“Colorado State University is not just about graduating students with a degree in construction management,” says Mostafa Khattab, head of the Dept. of Construction Management at Colorado State University. “We are about making a difference in the lives of everyone around us.” CM Cares, a program created four years ago at CSU, is one of the initiatives designed to instill students with leadership abilities beyond the technical and managerial skills needed to be successful in the construction industry by pairing them with members of the community who have unmet needs for construction-related projects.“It has been a real honor to mentor
Ames Granite Joint Venture and Plenary Roads Denver, the Colorado Dept. of Transportation’s design-build contractor and concessionaire on the U.S. 36 Express Lanes Project, say that Phase 1 of the project has put nearly 250 people to work locally. It is responsible for an additional 130 Colorado subcontracting jobs, the contractor says. Phase 2 has added an additional 200 jobs. The Workforce Development Program has helped the contractor find qualified workers, and more importantly, provides opportunities for people without construction or design experience to gain entry into the field.“This program is a win-win for everyone,” said Workforce Development Program Coordinator
The Colorado Dept. of Transportation’s executive director, Don Hunt, announced in early November his intent to leave the agency at the end of the year, as planned after the re-election of Gov. John Hickenlooper. Hunt’s tenure as director included his leadership during the 2013 flood recovery, innovation in transportation funding—which resulted in increased construction and improvement to Colorado roadways—improving maintenance and operations and the upcoming launch of CDOT’s new commuter bus service. He has served as the agency’s executive director for the past four years.“From the beginning, Don communicated that he would not be a two-term executive director. Don has
The Dodge Momentum Index rose in October, climbing to 125.5 (2000=100) for the month, up 7.6% from September’s reading of 116.6, according to Dodge Data & Analytics. The Momentum Index is a monthly measure of the first (or initial) report for nonresidential building projects in planning, which have been shown to lead construction spending for nonresidential buildings by a full year. The Momentum Index had declined in each of the previous three months, and the increase in October returns the index to the rising trend seen during the first half of this year.The Momentum Index now stands 18% above last year,
It’s been a decade since voters of the Denver metro region approved the Regional Transportation District’s FasTracks transit expansion program. Nov. 2 marked the anniversary of the FasTracks Yes initiative, which passed 58% to 42%. Since then, FasTracks has struggled through an unprecedented spike in the cost of construction materials, which increased project costs, and a tough recession that reduced sales tax revenues, the agency’s main funding source. RTD says those two events have stifled progress on some projects, but agency continues to move ahead with its long-term transit goals.“Without question, we’ve had our challenges, but by partnering with the
The American Council of Engineering Cos. of Colorado honored the winners of its 2015 Engineering Excellence Awards on Nov. 3. Each year a distinguished panel of judges representing a cross section of industry, academia and media rank the entries. Projects in the competition are rated on the basis of uniqueness and innovative applications; future value to the engineering profession; perception by the public; social, economic, and sustainable development considerations; complexity; and successful fulfillment of clients and owners’ needs, including schedule and budget.The 2015 Engineering Excellence award-winning projects will advance to ACEC’s national competition, which will be held next April in
The annual AGC of Colorado Industry Gala and ACE Awards celebration was held at the Sheraton Downtown Denver Hotel on Nov. 14. AGC/C honored its member-firm projects as follows (ACE - 1st Place, Silver - 2nd Place, Bronze - 3rd Place): Project of the Year• Kiewit, Denver Union Station Transit ImprovementsContribution to Community• ACE: GE Johnson Construction Co., Clarity Commons• Silver: Douglass Colony Group Inc., Northern Colorado Springs Readiness Center• Bronze: Cody Flooring & Tile Inc., The Chanda Plan FoundationMeeting the Challenge of a Difficult Job — Specialty Contractor• ACE: Drake-Williams Steel, Veterans Administration Hospital• Silver: Sturgeon Electric Co. Inc.,
The University of Wyoming marked the grand opening of its Marian H. Rochelle Gateway Center on Oct. 24. The Wyoming Division of Denver-based Haselden Construction delivered the project just 26 months after the first fundraising dollar was acquired. Gateway Center provides a recognizable entrance to the campus. The facility includes an event center that seats 600, student admissions, career services, UW Foundation offices, conference rooms, a “family room” complete with fireplace, and Heritage Hall—a gallery-style museum with interactive timelines and highlighting historic Wyoming residents.During the ribbon cutting, Marian Rochelle’s daughter—former state senator and state representative April Brimmer Kunz—said the building
The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association’s (ELFA) Monthly Leasing and Finance Index (MLFI-25) showed that overall new business volume for September was $9.4 billion, up 21% from new business volume in September 2013. Month over month, new business volume was up 31% from August. Year to date, cumulative new business volume increased 8% compared to 2013. The index reports economic activity from 25 companies representing a cross section of the $827-billion equipment finance sector.Receivables over 30 days decreased from the previous month to 1.0% and were up slightly from .09% in the same period in 2013. Charge-offs were unchanged for the sixth
The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had decreased in September, rebounded in October. The index now stands at 94.5 (1985=100), up from 89.0 in September. The Present Situation Index edged up from 93.0 to 93.7, while the Expectations Index increased sharply to 95.0 from 86.4 in September. Consumers’ appraisal of current conditions was moderately more favorable in October than in September. Their view of business conditions was mixed. While the proportion saying conditions are “good” inched up from 24.2% to 24.5%, those claiming business conditions are “bad” also increased slightly, from 21.2% to 21.7%.Consumers’ assessment of the job market
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