Construction Industry News

WASHINGTON (March 12, 2020)—The Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation (the Foundation) releases the March 2020 

NEW JERSEY (March 6, 2020)—The Dodge Momentum Index moved 1.8% lower in February to 148.7  from the revised January reading of 151.4. The Momentum Index, issued by Dodge Data & Analytics, is a monthly measure of the first (or initial) report for nonresidential building projects in planning, which have been shown to lead construction spending for nonresidential buildings by a full year.

"Modular" has become a buzzword in the industry over the past few years, and Guerdon has been one of the companies leading the charge in making off-site manufacturing an attractive, efficient, and profitable project delivery method. In recent months, however, Guerdon Enterprises LLC (founded in 2001), has not quite so successful. 

K-Tec Earthmovers Inc. (K-Tec) announced its merger with Ashland Industries (Ashland). The merger of these two earthmoving equipment manufacturing companies creates one of the largest companies in the industry.

PLANO, Texas (March 11, 2020)—

Last week, United States President Donald Trump signed into law an $8.3 billion funding package for the individual treatment and prevention of COVID-19. The package, Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020, was more than three times the amount initially requested by the Trump administration in late February. 

WASHINGTON—The United States Department of Labor’s (DOL) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has published “Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19” to help companies respond in the event of coronavirus in the workplace. The guidance was developed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS).

NEW YORK—AECOM announced the addition of two respected infrastructure executives to the company’s New York, New York-based leadership team. Tom Prendergast, with more than 25 years of experience with the city's Metro Transit Authority (MTA), including as their chairman and chief executive officer (CEO), assumes a national role as head of transit within the Design and Consulting Services Americas (DCSA).

Following several reports from media, general contractor Tutor Perini released a statement this week confirming that the it has formed a special committee of its board of directors to discuss a potential acquisition of the company.

Last week, contracting firms WSP Global and Tutor Perini each announced profit results in two separate earnings calls—both full year 2019 and fourth quarter results. Here's a quick rundown of the key points from the calls for each company: 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States Department of Labor will hold a teleconference meeting of the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health (ACCSH) Workgroups next Thursday, March 5, 2020.

Last week, United States Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has allotted $520.5 million to fund grants for airport infrastructure projects in 287 airports across the U.S.

According to the DOT press release, some of the biggest (monetarily) beneficiaries of the grants are as follows: 

NEW JERSEY (February 18, 2020)—Total construction starts slipped 6% from December to January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $759.2 billion. All three major categories moved lower in January—residential building starts fell 8%, nonresidential building lost 6%, and nonbuilding starts moved 2% lower.

On Tuesday, Fluor Corporation announced its financial results for fiscal year 2019 and Q4 of 2019, as well as the news that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is conducting an investigation into the company's past accounting and financial reporting. 

Birmingham, Ala. (Feb.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The United States Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently published 

NATIONAL—Last week, President Donald Trump's administration and the Pentagon announced plans to redirect $3.8 billion from the Defense Department's budget to fund the construction of the United States-Mexican border wall. 

The funding would have been distributed among 17 Navy and Air Force military programs, including money for fighter jets, combat aircraft and ships and National Guard equipment.

NEW JERSEY (Feb. 10, 2019)—The value of commercial and multifamily construction starts in the top 20 metropolitan areas of the United States gained 11% in 2019, reaching $139.6 billion, according to Dodge Data & Analytics. Nationally, commercial and multifamily starts were up 1% in 2019 at $227.5 billion.

LOS ANGELES—AECOM recently announced its first quarter results for fiscal year 2020 on a call, also addressing several other points of discussion pertaining to the infrastructure firm, including its rumored merger with WSP, the sale of one of its divisions, and more. Find highlights from the call below.