Construction Education Builds Norman Construction Workforce

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HBW subscribers know there are more jobs for skilled construction workers in Oklahoma than can be found in most other states. The strong local economies of Tulsa and Oklahoma City have led to a steadily increasing construction boom. The only real problem is that the local workforce isn’t big enough to meet the demand. Fortunately, as Anna Trowbridge of the Oklahoman reports, the Moore Norman Technology Center has stepped up to the plate to build the area’s workforce of skilled building professionals.

According to carpentry instructor Mark Estell, their construction technology program receives dozens of calls per month seeking students skilled in the carpentry trades to fill positions on local crews. The enter can’t seem to graduate students fast enough to meet demand. Wages are good for carpentry and construction professionals in Oklahoma, but Estell says, “I can’t put them out fast enough. It’s the same with other construction trades instructors in CareerTech. There are more jobs than we can put out highly trained and qualified graduates.” Center graduates find jobs almost immediately and have strong prospects for advancement and promotion in the industry.

The gap between available construction work and the number of skilled professionals to fill those positions is continually widening. A Forbes reported last year, “53% of skilled-trade workers in the U.S. were 45 years and older…and 18.6 percent were between the ages of 55 and 64.” Much of the current labor pool is nearing retirement, and there aren’t enough people entering the industry to replace them.

The Center’s carpentry students get experience constructing a home from foundation to finishing, while earning both the OSHA 10 card and the General Induction Card (The Blue Card) during their program, all of which makes them very desirable to construction groups. Students learn about reading blueprints, framing and cabinetry, and how to work as a team member., both of which translate to $3-$5 per hour increase in starting pay. Program completion makes students eligible to be considered an apprentice carpenter.

To learn more about the Moore Norman Career Technology Center, go to www.mntc.edu or call 364-5763, ext. 7260.

Porch.com Connects Building Professionals with Contractors and Clients

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Fortune reports that Porch.com, a Seattle-based home improvement networking company that connects homeowners to building professionals, is making waves with its latest partnership. After just barely a year in business, the startup has jumped to 250 employees and 1.5 million professional listings, which was facilitated largely through their partnership with Lowe’s.

When homeowners consult with Lowe’s staff about hiring contractors, they are directed to the Porch.com site. The partnership with Lowe’s is the first thing that Porch.com’s representatives mention in each sales call. Like Yelp—which Porch shamelessly patterns itself after–Porch inquires about the marketing needs of businesses and suggests they subscribe to a “pro” account.

The partnership is a no-brainer for Porch CEO Matt Ehrlichmann, who says that, “Not every professional knows Porch, but everybody knows Lowe’s. We’ve got about 70 people right now that are out there selling to home service professionals. What these folks can do is use the Lowe’s brand to get us in the door.”

Lowe’s CDO Richard Maltsbarger’s enthusiasm about the partnership is clear. The great part about our proposition and partnership with Matt and Porch,” he says, “is that between our knowledge of home improvement, and the Porch team’s knowledge of technology, the Internet, and big data, we have total expertise.”

Another key partnership Porch has made is with Realtor.com. Realtor.com’s data pool forms the basis for the site’s “Porch Home Reports,” which are given to potential homeowners for free. Each report shows the renovation history, improvement projects, and repairs that were done over the years, as well as information about the contractors who did the work. It’s somewhat like a Carfax report for homes.

Tracy Mahnken, the senior vice president of product management for Realtor.com, recognized that there is “a really complimentary relationship” between what each company does. “If we’re focused on the 2.5 million homes that are for sale, Porch is focused on the 95 million that are not. But a homeowner that has taken that kind of time to put in all that detailed information about their home,” she says, “that home will come up for sale. It will come up for sale in a year, maybe two years. So what Porch is doing only helps us build out our database further.”

To further enhance its professional features, Porch.com has recently launched its “Pro Dashbaord,” which is offered free to building professionals. What costs will be the reports, marketing assistance, and “featured pro” status listing. While the site has significant appeal as a business listing site, it is rapidly growing into a viable social networking tool for building professionals.

 

Imperial Sugar Land Welcomes Meritage Homes

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HBW subscribers in the Houston area seeking residential construction job leads have been looking very closely at Sugar Land. Houston-based Johnson Development Corp, developer of record for the Imperial Sugar Land development, has finally decided on a homebuilder for the 127-acre parcel near Texas State Highways 6 and 90A. Arizona-based residential homebuilding giant Meritage Homes has agreed to build 335 single-family homes in a new master-planned community. HBW’s building permit activity report for the Houston market has more detailed information available for builders who want to know about this development.

