Turner Building Cost Index Projects a 2.03% Decline in The Third Quarter New York, N.Y. — August 25 —Turner Construction Company announced that the Third Quarter 2009 Turner Building Cost Index, which measures non-residential building construction costs in the United States, has decreased by 2.03% from the Second Quarter 2009. While construction costs have decreased by 10.77% since the beginning of the year, indicators show that that the decline is slowing in the Third Quarter. The Turner Building Cost Index number for Third Quarter 2009 is 820. Karl F. Almstead, the Turner vice president responsible for the Turner Building Cost … Read more

By Dave Dickinson The following article appeared in the Summer/Fall 2009 issue of Construction Superintendent: I should have known it was going to be a bad "techno" day when work started with my printer failing to print. I had been limping by on a nearly empty toner cartridge, removing the cartridge periodically to shake it before reinserting, using the last grains of black stuff to make just one more copy. A new toner sat nearby in its cardboard box, ready to be popped in. So there I was, in a decades old job trailer, running multimillion dollar projects with a … Read more

New initiative for comprehensive data collection and analysis methodology development will be shared with LEED building owners and project teams to help close performance prediction gaps WASHINGTON, DC — Aug 25 — The U.S. Green Building Council today stepped up its commitment to improved building performance with the launch of the Building Performance Initiative, designed to put in place a comprehensive data collection effort from all buildings that have achieved LEED certification; implement an appropriate analysis methodology of that data; and provide feedback to building owners so they have better information with which to address any performance gaps that stem … Read more

Spectra Precision Laser DDS300 Delivers Dynamic Real-time Bucket Positioning and Simple Installation in an Affordable Package SUNNYVALE, Calif., — Aug. 24 —Trimble (NASDAQ: TRMB) today announced the Spectra Precision Laser DDS300 Depth Display System. Designed for compact equipment including backhoes, mini-excavators and smaller excavators, the new DDS300 system provides dynamic depth display to improve the accuracy and productivity of trenching, excavating and grading operations. With wireless connectivity between components, simple installation and movement between machines, and an affordable price, the new DDS300 is ideal for compact equipment on large commercial, industrial and residential jobsites. The announcement was made today at … Read more