Construction Business Owner

APRIL 27, 2015

Construction companies are looking for summer help to fill the void left by the latest recession. One plausible solution has been hiring student workers. While this may seem like an economical choice, it is important to understand that minors between the ages of 15 and 17 employed in construction have a seven times greater chance of being fatally injured than their peers working in other industries, according to the Department of Labor (DOL).

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Employment Safety Industrial Construction 260

Viewpoint Construction Technology

APRIL 28, 2015

Last week, we held our 19th annual Connect Users’ Conference. It’s a humbling experience to have hundreds of attendees converge at our Seattle venue. Many traveled from across the country to spend a few days with us learning about our software, so we worked hard to make the experience worth everyone’s time, effort and expense.

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Seattle Travel Conference Software 130

Green Building Law Update

APRIL 26, 2015

In a continued period of falling energy prices, for oil and natural gas as well as renewables, and in an era when energy use in the U.S. has not increased in decades (despite the increase in population), Congress passed an energy bill. The Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2015 , S. 535, a portion of this bill was formerly known as the Better Buildings Act of 2015, passed the House of Representatives last week and on April 23rd was presented to the President for signature.

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Leases Commercial New Hampshire Feasibility 120

Construction Equipment

APRIL 29, 2015

. . Construction employment expanded in 249 metro areas, declined in 56 and was stagnant in 53 between March 2014 and March 2015, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. . AGC officials said the new data comes as many firms remain worried about tightening labor markets and declining public-sector investments in infrastructure and other projects.

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Metro Employment AGC America 87

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The Verdantix Green Quadrant: EHS Software 2023 is an independent third-party analysis of 23 EHS software vendors (including Intelex) that provides an in-depth look at the technical capabilities, application breadth, innovation focus, and momentum of key environmental, health, and safety management software market players. The guide is essential reading for EHS software benchmarking, especially for understanding unique vendor strengths and capabilities.

Software

Construction Business Owner

APRIL 29, 2015

Contractors continually say they can’t find any good, trained help. Instead of developing positive solutions to their problems, they have decided to be negative. They say, “When people don’t apply, you can’t hire them.” When you don’t post a help wanted ad, people can’t apply. To recruit good people to work for your company, it costs money and requires a proactive plan.

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Plans Contractors 237

Construction Marketing Ideas

APRIL 28, 2015

The Nepalese earthquake: A news item — but something much more significant if we or someone we know were caught in the story. Of course, the images I can provide for this blog posting describing the intersection of business and personal challenges can only relate to highly public and visible events — but there are crises and joys that are much more private shaping our lives and decisions.

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News Drawings Profitability Resource 66

Construction Equipment

MAY 1, 2015

Construction is among the main applications for Mack Trucks’ new mDrive HD automated manual transmission, the builder’s executives said Thursday in a presentation and driving demonstration in Allentown, Pa. The mDrive HD will be standard in Granite vocational trucks and tractors, though customers may instead choose manual or Allison automatic transmissions, and optional in the Titan extra heavy duty model, said Stu Russoli, a marketing manager.

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Construction Maine Modeling Management 72

Construction Business Owner

APRIL 30, 2015

Today’s projects and jobsites are more advanced than ever. Modern equipment and machinery have made jobs easier worldwide. However, one of the most underutilized, cost-effective tools that can benefit your business easily dates back tens of thousands of years ago.

Fabrication 183

Fabrication Equipment 183

Contractor Magazine

MAY 1, 2015

Avalance performance tour to hit cities nationwide. Gerber has announced its Avalanche Performance Tour that will result in one lucky licensed plumber receiving a Harley-Davidson Fat Bob motorcycle. read more.

Management 64

Management 64

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As the use of Enterprise Resource Planning systems in the construction industry is critical to optimizing operations, it's critical that decision makers conduct a thorough software evaluation to find the one that best aligns to their needs.

Industrial

Construction Marketing Ideas

APRIL 25, 2015

Enoch Sears’ Business of Architecture site. A successful California-based marketing consultant for the architectural community has scored a gig as a speaker at the Ontario Association of Architects (OAA) conference in Hamilton this May. Enoch Sears has taken things a bit further, however, with this email I received late last night. (Normally I don’t share emails in the public blog posting, but this is an example of a really effective email with a marketing purpose.).

