Seventy years of information exchange

A brief history of builders exchanges and BXNet

The history of builders’ exchanges in North America dates back more than 150 years—to the period immediately following the American Civil War. Builders exchanges are among the oldest forms of cooperative alliances among segments of the construction industry.

Today, hundreds of builders exchanges and construction associations operate throughout Canada and the United States. Small and large, they serve members in a variety of ways. Common to all, however, is the distribution of construction drawings and specifications to their contractor members.

Founding the Builders Exchange Network
The Builders Exchange Network (formerly the International Builders Exchange Executives) grew out of the need to serve the particular needs of executives of these organizations. In 1948, Dan Patrick, the executive director of the Atlanta Builders Exchange, launched the Executive Secretaries National Council of Builders Exchanges alongside eight of his exchange colleagues.

In the group’s earliest days, its aim was to act as a network for managing executives to share information, discuss common problems, and compare methods of gathering and distributing construction project information and providing plan room services.

Our members and services
BXNet’s membership base is far larger and more diverse today. Our organization represents more than 40 builders’ exchanges, local construction associations and related plan rooms across Canada and the United States. And although our service base has expanded to include training opportunities for members and their staff, and a keen focus on providing business intelligence, our core focus—providing networking forums for executives—remains unchanged.