Originally slated for a business park district, the 127-acre site proved more profitable as a saleable asset. According to Shay Sharfie, the general manager of Imperial Sugar Land, the decision was based on current market demand in the Houston area. According to Shafie, “We try to keep out finger on the market and adapt” to capitalize on a profitable market.

Johnson Development will develop nearly 1/3 of the total acreage for Meritage Homes by year-end 2015. Floor plans and prices will be announced soon thereafter, with construction set to begin in early spring 2016. The Meritage addition will join two other neighborhoods in Imperial Sugar Land. Darling Homes, a Frisco, TX-based builder, along with Houston’s Partners in Building, LP have already begun work on the 30-acre Quiet Cove neighborhood, which features fine patio homes.

Silent Manor, a 15-acre neighborhood across the lake from Quiet Cove, is being developed by Sitterle Homes, a San Antonio-based builder, and Houston-based Trendmaker Homes. Sitterle Homes is building Mediterranean-style homes, and Trendmaker is developing two-story townhomes. To the south of Silent Manor, Houston-based Gracepoint homes is developing three-story brownstone homes. Sueba, USA Corporation, also based in Houston, is developing the 257-unit luxury Ballpark Lofts apartments.

Imperial Sugar Land also plans to incorporate a mixed-use district. Hotels, office space, and retail shops will also feature prominently in the community’s master plan. Constellation Field, a minor-league baseball arena, is part of the current Imperial Sugar Land plan, as is a weekly farmer’s market. The Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center and the Sugar Land Heritage Foundation Museum will also be built in the Imperial Sugar Land community.

USGBC Extends LEED 2009 Through 2016

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LEED v4 wasn’t designed for simplicity, and this has caused some challenges for builders and developers who want to work with LEED certification. To alleviate the difficulties posed in the transition from LEED 2009 to LEED v4, the United States Green Building Council has decided to extend the registration for projects being built under the 2009 regulations. Previously, the deadline was June 15, 2015, but the new deadline is October 31, 2016. It is believed that this will give LEED users and other members of the green building community much-needed additional prep time for adopting the LEED v4 standards.

According to Rick Fedrizzi, the CEO & founding chair of the USGBC, LEED v4 was launched “with one goal in mind–to raise the bar in a way that challenges the building industry to reach higher than ever before. This is our nature and USGBC and its members’ collective mission.” Fedrizzi adds that the extension has been made in response to requests for “additional time to prepare for LEED v4, so we are responding.”

LEED v4 has been on the market for a year, but a survey conducted during the USGBC’s annual Greenbuild conference, showed 61% of respondents indicating a “not ready” or “unsure” status regarding their wherewithal to pursue LEED v4. The stricter code has also met with hesitation among international builders. Fedrizzi explains that “Our international LEED users, which account for some 50 percent of new LEED registrations, have also indicated they would like to have more time to move onto the new rating system,” noting that “This extension will be especially helpful to them.” It is felt that the extension will give the green building industry a longer time frame to pursue meaningful and comprehensive change in green construction practices.

The LEED framework was designed to not only positively impact the environment, but also to give developers dynamic, real-time “building performance data spanning water, energy, occupant satisfaction and more, giving building owners critical insight into how their building is performing,” says Fedrizzi. The LEED framework has driven stunning innovation in building technology and operations practices. It has been credited with facilitating the incredible growth of the green building sector, creating 7.9 million jobs, and contributing $554 billion to the U.S. economy nationally.

 

 

 

2014 To Be Second Best Year Ever For Texas Housing Market

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In a report issued by Texas A&M’s Real Estate Center, economists say they expect 2014 to be a record-setter for the Texas real estate market.

Jim Gaines, an economist with the center, says that “Last year was the second-best year ever in the state of Texas for home sales volume,” adding that, “It was second only to 2006, which was at the height of the housing boom and all the easy financing. And 2013 wasn’t that far off from that. This is going to become the new second-best year ever. We are having a really terrific year.” The report goes on to say that 217,690 homes had been sold in Texas as of the end of September, which is a 1% gain over last year’s booming numbers.

Gaines attributes the record sales to “a slowdown in the rate of increase,” with 2013 sales jumping 16% over 2012, but 2014’s numbers increasing only slightly over the previous year’s. “There’s been a step-up in prices the last five years,” Gaines explains, “and we’re still seeing that step up. But the rise of the step isn’t quite as high.” Home prices conform to the trending rate increases.

