With there being a few calls to action now, I think I need to roll back to one of the earlier posts - maybe you folk can help me with what I see as something of a dilemma. The starting point is this:

Quote Originally Posted by murdock View Post
If i remember correctly Dave mentioned a while back that one of the reasons he started this forum was to address these issues.
True. My goal was to establish an open platform accessible to all of the industry where the issues of the industry could be discussed, bringing pressure to bear on some aspects of how the industry was administered. I identified this need from what I saw as a closed shop approach by an ECA driven by some very narrow vested interests, leading to practices that were patently harmful to the industry.

The difficulty I have is as much as I have issues with some aspects of how the ECA goes about its business (inconsistent application of standards which has come up before, as example), I'm not a fan of undermining the ECA either. I have a very real understanding that in some aspects what the ECA has achieved is remarkable and should not be undone lightly. In particular, its base of membership as a percentage of the number of contractors in the industry is extraordinary. There are very few industries where so many of the businesses are SMMEs that have achieved the kind of membership levels that the ECA has.

The ECA also has enormous credibility and influence on the regulation of the industry, also something not to be undermined lightly.

So I find myself in a dilemma - how does one create an alternative, open outlet and point of influence for the industry without undermining the good in the ECA?

I really think an alternative industry association should be avoided if possible...