Prime contractors and subcontractors sign contracts obligating them to defend, indemnify and insure the upstream contracting parties, owners in the case of prime contractors and the prime contractor in the case of subcontractors. Sometimes where an owner blames a contractor for damages, multiple subcontractors are involved. In that case, the prime contractor appoints one defense counsel to defend the prime contractor in the dispute and the costs of defense of the prime contractor might be shared among the various subcontractors’ insurers. If, for some reason, a subcontractor’s insurer is not paying or is slow in paying the prime contractor’s attorneys’
The quality of a business system shows its value in good economies and poor ones. A higher profit captured as compared to peers is an easily measured metric. However, better return on investment may be the more demonstrative measure. div id="articleExtrasA" div id="articleExtrasB" div id="articleExtras" Specialty contracting is a unique business. It is nomadic, variable cost and has uncertain accounts receivable. Much is not controllable, including when a project starts and when work is ready to be installed. I could list several others but, in my opinion, it is unique. Labor is the great wild card in specialty contracting. It
The more than $5-billion infusion of federal stimulus dollars jump-started many transportation projects in the Southeast, but with those lettings winding down and some projects finishing, state transportation departments are now facing smaller budgets and fewer new starts. “Post-stimulus, for all states, is not a pretty picture,” says Todd Long, director of planning for the Georgia Dept. of Transportation in Atlanta. “What we have is a continuation of a transportation bill that has expired on a national level, and that is problematic.” Congress granted an extension of the funding level under the current Federal Highway Program, but has not enacted
Specialty contractors are feeling the pinch of less available work and greater competition in a continuing slow economy. Related Links: Top Specialty Contractors KHS&S Gets Lean Top Specialty Contractor Rankings “It’s a different world than it was two years ago,” says Jack A. Olmstead, president of Tri-City Electrical Contractors in Altamonte Springs, Fla. “We have to dig harder. We work harder.” The electrical contractor has seen deals fall apart at the last minute due to financing problems. It continues to work in health care, assisted living and Dept. of Veterans Affairs projects. OLMSTEAD School jobs have dropped off with population
The last several years have been tough ones for many of the Southeast’s specialty contractors. On this year’s Top Specialty Contractors ranking, revenue is down almost across the board. Photo Courtesy KHS&S Contractors KHS&S of Tampa is installing more than 700 factory-built bathroom units on a dormitory project at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. The project is the contractor’s first as the exclusive installer of Eggrock bathrooms. Photo Courtesy KHS&S Contractors A view of the FAU dormitory project shows numerous of the bathroom units positioned for installation. Final installation occurs after the building is enclosed. Related Links: Top Specialty
A few public projects are keeping at least some South Florida contractors busy at a time when construction activity remains slow in an overbuilt condominium and office tower market. “There’s much more activity than there was last year at this time,” says Tom Murphy Jr., chairman and CEO of Coastal Construction Group in Miami, who adds that Florida is one of the worst states for new starts. Coastal began only one project last year, necessitating layoffs through 2009. However, the firm is now rehiring. “We’re starting back in positive territory as far as people,” Murphy says. Coastal is building a
Southeast Construction presents its third annual Top Design-Build Contractors ranking. Derived from information obtained during the Top Contractors survey conducted earlier this year, it documents the amount of revenue related to design-build activities by the contracting firms that participated in that ranking. Related Links: Top 50 Design Builders Ranking The Top Design-Build Contractors ranking is based upon 2009 regional revenue that each firm estimated came from design-build projects within the four-state region of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina. The ranking also includes more information about each firm, including the location of its main regional office, phone number and
Researchers reported results of two key studies—one on using real-time technology to reduce the danger of working around construction equipment and another on the impact of project-site leadership on safety—to the Construction Industry Institute’s annual conference held Aug. 4-5 in Orlando, Fla. Photo: Courtesy Of Georgia Institute Of Technology Warning device worn by a worker (below) approaching a danger zone emits a signal picked up by a device in the equipment’s cab (above). . Photo: Courtesy Of Georgia Institute Of Technology Several safety-related topics were discussed at the event, including technology-based safety, which members and academics are researching in an
Turner Construction Co., New York City, is looking to put $333 million back on its books after it won a bid protest over a new 745,000-sq-ft hospital planned for Fort Benning, Ga. Photo: Fort Benning, Ga. Army site’s hospital project was focus of contract protest. . On Aug. 5, the Savannah District of the Army Corps of Engineers reinstated the design-build contract, which had been terminated in March over charges of organizational conflicts of interest. The job re-award follows a July claims court ruling that agreed with Turner’s appeal of a decision by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) against
Florida’s three broad categories of construction contract activity declined by double-digit percentage points in June, resulting in a 21% overall decline, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, publisher of Southeast Construction. During June, the state experienced nearly $1.8 billion in new contracts for future construction. The nonresidential market fell by 22% during June to tally approximately $716.3 million. That compared to the $919.7 million of a year ago. The value of new residential starts slipped as well, dropping by 12% for a monthly total of approximately $696.8 million. A year ago, the residential sector delivered nearly $794.1 million in new projects. Falling
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