Steve Fithian, an agent with Sperry Van Ness/Visions Commercial has brokered quite a few deals in the DFW area during 2014, most notably a long-vacant Blockbuster Video building and a small office complex in central Dallas. According to Fithian, sales like this indicate that “The economic recovery is apparent in DFW, Job opportunities are expanding, industries are growing,” states Fithian, “and the real estate market is heating up. Considering where things were five years ago, it’s exciting to see how healthy the real estate market is becoming.”

Real Estate power site Zillow has predicted that homes in the DFW area will rise 4.4% by the end of 2014. The median home value is up 6.1% over a year ago, with median prices sitting at $148,000. Zillow confirms that these increases have placed the DFW housing market squarely within pre-2007-2010 recession levels.

10% Jump in Construction Starts for September

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According to McGraw Hill Construction, the seasonally adjusted annual rate of $604.1 billion amounts to a 10% increase nationwide in September. This welcome increase follows a the disappointing yo-yo pattern of July and August, and marks the highest level in construction activity so far for 2014.

Commercial, institutional, and other non-residential construction gained sharply during September, with noticeable increases in manufacturing plants and public utility repair and refurbishment construction. Residential building, on the other hand, declined in the month-to-month numbers for the year-to date, although the 9 months of unadjusted construction starts averaged $419.5 billion, marking a 5% increase over the numbers in September 2013.

The Dodge Momentum index rose 12 points from August levels, which places it slightly ahead of July’s rating of 126, according to construction data expert McGraw Hill Construction. McGraw Hill economist Robert A. Murray explains that although construction starts dropped 10% in Q1 and 6% inQ3 for 2014, “A key factor in keeping the construction expansion going in 2014 has been the greater role now being played by non-residential building.  Commercial building has continued to see moderate growth from low levels, and the manufacturing building category is still showing a surge of chemical and energy-related plants reach groundbreaking.”

Institutional categories are up across the board, which translates to the construction of institutional structures being able to contribute to the non-residential building boom.   According to Murray, “residential building is now providing a much smaller lift than in the past two years, as the sluggish performance by single family housing has outweighed further gains by multifamily housing.”

The year-to-date drop in residential amounts to 9%, leveling off at $212.7 billion. The year’s hottest sector, multifamily housing, fell a staggering 23% from the strong August levels. September saw four major multifamily projects valued in excess of %100 million apiece, break ground. A $266 million condominium hotel in Hollywood, a $230 million multifamily project in Washington, D.C., a new condominium complex in Honolulu totaling $215 million, and a $183 million condo tower in Miami, Fl. New York, NY, Washington, D.C., Miami, FL, Los Angeles, CA, and San Francisco, CA were the five largest-spending metropolitan areas in September. 

The 3% dip in single family-housing for September is the third consecutive month of decline after the spike in late spring. The flat residential pattern nationwide for 2014 continues. Single family construction weakened by 6% in the Southeast, 4% in the Gulf Coast, and 3% in the West. However, modest gains of 2% in the Midwest and 4% in the Northeast were made.

According to Murray, “This year’s stall for single family housing means that the lift provided to total construction is much less than what occurred during the prior two years, when single family housing advanced 29% in 2012 and 26% in 2013.  The 20% down payment requirement, generally in effect since the end of the financial crisis, has made it difficult for lower and middle income households to get approved for a mortgage, and more attention is now being directed by federal officials at ways to expand access to home loans.”

Officially Released: the Reorganized ACI 318-14 Concrete Construction Guide

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The American Concrete Institute (ACI), has finally released the updated and reorganized ACI 318-14: Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete. The 2015 International Building Code will reference 318-14.

While the American Concrete Institute’s mission has always been to create and distribute industry-gleaned consensus knowledge about the uses and types of structural concrete, 318-14 marks the first time in decades that they leapt forward in realizing those goals. After decades of near-unintelligiblity, the 318 has been revised and reorganized, making it more user-friendly for building code enforcement in the construction industry. Many see the current update as the most dramatic changes since 1971. Whereas the entire industry had previously seen ACI 318 as a ponderous document that was tedious to read and difficult to understand, the current edit, which streamlines several chapters, rearranges key information, and simplifies the language being used, is a welcome change.

