The U.S. General Services Administration has added its list to the growing stream of projects expected to hit the market under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the stimulus package. The list represents $5.55 billion in total spending with $4.5 billion dedicated to converting federal facilities to high-performance green buildings. The list includes hundreds of projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and two U.S. territories. Photo: GSA The Herbert Hoover Building modernization project in Washington, D.C., will receive $225.6 million in stimulus funding for two of its eight phases. The complete list can be
Construction interests in Venezuela are watching with concern as the country struggles to recast its budget to handle new economic pressures brought on by a precipitous fall in the price of oil in the past year. More than 90% of Venezuela’s export revenue comes from oil. But petroleum prices have plummeted more than 50% in the past nine months, triggering a dramatic budget shortfall in South America’s leading oil-producing country. In a nationally televised announcement on March 21, Venezuela President Hugo Chavez unveiled a package of austerity measures and tax hikes to handle the growing economic pressures. Photo: Odebrecht Contractors
More economic-stimulus funds will be on their way to states and localities from the Dept. of Energy under a block-grant program established by the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act. DOE announced March 26 it is providing $3.2 billion to states, localities and tribes through the new Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program. Funds can be used for a wide range of energy-efficiency activities. Construction-related applications include: upgrades and energy audits for residential and commercial buildings; installing renewable-energy systems on state or local government buildings; developing and implementing building codes and inspections; and setting up financial incentives for energy-conservation upgrades.
As Venezuela’s government has undertaken the difficult task of recasting its budget to handle the new economic pressures — notably the precipitous fall in oil prices — construction interests are watching the developments with concern. In a nationally-televised announcement last Saturday, Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez unveiled a new initiative of austerity measures and tax hikes to meet the country’s growing budget shortfall. More than 90 percent of Venezuela’s export revenue comes from oil whose prices have plummeted more than 50% in the past nine months. Photo: Odebrecht The so-called “third bridge” over the Orinoco River in Venezuela being built by
With $5.9 billion in stimulus package money ready to go, the Dept. of Defense unveiled an expenditure plan that adds up to big opportunities for small contractors. The DOD plan, which was released to Congress on March 20, outlines nearly 3,000 projects that cover a broad mix of new construction, renovations and facility upgrades at sites in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico. The plan includes $2.3 billion in work under the military construction program, with the vast majority dedicated to projects under $10 million. The plan focuses on family housing, troop housing and quality-of-life
McGraw-Hill Construction has revised its forecast for construction starts in 2009 based on the impact of federal stimulus. “Stimulus spending will shift public works from a negative to a plus,” says Robert Murray, chief economist. Highway and bridge work will be up 15% this year as opposed to a 5% to 10% decline. Environmental markets will show a 10% increase instead of a 5% decline. + Image SOURCE: MCGRAW-HILL CONSTRUCTION RESEARCH & ANALYTICS
Over the last six months, the deepening recession its accompanying credit crisis have dramatically changed the construction industry’s cost picture. Construction inflation has gone from the double-digit realm just last summer to between 2% and 6% this quarter. Ten of the 14 major industry cost indexes collected by ENR for this report posted declines during the first quarter, ranging from 0.5% to 8.4%. Slide Show Photo: Michael Moore Related Links: Renegotiations Make Bad Times Worse Labor Deals with Uncertainties Finding Cost Data on the Internet What Drives ENR’s Cost Indexes How To Use ENR’s Cost Indexes View Complete Report with
Even as Alabama transportation officials say federal stimulus money will not cover all the state’s necessary projects, the Birmingham region will soon lose access to $100 million in public transit funds because affected municipalities haven’t put together a plan after four years. The Federal Transit Administration money was set aside in a 2005 highway bill with the intent of lessening traffic in the Interstate 65 corridor between Birmingham and northern Shelby County. Disbursement was conditional on an approved plan and 20% local matching funds. Engineers are analyzing traffic-mitigation strategies, but intercommunity cooperation has not coalesced in time for a plan
People needing a new Volvo truck next year will have to pay an extra $9,600 on top of the regular price. Volvo Trucks North America says the surcharge is a result of extra costs associated with selective-catalytic reduction [SCR] in its 2010 diesel engines. SCR uses urea, a diesel exhaust fluid, to scrub nitrogen oxides from the tailpipe. New electronic controls monitor the process. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rules dictate that by Jan. 1, all onroad diesels will have to meet near-zero NOx levels. Next year, Volvo will offer trucks with its own 11-, 13- and 16-liter engines as well
To Todd Harris, trouble at his local bank is a sign of thin times for his building contracting company, J.C. Harris & Sons, which is based in Elgin, Ill., not far from Chicago. Harris keeps an account at Amcore Bank, a mid-sized regional bank, and has even built its branch buildings. But like banks around the world, Amcore reported a loss for 2008: $97.5 million. William McManaman, Amcore’s CEO, told investors that in the last quarter of 2008, builders and developers accounted for the majority of the bank’s new bad loans. So for now, Amcore, like other banks, is about
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