Masonry Magazine March 2008 Page. 68
Industry News
scores determined the top companies and the final ranking. The survey findings reported that HCSS employees were most happy with the flexibility and authority to quickly address customer needs, relationships with their supervisor, care for co-workers, flexibility and benefits.
Nonresidential
Construction Shows Vigor
Nonresidential construction employment increased in January, implying that the spending rise of 2007 will continue, according to Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). Simonson was commenting on two new economic releases, January payroll employment from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and December construction spending from the Census Bureau.
"A 3.5 percent jump in employment of architects and engineers since January 2007 also suggests that non-residential activity will remain positive," Simonson says. "Total construction employment fell by 27,000 in January, seasonally adjusted, but all of those losses occurred in residential building and specialty trades."
"Census figures for December show nonresidential construction spending jumped almost 16 percent from a year earlier, which could only have occurred with a sharp rise in employment," Simonson says. "The 'missing' employees work for specialty trade contractors firms that entered the database as residential but are now busy installing wallboard, wiring and plumbing in schools, hotels and offices rather than houses."
Simonson says materials costs are accelerating again, particularly diesel fuel and steel.
"States have identified billions of dollars of infrastructure projects that are ready to go if the federal government will supply more funding," Simonson says. "If Congress is intent on passing a 'stimulus' bill, it should include infrastructure money to keep construction workers on the job and offset some of states' lost purchasing power."
New TMS Books Available
The Masonry Society announced the 2008 Masonry Standards Joint Committee's "Building Code Requirements and Specification for Masonry Structures" are available for sale. The newest edition of the national masonry design code and minimum specification includes numerous changes and enhancements, including provisions on self-consolidating grout; reformatted and clearer seismic design requirements; revised anchor bolt capacity equations; and defined inspection frequencies of key aspects of masonry construction. The new edition features "bleed tabs," revision bars, deletion arrows and movement boxes so that users of the 2005 MJSC will be able to quickly identify sections that have been substantively modified. For more information, visit www.masonrysociety.org, IMAS
BASF Construction
Chemicals Expands
BASF Construction Chemicals has completed a multi-million dollar expansion at its Brighton, Colo., polyurethane sealants and adhesives production facility. The expansion took about one year to complete and increases the plant's overall production capacity by more than 25 percent, with the addition of a complete process train and additional storage capability.