The Arizona Builders Alliance and the Arizona chapter of the Association of General Contractors held a Joint Economic Forecast Seminar Oct. 15 in Phoenix that featured AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson who discussed Arizona’s construction industry and his forecast for the state’s 2015.While much of the construction industry in America has been on a fairly steady upturn lately, Arizona remains one state is not following along with the trend, he said, citing such evidence as a loss of construction jobs and that spending had receded to early recovery levels. While Arizona construction firms might wish for greater growth, Simonson pointed
Driven mostly by losses in Arizona, Southwest construction employment dipped in September, according to data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics earlier this week, but the losses in the Grand Canyon state are buoyed by gains in Nevada and steady performance in New Mexico.In Arizona from August to September 2014, slightly less than 3,000 construction jobs were lost. Construction employment is down to 115,500 in September 2014 from 118,200 in August 2014. Year-over year, construction jobs in Arizona have declined from 123,100 in September 2013 — a loss of about 7,500 construction jobs.From August to September 2014, Nevada
Despite ongoing optimism for the Southwest construction market, 2014 hasn't become the boom year that most firms were anticipating. Related Links: Engineering News Record Architectural Record Last year's ENR Southwest Specialty Contractors ranking revealed that eight of the top 10 firms reported higher revenue in 2012. In the current survey, based on 2013 revenue, only five of the top 10 firms showed an increase.But the revenue of those top 10 firms rose to $1.8 billion in 2013 from $925 million in 2012.Specialty contractor of the year Helix Electric of Las Vegas is one of the firms that grew, posting revenue
A little more than 10 years ago, Phoenix lost out to neighboring Glendale as the site for a football-only stadium for the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals. Shortly after that, the idea of putting a biomedical campus in downtown Phoenix was born. Phoenix partnered primarily with the University of Arizona, along with several private and nonprofit medical groups, to develop the Phoenix Biomedical Campus, or PBC. By late 2012, four projects and 640,000 sq ft of the campus had been built, including the Translational Genomics Institute, the University of Arizona Medical School and the 268,000-sq-ft Health Sciences Education Building.Next up for Phoenix
The $54-million College Avenue Commons project on the campus of Arizona State University is in many respects a typical university project. The 130,000-sq-ft steel building, located on College Avenue between 6th and 7th streets in Tempe, connects the city and the university. It has a bookstore and a team shop and provides students with a place to meet and serves as a venue for hosting community meetings. Related Links: Engineering News Record Architectural Record But what is unusual is that the building also happens to be a giant teaching tool for students at the university's Del E. Webb School of
Helix Electric Nevada Inc., a Las Vegas-based turnkey electrical contractor, has quietly become an industry giant with a 400-employee work force and $83 million in revenue last year. The company anticipates 10% growth in 2014 due to a recovering economy and demand for solar power and multifamily housing. Helix attributes its success to a combination of business diversity, strong customer service and employee training, and little turnover. “Roughly 70% of our revenue comes from repeat business by approaching client issues as partners and problem solvers,” says Victor Fuchs, company president. “We supported many of our clients during the recession, and
Courtesy Tony Illia The new control tower at McCarran Airport in Las Vegas, Nev., looks to be delayed for one-year due to "construction issues," according to the FAA. The new 352-ft.-tall federal air traffic control tower at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas faces at least a one-year delay for repairs after an antimicrobial coating flaked from ductwork and became airborne, say project officials.A spray chemical was applied to dry building walls, ducts and subfloors, curbing a potentially toxic black mold called stachybotrys chartarum, which previously shutdown local buildings in the 1990s and 2000s. When the coating was placed in
By Jason Fifield Sun Devil Stadium in the midst of work to remove more than 5,00 seats from the north end zone. A little more than 55 years after it was originally constructed — and more than five years since the renovations were deemed necessary — Arizona State University announced on Thursday that Hunt Construction and Sundt Construction, Inc. will be the construction manager at-risk for the project.The university also announced that Arizona-based Gould Evans and national stadium design experts HNTB Corporation will handle design duties. Costs and details will be refined over the next year and construction is slated
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