Photo by Tudor Van Hampton for ENR Related Links: Innovation Awards Kick Off Bauma 2013 Trade Show Five Trends To Watch At Bauma 2013 Bauma 2013 Equipment Show OpensSnaking their way through the thick crowds, contractors visiting this year's Bauma expo in Munich were pumped up about hydraulic hybrids—machines that recover fluid energy and save 20% or more in diesel fuel at a fraction of the cost of electric power. "This will change the world in our business," said Caterpillar Chairman and CEO Doug Oberhelman.Caterpillar, Hyundai and Liebherr were all displaying new hydraulic hybrids at the show, which was expected
February Starts Slide 7% At a seasonally adjusted rate of $435.4 billion, new construction starts in February dropped 7% from the previous month, according to McGraw-Hill Construction's latest Dodge starts data. "Diminished activity in January and February indicates that [recent] upward trends remain hesitant," says Robert Murray, MHC's chief economist. On a year-to-date basis, total new starts for the first two months of the year was $62.5 billion, up 5% from the same period a year ago.Utility Rejects Smart-Grid Costs The Colorado Public Utilities Commission on March 21 rejected a request by power provider Xcel Energy, Denver, to recoup the
Employment Picture Improves The construction industry posted strong employment figures for February, adding 48,000 jobs, the largest monthly gain in several years. The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics' monthly employment report shows construction's unemployment rate fell to 15.7% from 16.1% in January. Last month's rate also was better than the year-earlier level of 17.1%. DOE Will Boost Scrutiny Of New Energy Project Funding Energy companies and researchers looking for help from the U.S. Energy Dept. in commercializing renewable-energy and energy-efficiency technologies will face increased scrutiny in the coming years as the agency abandons grants in favor of cost-sharing agreements, a
Photo Courtesy of Richie Bros. Auctioneers The gavel pounded for internet bidders at the Florida equipment auction. Related Links: Equipment Dealers Jump Into the Auction Market IronPlanet Wins Auction Lawsuit Against Ritchie Bros. Hammer Time at Richie Bros. Auction Nearly a third of the $176-million gross sales at last month's Ritchie Bros. Orlando auction went to internet bidders, setting a new company record. "Prices were strong for the smaller heavy construction items as well as one of the nicest selections of cranes that we've ever sold in our yard here in Orlando," says Steve Kriebel, regional sales manager for the
Photo Courtesy of AC Martin Partners The 73-story tower would be the tallest building in downtown Los Angeles. The New Hollywood Star At 73 stories and 1,100 ft tall, the planned $1-billion Wilshire Grand is set to take the crown for the tallest building in downtown Los Angeles. Developed by Korean Air Lines Co., the project features a 900-room hotel, office, retail and seven levels of below-grade parking. Design of the roughly 2-million-sq-ft building was revealed earlier this month by Los Angeles architect AC Martin Partners.The building also would be the city's first modern high-rise not to have a flat
Photo by Tudor Van Hampton for ENR The mood is optimistic in Las Vegas at World of Concrete 2013. Related Links: Tumult Grows Over LEED Rating System Update (ENR 7/23/12) World of Concrete Concrete contractors and suppliers face a decidedly improved construction market this year as new projects and cash flow back into their business pipelines. "The pent-up demand is huge by any standard," said Portland Cement Association's chief economist, Ed Sullivan, who anticipates an 8.1% growth in U.S. cement consumption in 2013 driven mostly by 950,000 new housing starts.Sullivan spoke on Feb. 5 at the annual World of Concrete
Rise in Construction StartsConstruction's tentative recovery appears to be gaining more confidence. The dollar value of total construction starts in 2012 increased 6% over 2011's level, according to McGraw-Hill Construction's Dodge. That follows a 1% annual increase in 2011.Most of last year's increase came from a 29% jump in residential construction, which, at $163 billion, accounted for 35% of all new construction last year. The dollar value of non-building construction was up 2% last year, while the nonresidential building total declined 9%. The non-residential building market included annual declines of 14% for school construction and 6% for health-care work. Last
Federal safety officials have cited Harrison Hoist Inc., Grand Prairie, Texas, for six serious safety violations and fined it $29,400 in connection with a tower-crane collapse during disassembly at the University of Texas, Dallas, that killed two workers on July 7. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited the firm for failing to ensure that disassembly procedures positioned workers to minimize their exposure to danger and failing to ensure the procedures were developed by a qualified person, among other violations. Harrison Hoist crews were working at the site of the new $60-million Arts and Technology Building on the Richardson,
Related Links: What Keeps Construction Up at Night Over the Fiscal Cliff The Fiscal Cliff and the AEC Industry GROGANPundits, politicians, economists, barbers and taxi drivers all speak of the so-called fiscal cliff as if it were a bad thing. Is it really? Is it really even a cliff?Lets back up a bit and take another look at what is going on. What are the consequences of going over the fiscal cliff? First, that supposed devastating tax hike. Not going to happen!Both political parties are firmly locked into maintaining lower tax rates: the Republicans for 100% of taxpayers and
Photo Courtesy of Rien van Rijthoven The hospital project in Castro Valley is seen as a proof of concept for a risk-and-reward-sharing contract with 11 signatories. Photo Courtesy of Novarka The enclosure will eventually entomb the reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear powerplant destroyed in the 1986 disaster. Related Links: An Unprecedented 11 Partners Propel Integrated Project Delivery at $320-million California Hospital California Hospital a Success Story for Integrated Project Delivery 'on Steroids' Sutter Health's first hospital built under a risk-and-reward-sharing contract with 11 signatories was completed six weeks early, within its $320-million budget and with no claims, according to DPR