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Hundreds of families displaced by Northern California’s fires could face another challenge to rebuilding their homes — a persistent shortage of construction workers.
California lost nearly 20 percent of its construction work force between 2005 and 2016 [...]. And more than 40 percent of construction job postings in the state remain unfilled for at least six weeks, according to the study, the third longest wait in the nation.
— The Mercury News
California's housing crisis will only get exacerbated as several devastating wildfires are ripping through entire regions of the Golden State while construction firms are struggling to hire enough workers to rebuild communities. According to Cal Fire, more than a thousand homes have already been... View full entry
MAD Architects' new China Entrepreneur Forum Conference Centre has broken ground in the rugged, snow-capped mountains of Yabuli, located in northeastern China. China Entrepreneur Forum Conference Centre by MAD Architects, located in Yabuli, CN. Image: MAD Architects. The new centre will act as... View full entry
Are you more interested in the business and marketing side of an architecture practice? While most envision working on the creative side, the business of architecture is a key aspect to any firm. These management positions cater to individuals who think strategically on big picture company growth... View full entry
Architecture firm billings slowed in June but remained positive for the ninth consecutive month, according to a new report today from The American Institute of Architects (AIA).
AIA’s Architecture Billings Index (ABI) score for June was 51.3 compared to 52.8 in May, which is positive since any score over 50 represents billings growth. As a result, June’s ABI shows that demand for architecture firm services continues to improve across all sectors.
— AIA
“Architects continue to see increases in demand for their services this summer, with new project work coming in at a healthy pace,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “However, business conditions are beginning to vary across the country. While essentially remaining flat... View full entry
Last Wednesday, on the eve of the AIA National Convention, I had the pleasure of talking with Miguel McKelvey, co-founder of WeWork. The conversation was held in Midtown Manhattan, in the Project 6 by AF showroom to an invited crowd of 75 architects. The event was co-hosted by Project 6 by... View full entry
Architecture firm billings grew in May, marking the eighth consecutive month of solid growth, according to a new report today from The American Institute of Architects (AIA).
Overall, the AIA’s Architecture Billings Index (ABI) score for May was 52.8 [...]. The ABI also indicated that business conditions remain strong at firms located in the South and West, while growth in billings was modest at firms in the Northeast and Midwest.
— AIA
“Architecture firms continue to have plenty of work as they enter the busiest part of the design and construction season,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “This is especially true for firms serving the institutional building sector, which reported their strongest growth... View full entry
The American Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) has criticised the Trump Administration over the introduction of 25% tariffs on $50bn of Chinese imports.
Chinese goods affected include types of construction and agricultural equipment. [...]
Since Trump’s trade announcement on Friday, China has said it will impose a similar 25% tariff, also worth $50bn.
— globalconstructionreview.com
"We’re extremely disappointed with the Trump administration’s decision to move forward with these harmful tariffs," said Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) President Dennis Slater in a statement last Friday. "This move jeopardizes many of the 1.3 million good-paying manufacturing... View full entry
In the wake of the Singapore summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, South Korean builders are planning for a flood of infrastructure projects in the northern half of the peninsula.
The Construction Association of Korea plans to hold a forum for construction companies, research institutes and public entities on 25 June to discuss possible projects and funding arrangements.
— Global Construction Review
While Koreans on both sides of the Military Demarcation Line appear increasingly hopeful in the wake of recent friendly diplomatic exchanges, it's the deep-pocketed South Korean industrial conglomerates that have started to map out the north's opportunities for development. Shares in Hyundai... View full entry
To some boosters, your city is only one world-class visitor attraction away from economic prosperity. That pitch has been used to sell and endless series of public subsidies for baseball parks, football stadiums, basketball and hockey arenas, convention centers (and their appurtenant “headquarters hotels”) and starchitect-designed museum buildings. To that long list, we might add aquariums. — City Observatory
Joe Cortright CityCommentary piece on the promise and perils of city aquariums. View full entry
A Crunchbase News analysis of residential-focused real estate startups uncovered a raft of companies with a shared and temporary housing focus that have raised funding in the past year or so.
This isn’t a U.S.-specific phenomenon. Funded shared and short-term housing startups are cropping up across the globe, from China to Europe to Southeast Asia.
— TechCrunch
Crunchbase reporter Joanna Glasner takes a look at the new crop of shared and short-term housing startups that have recently raised millions of dollars in funding, such as Common, Starcity, Roomi, Ollie, HubHaus, and others. View full entry
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is reporting today that architecture firm billings rose for the seventh consecutive month, with the pace of growth in April increasing modestly from March.
Overall, the AIA’s Architecture Billings Index (ABI) score for April was 52.0 [...], which indicates the business environment continues to be healthy for architecture firms despite continued labor shortages, growing inflation in building materials costs and rising interest rates.
— AIA
“While there was slower growth in April for new project work coming into architecture firms, business conditions have remained healthy for the first four months of the year,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “Although growth in regional design activity was concentrated... View full entry
The tinted world of tomorrow is coming, and airports—mini-cities of steel, concrete and lots and lots of glass—are interested. In a test last fall, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport outfitted one of its gates with a new type of “smart glass” that can adjust for sunlight exposure. The obvious point is to keep travelers from getting overheated—but the exercise also brought a more lucrative benefit. — Bloomberg
A Cornell-led study at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport found that implementing a new type of electrochromatic 'smart glass' at one of its gates not only led to cooler, more pleasant surface temperatures in the waiting area, but the tinted glass, and the resulting dimmer light in the neighboring bars and... View full entry
The American Institute of Architects [...] reported that architecture firm billings rose for the sixth consecutive month in March, although the pace of growth slowed modestly from February.
Overall, the AIA’s Architecture Billings Index (ABI) score for March was 51.0 (any score over 50 indicates billings growth), which still reflects a healthy business environment.
— AIA
“New project activity coming into architecture firms continues to grow at a solid pace. As a result, project backlogs—in excess of six months at present— are at their highest post-recession level,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “Business remains strong in the... View full entry
Today, listings from one coast to another tout Bitcoin as a way to make a property transaction. A new collection of haute residences in Hollywood with Los Angeles skyline views go for $1.21 million or its Bitcoin equivalent; in Washington, D.C., two-bedroom condos are on the market for between 36 and 84 Bitcoins. In Austin, the seller of one ranch is offering a “signficant discount” if the buyer pays with Bitcoin. — Curbed
Great longform piece by Andrew Zaleski for Curbed on how Bitcoin, blockchain technology, and other cryptocurrencies have changed—or not changed—the real estate industry. "While there are laws in Arizona and Vermont that allow blockchain technology to play key parts in property sales and... View full entry
With one year left until Brexit, 2018 is a critical year for the UK architecture industry. Today, the RIBA released the latest results of their Global by Design report, a comprehensive survey of UK architects on Brexit. Although UK architects can adapt to next year's changes, RIBA describes, they... View full entry
