About the author: Jennifer Hicks | SmartBlogs
Jennifer Hicks edits SmartBrief newsletters on construction, green building and freight railroads, among other areas. Before joining SmartBrief, she was a college professor for 12 years and owner of a consulting business that worked with government agencies and Fortune 100 companies on improving the content and usability of their website. She considers herself very fortunate to live on Cape Cod. You can follow her on Twitter @SB_AEC.
Six years of recession in the U.S. has cut a $1.2 trillion-a-year construction industry into one that is worth about $800 billion a year. It also chopped more than 2 million jobs from the industry, according to data from the Associated General Contractors of America. However, a survey by AGC and co-sponsored by Computer Guidance leads AGC to look at 2013 as a potential turning point with tentative signs of recovery.[…] Continue Reading »
There are three core questions that need to be answered if you’re interested in sustainable facilities management, according to John Young, lead for Federal Real Property and Facility Management Solutions for Esri.
- What is the current state of your facility’s assets?
- What is the level of service your tenants require?
- What assets are critical to sustain that performance level?
LEED v4 contains “relatively dramatic changes,” Doug Gatlin, vice president of market development at the U.S. Green Building Council, said at a news conference at Greenbuild 2012 in San Francisco. LEED v4 is in its fifth comment period, and there is quite a buzz — and some negative feedback — going on.
Launched in 2000 by the USGBC, the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System was created as a way to provide third-party certification that a building was built “green.” It bills itself as a “voluntary, consensus-based standard to support and certify successful green building design, construction and operations.”
Since 2006, there have been few significant technical changes, Gatlin said.[…] Continue Reading »
The election is over and we still have a divided Congress and impending “fiscal cliff.” So what can the construction industry expect during Congress’ lame-duck session, and next year? That was the topic of a conference call last week with members of the Associated General Contractors of America.
Post-election numbers show a slightly smaller Republican majority in the House and a slightly stronger Democratic majority in the Senate, said Jeff Shoaf, senior executive director of government and public affairs at AGC.[…] Continue Reading »
The architecture, engineering and construction industry is in better shape than it was a year ago, and the upward trend could continue, three economists said during a webcast by Reed Construction Data. However, the “fiscal cliff,” troubled state economies, tight lending standards and the Obama administration’s regulatory agenda are headwinds that could alter the trend, they said.[…] Continue Reading »
Twitter
Facebook
Linkedin
RSS
