In the construction industry, we see a growing trend of contractors, subcontractors and designers collaborating to pursue large construction contracts. Among many benefits, these collaborations enable companies to pursue projects that would otherwise be too large by combining their resources and skill sets with compatible partners. The terms of these collaborations are often outlined in “teaming agreements,” which define the …
Executives: SBA Program Fee Reduction Will Stimulate Participation by Contractors
The U.S. Small Business Administration will be trimming the fees it charges for its surety bond guarantees for one year, the first reduction in the charges in 12 years. The cuts apply to guarantees approved from Oct. 1 through Sept. 30, 2019, the end of the coming fiscal year, SBA said in a Sept. 4 release. The agency is cutting …
Rising Construction Costs Concern West Virginia Transportation Secretary
Transportation Secretary Tom Smith said Monday that runaway inflation in highway construction costs has the department concerned as West Virginia embarks on the $2.8 billion “Roads to Prosperity” initiative. “Those are concerning numbers when you have things escalating that far,” Smith said of reports of an 8.8 percent inflation rate for construction costs. Those costs might have been reflected last …
Construction Company Owners Need Professionals to Deal with Key Issues
Historically, a construction company owner’s main concern was to find the next job and keep the company’s backlog at an appropriate level. In today’s fast paced, competitive, and complex construction market, owners are challenged with a range of other issues. Read about them here >>>
Attorney: Contractors Should Read Construction Contracts for Ommissions, References
Whether it’s a contract, an insurance policy or another provision governing a construction project, all terms are spelled out in black and white – or they should be. If not, the risk for claims and disputes usually rises, often dramatically. Construction contracts alone can make or break projects before shovels hit the dirt, depending on whether the terms and conditions …
Former Pennsylvania Agent Sentenced for Fraud, Taking Money From Companies
A South Abington Twp. insurance agent will spend up to six years in prison and will have to make more than $192,000 in restitution for defrauding business clients. Timothy A. Hewitt, 42, was sentenced Tuesday in Lackawanna County Court by President Judge Michael J. Barrasse to a total of 19 to 72 months in state prison, followed by 12 years …
Construction CEOs Confident Revenue Will Rise
Recent construction surveys have expressed a cautiously optimistic look at the industry’s prospects for the next year or so, but there appears to be a growing consensus that the seemingly unfettered growth that the industry has enjoyed during the last several years will soon slow. For example, Engineering News-Record’s second-quarter “Construction Industry Confidence Survey” showed that, construction executives, while upbeat …
Two Contractors Charged With Fraud, Stealing Identities of Minority Businesses
Two construction executives were charged with fraudulently obtaining public contracts worth millions of dollars by stealing the identities of two minority-owned businesses, and failing to pay more than $400,000 to more than 50 employees, the state attorney general’s office said today. One of the executives, Michael Martin, 47, of Latham, formerly owned Eastern Building & Restoration Inc. in Albany. Read …
California, Maryland Make GCs Liable for Unpaid Wages of More Workers
It’s been said that as California goes, so goes the nation. If so, general contractors throughout the country may soon be taking on more responsibility for the unpaid wages of the workers on their construction projects than they might have expected. As of January 1, 2018, Assembly Bill 1701 makes general contractors liable for the unpaid wages of any employee …
Woman Was Homeless Before Becoming CEO of Construction Company
Construction 1st Class CEO April Malloy discusses how she went from living in the back seat of her car to becoming the boss of her own construction company. “I was sleeping in my car and I would answer ads and I was working and pounding the hammer and just pounding the pavement and making it happen. I started reading plans …