Reshaping the Construction Industry

It is the middle of summer and we thought that you deserved a break from nailing, hanging, drilling, welding and all of those tasks you do in your day jobs. We noticed in a recent Fast Company post by Daniel Terdiman that Autodesk has an Applied Research Lab, and the team is playing with three industrial robots to look at the future uses of Autodesk products with industrial robots.The research team learned, much to their delight, that Bot & Dolly, the San Francisco based tech firm behind the dynamic projections in the film Gravity, were using Autodesk products for these projections.Two things fascinate me. First, Autodesk is pushing the robotics software in their lab, and second, Bot & Dolly are doing amazing things. Oh and yes, Google bought Bot & Dolly to add to their portfolio of companies and to expand their reach.   

The following article originally appeared in the July newsletter to clients of Kiley Advisors, LLC for the purpose of providing the latest leading indicators and industry issues to those clients. Reprinted with permission.Has the bottom been reached for oil and gas?Oil prices appear to have settled around $60/barrel and the rig count and well permits seem to have bottomed in April, showing positive signs in May, for the first time in months, that the decisiveness and deep cuts that quickly permeated the oil and gas industry earlier this year could be over.   

Construction spending hits 6-1/2 year high in May; metro job gains shrink; ABI moves upEditor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.Construction spending in May totaled $1.036 trillion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, the highest rate since October 2008, the Census Bureau reported today. The level was up 0.8% from the rate in April (which was revised up by a steep 2% or $20 billion) and up 8.2% from May 2014. Private nonresidential spending increased 1.5% for the month and 13% year-over-year, private residential spending rose 0.3% and 7.8%, respectively, and public construction spending gained 0.7% and 2.8%. However, the residential total masks a 13% year-over-year rise in new construction (21% for multifamily and 11% for single-family) and a drop of 3.4% in improvements. A 70% increase in manufacturing construction (led by a doubling of spending for chemical plants and tripling for transportation equipment plants) made this the largest private nonresidential segment. Next came power construction (conventional and renewable power plus oil and gas fields and pipelines), down 22% year-over-year, followed by commercial (new and renovated retail, warehouse and farm), up 11%; and office, up 27%. The two top public segments also had year-over-year gains: highway and street construction, 1.7%; and public educational spending, 3.4%. Census made annual revisions to 2013 and 2014 data. Total spending rose 6.6% in 2013 (instead of 5.6%) and 4.8% in 2014 (instead of 5.5%).   

Editor’s note: The following was originally published in Cornerstone, the quarterly magazine of AGC Houston.  Reprinted with permission.“If you want something done, ask a busy person.”  I am not sure to whom or what Benjamin Franklin was referring when he made the statement, but he very easily could have been describing the AGC Houston chapter during the first months of 2015.While the drop in oil prices has created a cause for concern, Houston continues to enjoy a very strong construction market.  Despite some markets seeing a bit of a slowdown, there continues to be plenty of work to bid and build on.  With that being said, the support so many members give the chapter through their involvement is especially gratifying.  It is difficult to single out individuals for their contributions because so many members impact directly our organization in numerous capacities.  However, I would like to recognize a few for their good work over the past few months.