Total U.S. construction machinery exports for first quarter 2014 totaled $4.292 billion compared to $5.287 billion in the first quarter of 2013 — a drop of 18.8 percent, according to the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, citing U.S. Department of Commerce data. The AEM off-road equipment manufacturing trade group produces global trends reports using Commerce Department information to assist members" business planning.Nearly all world regions recorded high single-digit or double-digit declines, except Africa, which experienced double-digit growth in exports. Q1 2014 U.S. construction equipment exports by major world regions compared to Q1 2013:   Exports to Canada declined 8.5 percent, for … Read more

In April 2013, the design-build team of Swinerton Builders and IDG Parkitects broke ground on the new West Arroyo Parking Structure at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. While serving as design-build contractor on this project, Swinerton has previously completed successful jobs at the NASA Ames Research Center; Sustainability Base and the NASA JPL Flight Projects Center. Design-build members include Structural Engineer Jessen-Wright; Civil Engineer Land Design Consultants, Inc. and Traffic Consultant LSA Associates. The $17.5-million project consists of a new 5-story, 1,425-stall, cast-in-place and post-tension concrete parking structure. The last elevated concrete deck was scheduled to be poured … Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — FMI recently released its Q2-2014 Construction Outlook. The forecast shows cautiously optimistic growth, as the forecast has been lowered a percent since the Q1-2014 Outlook. Construction-put-in-place for 2014 is now predicted to increase 7 percent over 2013 levels. One reason for the prediction is the growth of the digital world. With e-commerce becoming a larger market, especially in the retail and educational industries, brick and mortar will inevitably grow at a slower rate. This trend also is slowly affecting office, travel, recreation and even healthcare, as more time is spent online. Select market predictions include : Residential —Affordability, … Read more