The pace of home construction jumped to its highest level since last November. The news comes as a surprise to analysts. Bloomberg.com reports that housing starts climbed 13.2 percent to a 1.07 million annualized rate following March’s 947,000 pace, the Commerce Department said. The increase in housing starts was dominated…(Read More)
New York’s Tappan Zee Bridge served as the as the backdrop for President Obama this week, as he renewed calls for improved infrastructure across the country. Obama says quality infrastructure will bring quality jobs to the construction sector. The 60-year-old Tappan Zee Bridge is one of the largest rebuilding projects in the…(Read More)
Can construction companies and other organizations include positive attitude in job descriptions and policies? “The National Labor Relations Board says that workplace policies requiring employees to behave in a ‘positive and professional manner’ actually violate federal law,” writes Ray Hennessy, editorial director at Entrepreneur.com. “One employer, a non-union hospital, set up a workplace…(Read More)
Graphene and a self-healing concrete are among the six construction materials that will likely transform the future of building. Dina Spector, a reporter at Business Insider takes a look at the brighter, lighter, and more energy efficient materials that have the attention of engineers and researchers. http://www.businessinsider.com/futuristic-construction-materials…(Read More)
Is your organization up to speed on behavioral interviews? Construction companies and other employers don’t want rehearsed examples from candidates about their past work successes and challenges. Instead, decision makers want talent to explain how they might behave in a specific situation. As Steve Squier, strategic director at Seven Step RPO writes, behavioral interviews…(Read More)
The construction and building trades were once the kings of apprenticeships, but those days are long gone. Manufacturing and other sectors are working to create innovative programs, especially for those who don’t plan to attend college full-time. These new initiatives are attractive to young adults who get paid on-the-job training, and…(Read More)
A survey from CareerBuilder finds that 57 percent of businesses, including construction companies, will be hiring recent college grads in 2014. That’s up from 53 percent last year and 44 percent in 2010. According to a post on USAToday.com, the uptick is positive news, despite the fact that beginning salaries are unchanged from…(Read More)
The U.S. News/Raytheon STEM Index, a comprehensive measurement tool that analyzes key factors relating to science, technology, engineering and math jobs and education, has released its findings. A post on USNews.com states: “After a long period of flat to down indicators, there has been some upward movement, particularly in the actual number…(Read More)
Technology that began as a military reconnaissance project for soldiers navigating the layout of a room will soon be field tested in the construction industry. The Rapid Building Energy Modeler (RAPMOD) is a high tech backpack that’s outfitted with a Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) scanner, an inertial measurement unit and a visible light…(Read More)
There’s been an increase in the number of P3 projects across the country. “More local and state governments are tapping private dollars to build, repair and maintain public infrastructure,” writes Hilary Russ of Reuters News Service. There are several noteworthy projects mentioned by Russ, who points out that the Keystone State is a busy…(Read More)