The changes to the code have come about in response to the improved knowledge of innovation in concrete materials, of how structural concrete behaves, and of increased sophistication in structural concrete technology. The latest changes, however, give a new, clearer, context for that information. According to award-winning structural engineer Cary Kopczynski, the current revisions “revolve mainly around the organization of the code requirements, shifting the focus from a “force-based” to “element-based” format.” For example, instead of organizing the document according to the different forces that affect concrete such as shear and flexure, the new code addresses how concrete performs when it is used in particular building elements such as slabs, columns, and beams.

In older versions of the code, builders had to flip back and forth madly between chapters, piecing together the code for a given structure. In the newly updated code, the structure being built has everything you need to know about the proper code compiled cleanly together in a single chapter. In cases where a complex design incorporating multiple elements is being built, take rebar bends, for example, the information will be published in a “toolbox chapter” that will avoid needlessly repeating information by referencing the previous chapters.

  • Improved language and style consistency
  • More expansive use of tables and charts
  • Improved logic and flow of information
  • Member-based organization to quickly locate relevant code information
  • Construction requirements centralized in one chapter
  • Significant highlights of the new ACI 318 include:
  • Improved language and style consistency
  • More expansive use of tables and charts
  • Improved logic and flow of information
  • Member-based organization to quickly locate relevant code information
  • Construction requirements centralized in one chapterThe building code committee of the American Concrete Institute updates ACI 318 every three years. The ACI standardization procedure mandates that the draft of these changes be made available for public review for a period for 45 days prior to the update being submitted to the International Code Council. To review the new code, visit the ICC website.
  • It was clear to the committee that further updates are needed as soon as possible, but the need to both update and reorganize the information was a daunting and time-consuming task. Many vital updates have been postponed until the 2017 update. The current edition isn’t a simpler or condensed version of the structural concrete building code, but it is a clearer and more user-friendly one that designers and builders will be very happy to see.

Mixing It Up in Suburbia- Mixed Use Property Skyrockets in Dallas Submarkets

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The suburbs of Richardson and Plano are upping the ante in the Dallas real estate market. In an effort to anticipate the demands of an increasing population density in the region, both cities are raising height limits for office towers and expanding their zoning for mixed-use properties. Fully entitled, vacant land is becoming scarce in the Dallas area, which the raised height limits and mixed-use zoning for both cities are hoped to alleviate.

A 55-acre tract along U.S. Highway 75 and Renner Road in Richardson has received increased office tower height limits. The maximum building height for the office building along central Expressway and the Bush Turnpike was raised from 180 feet to 300 feet. The growing demand for more office development is reflected in the increased project height. The development will be build beside the 1.5 million-square-foot State Farm Insurance Corp. campus currently being built in the CityLine development. As yet unnamed, this project will combine retail, residential, and commercial office space plotted along a central boulevard.

Richardson mayor Laura Maczka acknowledges that although multifamily developments “are a hot-button [topic] in this community,” the multifamily provision for the tract has been in place for years, and they aren’t “adding more multifamily that’s not already on the books.” In fact, The number of multifamily residential units has dropped to 100 units from the 1,250 that were originally planned.

Last February, retail giant J. C. Penney partnered with Karahan Companies, Columbus Realty, and KDC to develop the Legacy West business park on 240 acres of vacant land surrounding its Plano headquarters. last week, the Plano town council approved of zoning changes for the first phase of the Legacy West project that will include mid-rise residential towers of 5-12 stories in height. Similar to the Karahan’s other project, Legacy Town Center, this $300 million project will include a hotel, shops, restaurants, and offices along with the multifamily housing. The Council also approved Legacy West’s rezoning request to include 800 units of multifamily housing and single-family homes on 70 acres along the southwest corner of Dallas North Tollway and Headquarters Drive. The project will also include a highly concentrated business center near State Highway 121 and the Dallas North Tollway that will include up to 1,000 multifamily units.

This rezoning has allowed the Legacy West timetable to be accelerated. According to developer Fehmi Karahan, the partners plan to have Legacy West ready for the arrival of Toyota’s North American headquarters in California that will serve the 4,000 workers who will be employed at the company’s new U.S. Headquarters. The developers’ decision to make the area pedestrian-friendly was one of the Council’s major motivating factors.

 

 

 

Aubuchon Homes Expands into Southwest Florida

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HBW subscribers know that Southwest Florida is a boom market for residential construction. The boom has grown so strong that Cape Coral builder Aubuchon Homes is expanding deeper into the region. Aubuchon Homes is accomplishing this goal by taking its Sterling collection to Fort Meyers. They are showcasing their new collection with one display home located on McGregor Boulevard, and plan to build another on an adjacent lot. Unlike model homes, which are for show only, these furnished display homes are being built for market.

