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Slip or slump: Which way are the housing winds blowing?
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsJanuary — that contrary month for the housing industry — disappointed once again. Across the board, indicators revealed an industry stuck in the doldrums. Housing starts were down from December, as was builder confidence. Sales of existing single-family homes and multifamily construction barely ticked a notch higher.
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Reader Sound-Off: Political obstruction and the Hudson River tunnel project
Ryan Clark Transportation Technology & AutomotiveNew York and New Jersey's new Hudson River tunnel "Gateway" project is making the rounds in the news as it was recently predicted in The Record to become the largest public works project in the country. The article explains how much more funding is necessary because the Gateway project attempts to tackle issues in a broader sense than its canceled predecessor, The Access to the Region's Core (ARC) project.
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Accident prevention: What’s it going to take?
Michael S. Haro, Ph.D. Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementThe news media are consumed with critical incidents in the workplace. Before these incidents are thoroughly investigated and reported on, media outlets jump in, aiding and abetting emotional aspects that incite and seemly encourage an outpouring of negative behaviors.
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Values, lifestyle driving home design choices
Michael J. Berens Interior Design, Furnishings & FixturesLocation, location, location is the mantra familiar to every real estate agent, developer, builder and prospective homebuyer. In today's more mobile society, however, location is no longer all that matters. Nor are size and status. Whether millennials or baby boomers, buyers are looking for homes that support their changing lifestyles and reflect their values. Home design is morphing to meet their demands.
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How to develop and implement a preliminary notice policy
Nate Budde Construction & Building MaterialsThe construction industry runs on credit. As such, most credit departments (and some smaller financial teams) have credit policies that guide when to extend, and how to collect, credit. A preliminary notice policy sits within your credit policy, describing how to incorporate and protect mechanics lien rights. Specifically, this type of policy details when and how to secure debts using preliminary notices (sometimes called notices to owner or pre-liens), and it expresses your team's philosophy toward lien rights.
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Remodeling industry expecting strong growth in 2016
Michael J. Berens Interior Design, Furnishings & FixturesAll signs point to a year of healthy growth for the remodeling industry in 2016. Indicators across all sectors of the industry are up. Remodelers, renovators, kitchen and bath specialists, designers and architects all express optimism that 2016 will be a better year than 2015 — perhaps the best year for the industry since before 2008.
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Tightening supply to sustain nonresidential construction growth
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsNot all the news about the economy is bad. Numbers coming in for the final month of 2015 show resurgence in activity in nonresidential construction after a drop in November. That trend is projected to continue into 2016, with the commercial sector likely to experience the strongest growth as vacancy rates and employment numbers continue to improve.
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Headwinds mounting as building industry enters 2016
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsThe year is new, but for homebuilders 2016 is looking a lot like 2015 so far. Early projections foresee continued, if gradual, moderate growth. Demand is high, but a number of mitigating factors continue to dog the industry.
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The safety benefits of peer-to-peer observations
Michael S. Haro, Ph.D. Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementWe constantly demonstrate behaviors that are observable to others. In a workplace, these observations are significant for preventing accidents and injuries and need to be encouraged, supported and taken seriously. Peers (co-workers) are critical to the implementation and success of observation, feedback and safe work practices.
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Slower growth forecast for construction industry in 2016
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsEven as construction activity appeared to be slowing down in November, industry experts released their forecasts for 2016 predicting another year of positive growth. Increases are expected in both the residential and nonresidential sectors and in public as well as private spending. Overall and in some sectors, however, the rate of growth is projected to be slower than in the past two years, due to modest improvements in the economy and shortages within the industry.
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