The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) recently issued a statement against the current immigration bill now in the Senate. The NAHB is particularly concerned about employment verification provisions currently included in the bill. The bill is attracting a lot of attention among voters and political officials. You can read more about the immigration debate at Yahoo! News.
In the first installment of the Construction Equipment Owner’s Podcast - which will be a regular feature of this blog - ForConstructionPros.com Editor Sam Simon speaks with Bill Coleman, COO of IronPlanet. The two discuss online auctions and how contractors use the service to purchase and sell equipment. Press play to begin listening to the interview or click the download link to save the file and play on any device that plays MP3 files.
Also, check back for upcoming Editor’s podcasts about pavement sweeping, hearing protection, National Demolition Association study results and much more.
You’ve probably recently received in the mail your April/May issue of Concrete Contractor. When I sat down for my interview with the subjects of my cover story, Dennis and Gayle Purinton of Purinton Builders in East Granby, Conn., we talked about a lot of issues that didn’t make it into the article. Dennis told me the three biggest challenges he faces as the owner of a concrete firm are:
1. finding good employees
2. dealing with government regulations
3. rising insurance costs
In order to meet those challenges, Dennis offers full benefits for his employees to stay competitve in the market, is an active member in the Concrete Foundations Association (CFA) as a way to stay on top of government regulations, and holds weekly safety meetings and looks for other ways to keep insurance costs to a minimum.
A recent article in The August Chronicle looks at how rising construction materials costs are increasing the overall costs of public sector jobs in Columbia County, Georgia. The article reports that according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Producer Price Index, concrete prices increased 0.8 percent in March and 5.3 percent over the past year.
How are rising construction materials costs in your area affecting your business? Have you done anything to soften the blow from rising costs?
Nationwide, there is more than one unintentional hit per minute every day of an underground utility line. On May 1, calling your local “digger’s hotline” got a lot easier with the launch of the national 811 number. By calling 811 from anywhere in the United States, your call will be routed to the nearest “digger’s hotline.” The number is up and running from land lines, and most cell phone companies are currently in compliance or working on being in compliance shortly.