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Architecture Travel Conference California 65

Construction Equipment

APRIL 27, 2015

Despite a strong first quarter, Caterpillar’s CEO Dough Oberhelman warned: Don’t expect a repeat. Caterpillar reported earnings of $1.86 a share, which included a 14 cent gain on an asset sale. Adjusted earnings came out to $1.72 a share.

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Construction Business Owner

APRIL 29, 2015

Viewpoint’s Jay Haladay recently announced his decision to retire from his position as CEO of the company, one he has held for the past 30 years. CBO recently talked retirement, employee management and business best practices with him. Haladay will remain on the board of directors for Viewpoint, and said he still plans to travel frequently and attend events for the company.

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Viewpoint Travel Plans Management 176

Digger Blog

APRIL 28, 2015

A Cumbrian owner-operator has bought the UK’s first Hyundai R125LCR-9A midi excavator. Stephen Smith Plant Hire bought the machine from his local dealer Taylor & Braithwaite. The R125LCR-9A is a 12.5-tonne midi crawler excavator with short tail-swing. It was officially launched in the UK at the 2014 Hillhead exhibition but is only now finally working on site anywhere.

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Site Housing 62

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Choosing the right procurement software is a crucial step in ensuring third-party risk management, process governance, and bidding efficiency. With so many procurement solutions to choose from, it can be overwhelming without a frame of reference and a solid starting point. This free buyer’s guide will cover: Benefits of Procurement Software –– Why do you need it?

Procurement

Construction Marketing Ideas

MAY 1, 2015

The judge’s votes have arrived for the 2015 Best Construction Blog and we will announce the results on Monday, May 4. Here are the popular vote results from March 31. The judging process has been designed to supplement the popular vote and allow for factors other than mass support to determine the results, including design and content.

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Construction Design 63

Construction Equipment

MAY 1, 2015

Takeuchi-US announced Rob’s Hydraulics, Inc. (RHI) as their newest dealer serving eastern North Carolina. Located in Grimesland, N.C., they will carry the full line of Takeuchi compact earthmoving equipment, including compact excavators, compact track loaders, compact wheel loaders and skid steer loaders. RHI offers equipment to businesses in phosphate plant, rock quarries, sand pits, grading and excavating, demolition, lot clearing and logging, sewer and utilities, concrete plants, asphalt pla

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North Carolina Sewer Equipment Concrete 70

Construction Business Owner

APRIL 29, 2015

The value of real-time accounting data hinges on information that is automated, up-to-date and readily available any time a member of the team needs to access it. It has long been the norm for the majority of a company’s overhead costs to be spent on information management. Construction firms have traditionally relied on administrators and office personnel to capture, organize and store data, and then use that data to create a seemingly endless array of reports.

Accounting 166

Accounting Overhead Organization Office 166

Business Facilities

APRIL 27, 2015

Business Facilities (BF) Magazine. The Land of Enchantment hit an all-time high for total exports in 2014, shipping close to $4 billion worth of goods from a diverse range of sectors and nearly doubling exports to Mexico. Business Report: New Mexico Notches Record-Breaking Export Growth appeared first on Business Facilities (BF) Magazine.

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New Mexico Industrial 62

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Anything that is built on a poor foundation will soon crumble from the ground up. This is literally the case in the construction stage of projects and it applies just the same during the pre-construction stage. This free eBook is your ultimate guide to scaling your business with customizable software as early as during the bidding stage.

Contractors

Construction Marketing Ideas

APRIL 29, 2015

The elevated Cycleway traveled above the railways and unpaved streets of the city, shown here passing Pasadena’s Grand Opera House in 1902. Sometimes, when you look at failed historical ideas, you see shades of the future. This fascinating posting by Dan Koeppel, An 1899 Plan to Build a Bike Highway in Los Angeles (and Why it Failed) takes us into the pre-automotive area, with a freeway concept using the hand-peddled vehicle in the city that would ultimately become the automobile’s best fr

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Los Angeles IDEA Travel Plans 60

Construction Equipment

APRIL 27, 2015

Volvo Construction Equipment's total sales dropped five percent in the first quarter of 2015 due to continued weakness throughout Asia, particularly China. Operating income was affected by lower sales volumes, a provision for expected credit losses and lower earnings in China, decreasing to SEK 352 million, compared to SEK 647 million in the first quarter of 2014.

