Tag: construction: Page 225

Workforce

Women breaking through construction industry’s “concrete ceiling”

While women still hold the same percentage of the 8.4 million construction jobs in the United States as they did in 1983—a low 2.6 percent—a new report from CNN Money/Fortune shows that the number might be a bit misleading. The latest data shows that while women aren’t occupying carpentry, plumbing or the other intensive labor occupations […]

May 23, 2013

Driver/operator coaching/training

You may already be in violation of OSHA’s new service truck crane rules and not know it

Editors note: Last week OSHA proposed to delay service truck crane operator certification from November 1014 to November 2017. We have edited the following article to reflect that change. A complex new regulation is shaking up the world of small, truck-mounted cranes used to service construction machines and deliver building materials. Until recently, cranes with […]

May 21, 2013

Construction Equipment

Spire-mounted camera captures ascent to the top of the World Trade Center

Nearly two weeks ago, as construction workers looked on with pride, the spire was lifted to the top of the World Trade Center in Manhattan. The building has reached its symbolic height of 1,776 feet and is now the tallest building in the United States and Western Hemisphere. Which is why this video taken from […]

May 15, 2013

Business

John Deere reports record profits in 2nd quarter; construction equipment expected to continue decline

Attributing the news to higher sales of farm equipment, John Deere is reporting its highest ever quarterly net profit of $1.084 billion in the second quarter ending April 30. Compared to the same quarter a year ago, profit was up 2.6 percent from $1.056 billion. For the first six months of the fiscal year starting […]

May 15, 2013

Pickups

Smittybilt Debuts Quick Disconnect D-Rings

Easy To Use; Out Of The Way Releasing your rig – or someone else’s – can be time sensitive, which is why Smittybilt offers Quick Disconnect D-Rings. These heavy duty forged D-Rings, with quick-pin disconnect, are available in 3Ž4” (4.75 ton) or 7/8” (6.5 ton), and either a bright Zinc finish or black powder coat. […]

May 14, 2013

Business

Construction economists: spending on slow upward march, housing has long way to go

There are several pluses and minuses in today’s construction spending front, although the overall picture is trending upwards, agreed three construction economists participating in a Reed Construction Data forecast webinar today. “Construction is growing, but it is growing unevenly,” said Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America. Simonson sees growth in […]

May 10, 2013

Business

U.S. rental construction, lack of first-time home buyers a sign of “inferior housing recovery”?

Despite recent dips in construction spending and employment, the mood in the industry is, well, better. Better than it was last year anyway as 151,000 jobs have been added since then, the unemployment rate is down to 13.2 percent and spending is up 5 percent. As we’ve noted before, a lot of this has to […]

May 8, 2013

Business

U.S. needs to “Think Big” like Germany if it wants to escape construction, technician labor shortage

Contractors and equipment dealers struggling to find a solution to the shortage of trained technicians in the United States, need look no further than Germany for an example of how to do it right. The German Engineering Federation, VDMA, last month bussed in more than 10,000 teens to participate in Bauma 2013 and a program […]

May 3, 2013

Business

Lego sticker depicting construction worker’s catcall stirs controversy

Blogger, journalist and organizer Josh Stearns recently posted a photo to his blog of a sheet of Lego stickers that didn’t sit right with him and doesn’t portray the construction industry in a particularly flattering way. One of the stickers, seen to the right and depicting a Lego minifigure in construction worker’s garb with his […]

May 3, 2013

Pickups

National Truck Body Buys Mason Dixon

National Truck Body Purchases Assets of Mason Dixon Trucks & Carriers National Truck Body Solutions, Inc. (NTB), has purchased the heavy-duty truck service and specialty vehicle reseller assets of Mason Dixon Trucks and Carriers. Due in part to this transaction, NTB now has over 100 years of combined experience in the contractors truck and equipment […]

May 1, 2013

Business

Construction spending dips 1.7% in March due to drop in government building; up 4.9% annually

According to data released by the U.S. Commerce Department Wednesday, construction spending dropped 1.7 percent during March to its lowest mark since August 2012. Following a housing-fueled boost of 1.2 percent in February, construction spending was measured in March at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $856.7 billion. According to the data, the monthly drop, […]

May 1, 2013

Safety

Construction is 4th most dangerous profession with 2nd most fatal injuries

There’s a reason we recognize attention to good safety practices with a separate award each year as part of our Contractor of the Year program. Look no further than the most recent numbers on industry death rates from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. According the BLS chartbook, the private construction industry has the fourth-highest […]

April 25, 2013