the nation's leading authority on existing buildings, having inspected or consulted on over a half million of them. Typical services include building inspections, property condition assessments and real estate due diligence, reserve studies, environmental site assessments, construction monitoring, insurance investigations, litigation support, structural evaluations, and repair design for residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings.
Training & Support
Technical Support
Criterium Engineers lets you operate with the resources of a large engineering firm, without the overhead. Technical resources available to you include:
Marketing Support
Business Management Support
General business support is provided to you in many ways. In addition to consulting with offices on issues such as contracts, fees, and hiring and firing, the following resources are made available:
Training and continuing education are built into our program in many ways.
Criterium Engineers lets you operate with the resources of a large engineering firm, without the overhead. Technical resources available to you include:
- Toll-free phone consultation with our staff of engineers
- Design assistance from Criterium headquarters
- Screening of technical publications and published summaries
- Resumes of 150 engineers that are part of the Criterium organization available to you on-line and for work on projects
- A library of codes, standards, and other reference materials
Marketing Support
- Criterium Engineers helps you market your services locally. We also refer work directly to your office from national clients.
- To help market your services, Criterium Engineers provides you with professionally developed brochures, newsletters custom printed with your name on them, and other marketing tools.
- Criterium Engineers promotes offices on a nationwide basis by selectively advertising in national publications, maintaining a modern Web site with links and updateable information, and conducting an active promotions program.
- A national advertising agency is available at no additional cost for planning your yellow pages campaign and generating and placing your ads.
- Criterium Engineers works with some of the most respected names in real estate to provide engineering services on a nationwide basis. Orders are placed through our headquarters office; reports are transmitted electronically and reviewed by our own quality control staff.
Business Management Support
General business support is provided to you in many ways. In addition to consulting with offices on issues such as contracts, fees, and hiring and firing, the following resources are made available:
- Professional Liability Insurance/General Liability Insurance. Criterium Engineers allows you to participate in its master Professional Liability Insurance and Self-Insured Retention Fund. The insurance, covering inspections, design, and environmental assessments, carries protection limits of $2 million per claim and $3 million per year, aggregate. The cost to each owner is roughly half of what similar coverage might cost a small consulting practice, if it were even available. General Business Liability Insurance is also available.
- Business Management System Software. You receive a copy of our proprietary Business Management System Software. The program, based on Microsoft's popular ACCESS program, integrates job scheduling and management, mailing lists, and financial reporting.
- Printing and Other Discounts. The group buying power of Criterium Engineers is passed through to you in the form of discounts on printing, commercial software, books, and other resources.
- Standard Agreements. Standard agreements for subcontractors, employees, contracts, and inspections are all available electronically and in hard copy.
Training and continuing education are built into our program in many ways.
- A 7-day program conducted at Criterium Engineers headquarters every other month is offered to all engineers.
- Each year, Criterium Engineers hosts a 3 1/2-day conference with featured speakers and seminars on engineering, marketing, and business management.
- Additional programs and seminars are held at various times on selected topics.
Why Criterium Engineers?
Criterium Engineers was created for licensed Professional Engineers who want to run their own consulting business. Engineers open a Criterium office for:
"I decided to start my own business for the financial gain, security, and pride of ownership in one's work. With my own business, there is excitement at the end of the day."
George Risha, P.E.
Criterium Engineers is for those who like field work and like to have a direct effect on peoples' lives. Few engineers have the opportunity to work one-on-one with the end user of their service. We at Criterium do, helping people make informed decisions, saving them money, and sometimes even saving their lives.
"The most satisfying aspect of the business has been providing a service that is very desired by clients - one that is not reasonably available elsewhere."
Bob Fennema, P.E.
The franchise business structure is an ideal way for doing business in the new millenium. It gives you, the business owner, the resources and ability to operate as a large firm with the flexibility and low overhead of a small one. The guidance provided by Criterium Engineers allows you to make decisions quickly and confidently in a rapidly changing world.
- Increased financial opportunity. We give you the tools to be successful; the profits are yours.
- Ability to do things your way without making the mistakes that small business owners commonly make.
- Chance to affect people's lives in a positive way.
- Challenge of creating and building something new.
- Opportunity to build equity in a business that can be sold someday. Your own business becomes a retirement plan or a source of capital for your next venture.
"I decided to start my own business for the financial gain, security, and pride of ownership in one's work. With my own business, there is excitement at the end of the day."
George Risha, P.E.
Criterium Engineers is for those who like field work and like to have a direct effect on peoples' lives. Few engineers have the opportunity to work one-on-one with the end user of their service. We at Criterium do, helping people make informed decisions, saving them money, and sometimes even saving their lives.
"The most satisfying aspect of the business has been providing a service that is very desired by clients - one that is not reasonably available elsewhere."
Bob Fennema, P.E.
The franchise business structure is an ideal way for doing business in the new millenium. It gives you, the business owner, the resources and ability to operate as a large firm with the flexibility and low overhead of a small one. The guidance provided by Criterium Engineers allows you to make decisions quickly and confidently in a rapidly changing world.
Are You a Good Fit for Criterium Engineers?
Criterium Engineers is seeking engineers and architects who are looking for career opportunities, not just a job. Do you have a background in design, facilities management or construction management?
You may start the business on a part-time basis and operate out of your home, but only for a limited and predetermined period of time, generally not to exceed one year. Ultimately, each Criterium Engineers office must be staffed on a full-time basis and operate from a professional office environment.
You may start the business on a part-time basis and operate out of your home, but only for a limited and predetermined period of time, generally not to exceed one year. Ultimately, each Criterium Engineers office must be staffed on a full-time basis and operate from a professional office environment.