Public perception of Aubuchon Homes as a Cape Coral builder is part of why they decided to build in Fort Meyers. Company president Gary Aubuchon says that, “people associate us as a Cape Coral builder and we want to change that,” said Gary Aubuchon, president of Aubuchon Homes.”

Aubuchon builds homes in every county of Southwest Florida, and they plan to strengthen their presence as a regional builder by opening an office near Bonita Beach Road. The office is slated for a January opening. Bonita Springs Chamber of Commerce president  and CEO Christine Ross is thrilled to see Aubuchon move into the city. “[Businesses] are returning to the community and it’s really exciting for us,” she says, adding, “I think it speaks to the health of the market and to the progressive protocols we have in place in the city of Bonita Springs to be builder-friendly and a one-stop shop.”

Ross’ enthusiasm is matched by Aubuchon’s excitement at solidifying their operation expansion into the region. According to Aubuchon, “Our plan is to be known as a regional builder in Southwest Florida.” They are still building homes in the Cape Coral and Lee County markets, and they are returning to Collier County after a 20-year absence. “We are building our first Collier County home since the 1990s,” says Aubuchon.

Homes in the Sterling collection are based on the company’s older styles, but they have been considerably revamped for the mid-range market. The seven home styles will range from $259,900 to $384,900. Another selling point for Aubuchon is that each of the seven floorplans can be modified; bedrooms and walls can be added or removed, and double doors can be substituted for walls. Of this design flexibility, Aubuchon states, “there are a lot of different ways the house works depending on the client’s needs.”

Of his company’s unique homes, Aubuchon says that “they have been designed for maximum value; it’s all the home you need without the home you don’t need.”

Building professionals seeking residential construction permit information or home building job leads with Aubuchon Homes and other Southwest Florida builders should investigate HBW’s permit reports and building activity data. Or, save yourself  time and energy by searching for Aubuchon’s latest projects in HBW’s cloud-based database.

Quality May Falter During Construction Industry Boom

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The enormous growth in residential and commercial construction might suffer from quality issues, according to Quality Built, LLC, a firm that offers quality assurance and risk management support to the construction industry.  Quality Built’s construction defect data bank is the largest in the nation. That, along with their quality assurance program, makes them one of the “Big Data” authorities for the construction industry.

Brian Kramer, P.E. and C.E.O. of Quality Built, says the firm’s available data indicates that “construction [is] continuing to grow at a rate that is nearing long-term averages on a national scale…while at the same time approach[ing], if not nearing, “boom levels” in certain markets.” In areas with significant construction activity, there seems to be “little that will slow demand for new construction as low-interest rates, available capital, and strong demand from lack of construction during the post boom years,” and these conditions are driving market demand for residential and commercial construction.

But, Kramer, explains, these boom trends bring a spike in risk that needs to be properly managed. In their recently published white paper report, “A Decade in Construction Inspections,” it was revealed that the quality levels for construction for all asset classes had reached its lowest point just as the real estate market began to recover from the depths of the recession. The report identified a “perfect storm” of factors which contribute to the current situation. Builders are under increasing pressure to meet difficult delivery demands with shorter deadlines and tighter budget controls, and the in-house quality assurance programming is often sacrificed to meet budget and time constraints. The recession drove a roughly 40% of the skilled and experienced trades professionals out of the industry, leading to the current shortage of experienced, qualified labor and field management personnel.  The tighter budget and time constraints squeezing quality assurance endeavors out of the planning and building process, along with the lack of builders skilled in producing high-quality work, has resulted in the “perfect storm” of otherwise preventable construction defects and lower construction quality across the board.

To meet this powerful need in the construction industry, Quality Built has specifically designed its quality assurance and risk management program to meet the needs of today’s market. Quality Built president Beth Michaels explains that the firm has responded to the current crisis “by expanding our risk assessment protocols to integrate educational programs, trade contractors and internal QA metrics into a closed-loop process guaranteed to promote continuous improvement in a cost-effective manner.” Additionally, Quality Built’s 3rd-party quality assurance program offers “a second set of eyes in the field,” to aid with “quality assurance inspections and technical peer plan reviews,” in addition to offering “web-based technical training on construction defects and how to avoid them,” with programs tailored to meet the individual needs of the builders.

To learn more about Quality Built’s programs and products, contact them, or visit their website.