Tag: construction industry: Page 8

Business

Construction job growth slows in May with 6,000 jobs added

The U.S. construction industry notched its fifth straight month of employment gains in May but saw growth fall off considerably. The industry added 6,000 jobs in May, compared to April’s revised number of 34,000. The original April data from the Commerce Department showed a gain of 32,000 jobs. Construction now employs 6.004 million Americans, 3-percent higher […]

June 6, 2014

Business

Construction spending up 0.2% in April due to increase in government projects

Thanks to gains in both government projects and home building, U.S. construction spending saw another slight boost in April, rising to its highest level in five years. Construction spending rose to $953.5 billion in April, an increase of 0.2 percent from the revised March figure of $951.5 billion. Due to the revision of that figure, what […]

June 2, 2014

Business

Colorado contractors say “huge shortage of tradesmen” is severely impacting business

Contractors in Colorado say that while there is plenty of work to go around, they are falling behind on jobs they have while unable to take on new jobs due to a serious shortage of skilled workers in the state. Doug Dohn of Dohn Construction in Fort Collins told the Coloradoan that none of his current […]

May 7, 2014

Business

Despite being among the only jobs that can’t be outsourced, U.S. is largely blind to construction industry’s worth

The Wall Street Journal recently published an article about the need for more apprenticeships. Sure enough, it contained a misconception common to just about everything you read in the media about construction in this country today. Author Lauren Weber opened with the statement nobody questions, that more apprenticeships are needed to fill the skills gap. […]

May 1, 2014

Business

Construction spending up 0.2% in March as homebuilding hits highest pace in nearly 6 years

U.S. construction spending was up slightly in March due mainly to increases in private residential construction, now at its highest rate in nearly six years. Total spending rose in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $942.5 billion, up 0.2 percent from the revised February figure of $940.7 billion. Due to the revision of […]

May 1, 2014

Dealers

In a digital age, survey shows contractors still value personal interactions with equipment dealers

So how do contractors want to interact with equipment dealers today? A joint Associated Equipment Distributors/Randall-Reilly research project, conducted by our Equipment Data Associates division and tapping the opinions of Equipment World readers, delves into this topic. While technology advances and societal changes are pushing certain approaches to the fore, there are plenty of indications […]

April 25, 2014

Business

Despite slow start to 2014 and concerns, top construction economists forecast growth in spending and jobs

The outlook from respected economists in the construction industry continues to be mixed as all the elements for growth are there but several factors could limit or hurt the industry’s ongoing recovery. Bernard Markstein, chief economist at Reed Construction Data, Kermit Baker, chief economist at the American Institute of Architects and Ken Simonson, chief economist […]

April 17, 2014

Business

Home starts up 2.8% in March, builder confidence up slightly

Home starts rose 2.8 percent in March due to an increase in single-family homes, signaling what many analysts hope to be an end to construction slowdowns caused by the harsh winter weather. U.S. home starts rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 946,000 from February’s revised rate of 920,000. February’s figure was revised upward […]

April 16, 2014

Business

The 6 habits of highly successful construction company owners

In our recent special report, “The Future of Your Construction Company”, we focused so much on contractors retiring or transitioning out of the business that it almost begs a question. What does it take to succeed in the construction business? I’ve been in the fortunate position of interviewing at length dozens of our Contractor of […]

March 28, 2014

Home

Housing starts fall 0.2% in February as builder confidence rises slightly

Despite a large upward revision to January’s number, housing starts fell slightly in February, according to preliminary data from the Commerce Department. The Commerce Department revised January’s number to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 909,000—up 29,000 from the rate of 880,000 reported last month. February home starts fell 0.2 percent to a preliminary rate of […]

March 18, 2014

Business

Divergence of construction spending and employment could point to “fundamental change” in the industry

Recently, the folks at Business Insider put together a nicely done and comprehensive article on the skilled labor shortage affecting the construction industry and the impact it’s having on homebuilding. There wasn’t much new news to be found for those of us who follow these stories on a regular basis. Many of the experienced and […]

March 17, 2014

Business

Mike Rowe opens up about opera, skilled trades and Dirty Jobs (EXCLUSIVE)

All of the new machines are obviously the star of a show like ConExpo. But one of the highlights for the Equipment World team last week at the show was getting to sit down with TV host and newly-minted author Mike Rowe for a conversation on the importance of skilled trades and vocational education. Just […]

March 11, 2014