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Income Construction Equipment 70

Construction Business Owner

APRIL 28, 2015

With the signing of Senate Bill 193 by Governor Parnell in July of 2014, Alaskan bond amounts increased significantly when the law took effect on January 1. This new law addresses a series of long-standing issues in the Alaskan contractor industry.

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Alaska Contractors Industrial 159

BIM & Beam

APRIL 29, 2015

Recently the Martin/Martin, Inc.’s Construction Engineering Services (CES) team was awarded with a CRSI Honors for their detailing efforts in Revit. The Martin/Martin CES team has innovatively addressed the issue of fragmented fabrication drawing production that design and construction teams consistently encounter with today’s increasingly tight project delivery schedules.

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Innovation Concrete Fabrication Drawings 59

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Supply chain challenges and rising material costs are forcing specialty contractors to pay more for what they need to complete each job. Following a simple set of principles, this easy-to-follow guide can help you manage job costs, ease the pains of accounting, and run a more profitable businesses. If you are a Specialty Contractor or Self-performing GC, you do not want to miss out on this essential guide!

Contractors

Construction Marketing Ideas

APRIL 27, 2015

Alpine Construction (Windsor) Ltd. won the 2014 WebAwards in the construction category. The company’s web designer paid a $US 250 fee to enter the competition. As we await the final input from the judges in the 2015 Best Construction Blog competition , and nominations arrive for the first AEC Social Media Marketing Competition , I checked around to see if there are other competitions that may be relevant to AEC marketers, and discovered the The WebAwards Competition , offering internationa

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Certification Site Organization US 60

Construction Equipment

APRIL 29, 2015

The American Road & Transportation Builders Association Transportation Development Foundation (ARTBA-TDF) has created a series of new videos aimed at helping reduce roadway work zone accidents. Each three-minute animated video is based on federal government reviews of real incidents that resulted in the loss of life.

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Roads Accidents Zoning Transportation 69

Construction Business Owner

APRIL 27, 2015

Click here to view other project videos, and check back throughout the year for more.

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Construction 205

Revit OpEd

MAY 1, 2015

Aaron Maller let me know about an unpleasant bug he's encountered in both Revit 2015 and 2016. If you're thinking, "Boy I'm glad I didn't listen to Steve's rant yesterday." Point taken. It's the exception though, not the rule. Simple steps to reproduce the issue: Create a new project Create a ceiling Place at least two light fixtures (faced based or ceiling based) Create a Group (of the ceiling and both fixtures) Copy the Group to create several instances Edit the Group Swap or move one fixture

Revit 57

Revit 57

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Research reveals 96% of respondents are very or fairly optimistic about their organization’s growth prospects for the next year. The InEight Global Capital Projects Outlook also finds over half see digital technology as the greatest growth opportunity. But these are only some of the findings. Don't be kept in the dark when it comes to the future. Read the report today!

Construction

Construction Marketing Ideas

APRIL 26, 2015

NamingForce.com provides a crowdsourced approach to generating your business domain name. This site, namingforce.com offers a potentially useful resource to help you figure out your best domain name. It is allied with LogoForce.com , which also provides a crowdsoucing/contest approach in designing and selecting your logo. Fees here are in the hundreds, rather than thousands, of dollars and the possibility of coming up with a name or logo design that suits you (and has some indication of support

Design 60

Design Renovating Consulting Resource 60

Construction Equipment

APRIL 28, 2015

Komatsu reported a 15 percent drop in its fourth quarter profit. The decline comes during slow economic growth in China’s construction market. Net income fell to 37.5 billion yen ($315 million) for the first three months of 2015 from 441 billion yen a year earlier, Bloomberg Business reports. Sales of construction, mining and utility equipment fell 3.4 percent in Japan last year to 330.6 billion yen, Komatsu said.

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Profitability Income America Equipment 69

Business Facilities

APRIL 27, 2015

Business Facilities (BF) Magazine. The latest Urban Land Institute Forecast for the real estate economy sees three years of continued strength, with the industry set for sustainable growth in 2015 through 2017. ULI Forecast For CRE: Strength And Growth Through 2017 appeared first on Business Facilities (BF) Magazine.

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ULI Forecasting Sustainability Industrial 56