WASHINGTON (April 10, 2014) — The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has named the recipients of the 2013 LEED for Homes Awards, recognizing projects, developers and homebuilders that have demonstrated outstanding leadership in residential green building. The award categories recognize innovative multi- and single-family projects, production builders, affordable housing projects and developers, an overall commitment to LEED for Homes and Project of the Year.
Welcome to our Construction Industry News page, where we bring you the latest updates on mergers and acquisitions, key new hires, and significant industry shifts. Stay informed with breaking news and in-depth reporting to keep up with the fast-paced changes shaping the construction business.
The results of a highway work zone study conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America shed light on dangers and prompted discussion of safety procedures.
( April 7, 2014) - Forty-five percent of highway contractors had motor vehicles crash into their construction work zones during the past year, according to the results of a new highway work zone study conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials added that the study found work zone crashes are more likely to kill vehicle operators and passengers than construction workers.
The LMI (Leading Markets Index) identifies areas that are approaching and exceeding their previous normal levels of economic and housing activity.
(April 7, 2014) - Of the approximately 350 metro markets nationwide, 59 returned to or exceeded their last normal levels of economic and housing activity, according to the National Association of Home Builders/First American Leading Markets Index (LMI). This represents a net gain of 11 metros year over year.
An emphasis on energy audits in commercial buildings is driving demand for qualified professionals.
PORTLAND, ORE. –(April 7, 2014) – Across the country, states and cities are implementing policies that require commercial buildings to be benchmarked based on energy usage. Progressive cities like New York and San Francisco are now going one step further and requiring periodic energy audits. These policies are creating a new demand for energy auditors, which PECI, a nonprofit leader in the energy efficiency industry, is helping to meet with a new Energy Auditor Training program.
Find out what this company is doing to encourage health and wellness.
DALLAS (April 7, 2014) –McCarthy Building Companies, Inc., a Texas builder for 35 years, was awarded the No. 3 ranking on the Dallas Business Journal's Healthiest Employers in North Texas list and the No. 1 ranking on the Houston Business Journal's Houston’s Healthiest Employers list for its Dallas and Houston offices having committed to health initiatives and providing top wellness programs. Numerical rankings for each honored company were announced this spring for the 2014 winners.
The agreement is part of a global partnership between CNH Industrial and Leica Geosystems related to the CNH Industrial construction equipment brands.
RACINE, WIS. (April 1, 2014) - CASE Construction Equipment has entered into a strategic partnership with Leica Geosystems to provide machine control technologies – both factory installed and aftermarket – throughout its line of construction equipment. The agreement also includes a commitment to shared product development, and is part of a global alliance between Leica Geosystems and CNH Industrial.
The company and CEO received the 2013 Sustainability Circle of Excellence Award.
Birmingham, Ala. (March 27, 2014) – Brasfield & Gorrie announced that the company and its chief executive officer have been honored by Waste Management for environmental sustainability. Waste Management awarded Brasfield & Gorrie and CEO Jim Gorrie its 2013 Sustainability Circle of Excellence Award, which recognizes outstanding diversion and recycling achievement in the construction industry.
Thomas Robinette, president and owner of Robinette Demolition Inc. was saluted by his peers at the National Demolition Association Convention.
DOYLESTOWN, PA (MARCH 27, 2014) – Thomas Robinette,Chicago-area demolition industry veteran and former president of the National Demolition Association (NDA), was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award for the influential role he has played in the evolution of the industry.
Florida racks up the largest percentage and total 12-month gains; West Virginia and Indiana have the biggest declines.
(March 28, 2014) - Construction firms added jobs in 37 states over the past 12 months and in 30 states between January and February according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data. Association officials said the jobs gains came even as many parts of the country experienced unusually severe winter weather, include cold and snowy conditions in the Northeast and Midwest, and warm and unusually dry conditions in much of the Southwest.
BRIDGE Act set to create millions of jobs in the next decade, and ensure America’s global competitiveness in the 21st century
New York, NY (March 2014) – The Board of Directors of AIAI – the Association for the Improvement of American Infrastructure is proud to support the Building and Renewing Infrastructure for Development and Growth in Employment (BRIDGE) Act.
RALEIGH, N.C. (March 27, 2014) – FMI, a provider of management consulting and investment banking* to the engineering and construction industry, released its Q1-2014 Construction Outlook. The forecast continues to show optimistic growth. As a whole, construction-put-in-place is predicted to increase 8 percent in 2014, with continued growth over the next few years.
Select market predictions include:
February new business volume up 15 percent year-over-year, down 10 percent month-to-month, up 8 percent year-to-date.
WASHINGTON (March 25, 2014) — The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association’s (ELFA) Monthly Leasing and Finance Index (MLFI-25), which reports economic activity from 25 companies representing a cross section of the $827 billion equipment finance sector, showed their overall new business volume for February was $5.4 billion, up 15 percent from new business volume in February 2013.
Analysts from Jordan, Knauff & Company examine the equipment rental industry and explain the details of this acquisition.
(March 24, 2014) - Last year was a good year for the equipment rental industry. According to the American Rental Association’s (ARA) Rental Market Monitor, North American equipment rental revenue totaled $38 billion in 2013, with the U.S. reporting revenue of $33.3 billion and Canada adding an additional $4.7 billion. This represents a 6.4 percent growth rate over 2012. The construction and industrial equipment rental segment is the largest segment with U.S.
Florida-based Christy Rental Associates will represent the company in Florida and the Caribbean.
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio (March 24, 2014) – Chicago Pneumatic announces their partnership with Florida-based Christy Rental Associates. The relationship between Chicago Pneumatic and Christy Rental Associates officially began on March 1, 2014.
The money donated by booth visitors over five days joins the $100,000 KOBELCO will donate to this non-profit organization that supports a full range of programs and services for this generation of injured veterans and their families.
(March 24, 2014) - KOBELCO created only five limited edition SK350LC crawler excavators wrapped in a patriotic/military design as part of a WWP fundraiser, and displayed one at the recent Las Vegas construction industry trade show, ConExpo/ConAgg.
The University of California San Diego health sciences facility includes a new laboratory that will accommodate and attract preeminent faculty dedicated to advancing biomedical research and educating future generations of scientists and physicians.
SAN DIEGO (March 19, 2014) – Biomedical science students and faculty striving to solve the world’s most critical health problems now have access to one of the most sustainable laboratories in the country with the completion of the new Health Sciences Biomedical Research Facility at the University of California, San Diego, (UCSD) in La Jolla. A dedication ceremony was held March 6th to celebrate the completion.
WASHINGTON (March 21, 2014) – The Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation (the Foundation) has released the March 2014 Monthly Confidence Index for the Equipment Finance Industry (MCI-EFI). Designed to collect leadership data, the index reports a qualitative assessment of both the prevailing business conditions and expectations for the future as reported by key executives from the $827 billion equipment finance sector.
McCONNELLSBURG, PA. (March 18, 2014) - JLG Industries, Inc., an Oshkosh Corporation company and a global leading manufacturer of aerial work platforms and telescopic material handlers, announced that the company was selected by United Rentals as “Strategic Supplier of the Year.” The company also won this award in 2010.
(March 18, 2014) - Nationwide housing starts were virtually unchanged in February, inching down 0.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 907,000 units, according to newly released data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau.
(March 13, 2014) - Gray Construction of Lexington, Ky. was named the nation’s safest construction company in 2013 by the Associated General Contractors of America. The association, which oversees the Willis Construction Safety Excellence Awards, an annual ranking of construction safety programs, noted that 51 other companies were selected as winners for the quality of their safety programs.