Two authors presenting research about megafirms couldn’t have asked for a better example. Megafirm AECOM had just announced the acquisition of construction manager Tishman Construction. The authors identified key trends in the creation of megafirms. One of those trends—"stuck in the middle and short on cash"—describes some big, successful firms. Their research paper, “Supersized Competition: What You Need To Know About the Creation of A/E/C Megafirms,” was discussed on July 15 at the Society for Marketing Professional Services conference in Boston and funded by the SMPS Foundation. It can be found at http://www.smps.org/foundresearch. Authors Alexandra Brown, a marketing consultant, and
Concrete equipment manufacturer Schwing America, St. Paul, Minn., has come out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with a federally approved reorganization plan, new lenders and the full support of its creditors. Photo: Courtesy Schwing America With a new line of credit in place, concrete equipment firm Schwing America sees a return to solid footing in 2011. The company cited assets of $130.6 million and debts of $90.9 million when it filed for protection last September in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in St. Paul. This July, the court approved Schwing’s reorganization plan under which 10 European banks that have relationships with Schwing
A major revision of federal financial regulations has cleared its final congressional hurdle, with the Senate's approval on July 15 of the wide-ranging measure. The bill, named for its main authors, Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) and Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), now goes to the White House. Related Links: Financial Bill May Tighten Construction Credit President Obama is expected to sign the legislation during the week of July 19, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said. Senate passage came on a 60-39 vote as Republicans Scott Brown (Mass.) and Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe, both from Maine, joined 57 Democrats to
Global design giant AECOM Technology Corp., Los Angeles, and leading New York City-based building construction manager Tishman Construction Corp. are linking up to share needed capabilities in a changing construction market. AECOM announced July 14 that it has paid $245 million to acquire Tishman. The deal, which had been rumored for the last several weeks, adds a construction powerhouse to the growing AECOM family of firms operating around the world, while offering Tishman a springboard to expand its operations beyond struggling commercial building markets in the U.S. “The addition of Tishman to the AECOM enterprise reflects our commitment to execute
More rough waters lie ahead for the worldwide construction industry, according to IHS Global Insight Construction Service, Lexington Mass., which predicts further decreases in construction spending. According to first-quarter data from 69 markets, IHS predicted construction spending would remain flat in 2010. However, Laura Hanlon, the research firm’s product manager, admits that, in light of recent economic turmoil, the first-quarter outlook was a little overly optimistic. “As of quarter one, we were still optimistic for a flat 2010,” said Hanlon. “However, we just released a new forecast [on June 30], and with the information we have received through quarter two,
In May, the dollar value of total construction starts rose 3%, according to McGraw-Hill Construction’s latest report on construction activity. Soruce: McGraw-Hill Construction Analytics. ConstructionContract Value Cumulative Year-to-Date Through May 2010 Three percent may not be a remarkable number, but it is notable that most of the gain came in the previously moribund non-residential building market. The sector rose 19% from the previous month but is now down 16% from the five-month cumulative total of last year. Those percentages are an improvement over the 18% year-to-year decline recorded during the previous month. “The good news with May statistics is that
After more than two years in the doldrums, design firms are starting to hear the rumblings of a recovery, but it could be many months before talk turns into action. With private developers still severely hampered by the credit crunch and many public entities facing budget shortfalls, the funding stream for projects remains a trickle. Photo: HDR While there are fewer hospital megaprojects being built, some continue, such as this $1.27-billion replacement hospital for the Parkland Health & Hospital System in Dallas. Related Links: View More on Top 500 Sourcebook 2010 View Complete Top 500 Sourcebook 2010 with Data and
President Obama has signed legislation that aims to help pension plans cope with losses they sustained when financial markets tumbled in 2008 and 2009. Lawmakers removed the pension provisions from a package of tax-break extensions and attached them to a measure that temporarily cancels a looming cut in Medicare payments to physicians. The Medicare-pensions measure gained final congressional approval when the House passed it on June 24. Obama signed the bill the following day. The measure has relief for single-employer and multi-employer, defined-benefit plans. For multi-employer plans, which affect unionized workers and employers in construction and certain other industries, enactment
Senate Republicans--and one Democrat--again have blocked a package of extensions of tax incentives, including some that construction industry groups support. Democrats' failure to win a procedural vote on June 24 sends the drafters of the bill back to the drawing board. The 57-41 vote to cut off debate on the tax "extenders" bill was three votes short of the 60 that Democrats needed. Democrat Ben Nelson of Nebraska joined 40 Republicans who voted "no." It is the third time that an extenders package has been sidetracked on the Senate floor in recent weeks. The latest vote left the fate of
The recession is expected to keep its grip on costs through the second half of this year, despite a shift in what is affected. Construction costs heavily influenced by residential construction have already bounced up from historic lows, but that may be coming to an end, along with the expiration of federal tax credits for first-time homeowners. Costs associated with the nonresidential building markets have bottomed out. But while there is not much room for further declines, there is also very little upward pressure from either the labor or materials markets on the nonresidential building cost indexes. Image Related Links:
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