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See what delivers results and keep up to date with important news topics within our industry.
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Construction Employment Rises from October 2017 to October 2018 in 44 States and D.C.; 36 States, D.C. Add Construction Jobs Since September
Forty-four states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs between October 2017 and October 2018, while 36 states and D.C. added construction jobs between September and October, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data released today. Association officials said that firms in most parts of the country are adding staff to keep pace with growing demand for construction, but cautioned that rising labor and materials costs could undermine future demand.
"Construction activity continues to expand at a steady clip, with employment growing by more than ten percent during the past year in five states and by more than five percent in another 18 states," said chief economist Ken Simonson. "As contractors pay more for labor and most of the materials they use to build, construction costs will climb, potentially dampening future demand for their services."
Read full news release
here
.
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Tips to Prevent and Detect Bid Rigging
It’s common practice for most public and some private companies to issue bids with the intent that local subcontractors and vendors will assemble their most competitive proposal to compete for a specific piece of a project. In theory, competitive bidding promotes a fair, equitable and transparent environment that awards the project to the most innovative and cost-efficient bidder. However, this natural form of competition is breached when one or more bidders find opportunities to disregard the intent of a bid process in exchange for personal gain.
Bid rigging is a form of collusion, an anti-competitive practice that results in higher-than-justifiable proposal costs. Perpetrators who ruin the bidding process by engaging in bid rigging can be criminally prosecuted, including fines and jail time.
Here are three bid rigging schemes common to the construction industry.
Read More...
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What the 2018 Midterm Elections Mean for Construction
On the
latest episode
of the ConstructorCast, we cover the results of the 2018 elections and what they might mean for the construction industry. We speak with AGC CEO Stephen Sandherr and David Ashinoff, AGC's Director of Political Affairs, about the future prospects for infrastructure funding, reform, and the political ramifications of the results.
Stream or download the episode
here
.
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Infrastructure, It's Time for a Bipartisan Deal
A "Road Closed" sign stands at the end of a Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) ramp under construction above Interstate 395 (I-305) in Alexandria, Virginia, U.S., on Wednesday, July 29, 2015. The U.S. Senate advanced its version of a long-term highway funding bill Wednesday as Congress prepares a stopgap measure to keep funds flowing for the next three months. The Highway Trust Fund's authorization is set to expire after July 31.
Public infrastructure in the U.S. is in bad shape and has been so for many years. Washington has fingered the importance of doing something about the decrepit state of America’s infrastructure for decades. It’s the bipartisan thing to do.
President Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers devoted a lengthy chapter in its
2016 Annual Report
to the Nation’s infrastructure problems. Enter President Trump in 2017. The first thing out of his box was infrastructure. But, the “i” word faded away as rapidly as it entered President Trump’s lexicon. There was a little problem: the White House didn’t really have a fully developed infrastructure plan and most certainly had no legislative action plan. With last week’s elections, President Trump once again trotted out infrastructure, as did Nancy Pelosi—the most likely Speaker of the House, which will be controlled by the Democrats in the 116th Congress.
Read More...
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4 strategies to get construction projects back on track
Contractors usually see indicators in their jobsite and financial data when something is going wrong with a project. But sometimes, a project succumbs to troubles even when the data looks great, two construction industry veterans said during a session at Procore's Groundbreak Construction Conference this week.
“Sometimes metrics can be deceiving depending on who is putting them out and how they are received,” Nancy Novak, senior vice president of construction for Compass Datacenters, told several hundred attendees. “You’ve got to dig in and understand … what they mean.”
Read More...
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Lawmakers considering multibillion-dollar bailout for some retirees with failing pensions:
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are considering a multibillion-dollar bailout for retirees who are members of certain collapsing pension plans,
The Washington Post
reported Tuesday.
The proposal, a draft of which was obtained by the Post, would require the Treasury Department to spend as much as $3 billion annually to subsidize payments for retirees enrolled in designated pensions.
Read More...
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Calm before the storm? What the construction industry can expect in 2019
Last week, industry leaders and economists convened at Dodge Data & Analytics’ Outlook Executive Conference at Maryland’s National Harbor to roll out predictions for the U.S. economy and construction markets in the coming year. The top finding of Dodge's report that was unveiled at the event is that total construction starts in 2019 will inch
up to just over $808 billion
from this year’s estimated $806.8 billion.
Read More...
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Being 'value generators' instead of 'order takers'
A contractor turned college professor told Groundbreak attendees that they need to find solutions to customers' complex problems — even if they don’t ask.
Read More...
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October's Under Construction is in your mailbox!! Here's whats inside....
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Industry News
ROAD TO PROSPERITY
By Pat McCune
OSHA Inspections
By Nelva J. Smith
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
By Pat McCune - West Virginia/Ohio
HARRISON COUNTY, OHIO
NEW GLOBAL ECONOMY
By Nicholas Homrighausen
26 HISTORIC TAX CUTS IN WV
By glenn F. Elliott, Jr.
CONSTRUCTION BRIEFS
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This Week's Tip of the WEEK
C
lick here for more........
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OSHA
Select OSHA publications are available in eBook format.
OSHA eBooks
are designed to increase readability on smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices.
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OSHA Issues Final Rule on Crane Operator Certification Requirements
OSHA issued a final rule that clarifies certification requirements for crane operators. Under the
final rule
, employers are required to train, certify/license, and evaluate operators to safely perform crane activities. Operators can be certified based on either the crane's type and capacity, or type only, ensuring that more accredited testing organizations are eligible to meet OSHA's certification program requirements. Most requirements in the final rule will become effective on Dec. 9, 2018. The evaluation and documentation requirements will become effective on Feb. 7, 2019. For more information, see the
news release
.
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What Is the OVCEC Plan Room?
- It is a conveniently located source of construction plans for the Ohio Valley area
- It publishes a weekly Construction Report listing projects out for bid, due dates, apparent low bidders and contracts awarded
- It provides updates on projects throughout the week by email
- It provides online access to plans and specifications for your review and downloading
- It provides bidders lists
- It has staff that will get the plans you need whenever possible
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Submit Plans & Specs
As an Owner or Architect of a project, placing your project plans in the OVCEC Plan Room will help to insure the success of your project.
The Plan Room will:
- Help you publicize your project
- Increase the quantity and quality of bids you receive for your project
- Help you get addenda out to bidders
- Reduce your cost of blueprint duplication by allowing electronic submission to Plan Room Online
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