Construction Industry News

(July 1, 2014) — Total construction spending edged higher for the third straight month in May, as solid increases in private nonresidential and public construction outweighed a downturn in residential projects, according to an analysis of new Census Bureau data by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC).

PRINCETON, N.J. (June 30, 2014) — The Institute of Certified Construction Industry Financial Professionals (ICCIFP) has achieved accreditation from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) for the Certified Construction Industry Financial Professional (CCIFP) designation.

CHICAGO (June 26, 2014) — The critical connection between a healthy building environment and patient health is often missed by the one group of professionals who may matter most—physicians. This data is part of a new SmartMarket report by McGraw Hill Construction sponsored by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), United Technologies Corp. and other partners.

WASHINGTON (June 25, 2014) — The crisis facing the federal highway program threatens to take a massive human and economic toll on the construction equipment industry, Associated Equipment Distributors (AED) 2014 Chairman Tim Watters said last week on Capitol Hill.

KIRKLAND, Washington (June 24) — Jobaline.com, a mobile and bilingual hourly-jobs marketplace, has achieved Oracle Validated Integration with Oracle Taleo Business Edition Cloud Service. Jobaline.com helps more than 75 million hourly workers in the U.S. find and apply for jobs from computers, tablets or phone.

(June 23, 2014) — KOBELCO Construction Machinery USA, a Houston-based heavy equipment manufacturer, presented a check of nearly $120,000 to the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP). A long-supporter of the military, KOBELCO was pleased to make this presentation to the WWP in Houston.

WASHINGTON (June 20, 2014) — The Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation (the Foundation) has released the June 2014 Monthly Confidence Index for the Equipment Finance Industry (MCI-EFI).

(June 20, 2014) — Construction firms added jobs in 40 states and the District of Columbia during the past 12 months and in 30 states and D.C. between April and May, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) of Labor Department data. Association officials said the employment gains help, but that construction employment remains below peak levels in every state and the District of Columbia, except North Dakota.

DALLAS, Texas (June 19, 2014) — Hanley Wood Exhibitions reports that its recently completed space draw for World of Concrete 2015 secured 875 exhibitors, booking more than 550,000 net square feet of space. With seven months remaining until the show opens, organizers are anticipating significant growth over World of Concrete 2014, the 40th anniversary of the event.

WASHINGTON (June 19, 2014) — The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) now estimates that there are as many as 150,000 LEED-certified green housing units worldwide, a number that more than doubled between 2011 and 2012 and continues to grow steadily, according to the organization’s LEED in Motion: Residential report released today.

WASHINGTON (June 17, 2014) — With all eyes on the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is proud of the fact that six World Cup stadiums have achieved LEED certification, including South America’s largest stadium, Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro.

FARGO, N.D. (June 13, 2014) — The employees of Bobcat Company and Doosan took part in “Doosan Day of Caring,” a company-wide volunteer effort to celebrate Doosan’s Foundation Day and global volunteer week during the month of June in various Bobcat and Doosan facility locations around the U.S.

COMMERCE CITY, Colo. (June 12, 2014) — Newsweek Green Rankings, one of the world’s foremost corporate environmental standings, recently ranked Atlas Copco seventh among the 500 largest publicly traded, global companies by market capitalization.

(June 10, 2014) — The Associated General Contractors of America is joining the national Hiring Our Heroes program as part of the construction industry’s effort to add 100,000 veterans during the next five years. The new partnership will make it easier for construction contractors to find, recruit and hire veterans, association officials said.

DES MOINES, Iowa (June 10, 2014) — BirdDog, a provider of recruitment and applicant tracking solutions (ATS) for the construction and skilled trades industries, has announced a strategic partnership with OutSolve, a national service provider of affirmative action plans and Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) compliance solutions.

CLEARWATER, Fla. (June 9, 2014) — After a recession-imposed seven years of dwindling construction job opportunities, things are brightening on the construction front. Chief economist of the Associated General Contractors of America (ACG) Ken Simonson reported that the construction industry can expect an uptick of 15 percent in the job outlook for 2014.

ARLINGTON, Va. (June 6, 2014) — Construction employers added 6,000 workers to payrolls in May as the industry’s unemployment rate dropped to 8.6 percent, its lowest level for that month in six years, according to an analysis of new government data by the Associated General Contractors of America.

RALEIGH, N.C. (June 6, 2014) — FMI, a provider of management consulting and investment banking to the engineering and construction industry, released its Q2-2014 Construction Outlook. The forecast shows cautiously optimistic growth, as the forecast has been lowered a percent since the Q1-2014 Outlook. Construction-put-in-place for 2014 is now predicted to increase 7 percent over 2013 levels.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (June 2, 2014) — The Sustainable Water Infrastructure Investment Act (H.R. 4237/S.