WASHINGTON (October 21, 2013) – The Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation (the Foundation) released the October 2013 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 $725 billion equipment finance sector.

WASHINGTON (October 15, 2013) — New business volume grew 16.4 percent in the equipment finance industry in 2012, according to the 2013 Survey of Equipment Finance Activity (SEFA) released by the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA). The growth in volume was on par with the 16.5 percent increase reported for 2011, and well above the 3.9 percent increase reported for 2010 and the 30.3 percent decline in 2009.

SAN ANTONIO (October 14, 2013) – Sundt Construction Inc. will take down the barricades to the West 7th Street Bridge, opening the Fort Worth thoroughfare to traffic for the first time in nearly four months. The bridge, which links downtown Fort Worth with the city’s cultural district, was slated to be closed into November. The Sundt team, however, fought through wet weather and executed its plan to open lanes for traffic a month early.

MARLTON, N.J. (October 14, 2013) - Hill International announced today that Thomas J. Driscoll, F.CMAA, a Senior Vice President with Hill's Construction Claims Group, has been recognized with the Construction Management Award by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). The award was presented to him during the ASCE's Annual Conference which was held on October 9-12, 2013 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

SAUK CENTRE, Minn. (October 8, 2013) – Felling Trailers is implementing its first online auction of a FT-3 drop deck utility trailer. Felling Trailers wants to bring awareness to the early detection of breast cancer. Thus, Felling Trailers manufactured and painted one of its most popular trailers hot pink to be auctioned online for 10 days during the month of October, which is breast cancer awareness month. Tredit Tire generously donated the wheels, and Midwest Industrial Coatings Inc.

WASHINGTON (October 8, 2013) – Investment in equipment and software is expected to grow 3.3 percent in 2013, according to the Q4 update to the 2013 Equipment Leasing & Finance U.S. Economic Outlook released by the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation. Equipment and software investment slowed in the second quarter, but the report predicts modest improvement in the second half of the year, depending on the outcome of the current fiscal policy debates.

Four-Day trade mission opens with International Trade Administration to highlight U.S. architecture services.

WASHINGTON (October 3, 2013) –The International Trade Administration and the American Institute of Architects will open a four-day Architecture Services Trade Mission to Brazil Oct. 7 that will introduce U.S. firms to Brazil’s rapidly expanding market for architectural services as it prepares to host the FIFA World Cup in 2014, the Summer Olympics in 2016, as well as other opportunities.

Small drop in confidence is evident in the third quarter.

PRINCETON, N.J. (October 2, 2013) - The Construction Financial Management Association's (CFMA) Quarterly CONFINDEX™ Survey, sponsored by Viewpoint, dropped in September to 127, from 128 in June, showing construction CFO confidence is declining. CONFINDEX™ is CFMA's proprietary confidence index survey of CFOs in the commercial construction sector.

AGC officials say the shutdown could threaten the construction industry's recovery.

(October 1, 2013) Total construction spending hit an unknown level in August because the Census Bureau was unable to release new data as a result of the federal government shutdown, according to the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials cautioned that the impacts of the shutdown will go beyond data as solicitations for many new construction projects come to a halt.