Effective in March, the Insurance Services Office (ISO) revised its forms and endorsements for commercial general liability. This latest round of CGL changes is the largest the industry has seen in years. Major and minor modifications, along with new endorsements, could significantly impact, and in some cases, narrow the scope of CGL coverage moving forward. While insurance companies are obligated to notify insureds about changes that affect policy coverage, as always, the burden of due diligence ultimately falls on contractors to understand their coverage and its possible exposures. “ISO forms are not used by everyone, but a lot of the
Construction companies are increasingly allocating more money for labor-saving items that reduce man hours in the field while limiting liability risks. Handheld tools and devices can enhance worker performance and reduce owner overhead costs for increased market competitiveness. Greater productivity can be achieved through safer, ergonomic devices that increase efficiency while reducing health insurance-related claims. Photo by Southwest Photography Manually tying rebar involves rapid, repetitive and forceful body movements that limit the amount of time workers can do the task safely. Innovation, in part, has been driven by companies forced to do more with less during a deep recession. The
Denver’s Regional Transportation District has determined that a confidential unsolicited proposal for the North Metro Rail project has “technical merit.” The proposal was submitted February 22 by a team led by Graham Contracting Ltd. RTD staff spent the last month conducting a comprehensive evaluation of the proposal consistent with the agency’s Unsolicited Proposals Policy. Given that RTD staff believes the proposal has technical merit, the agency plans to accelerate the release of a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the North Metro project.In January, RTD announced it would release an RFP in October to build North Metro up to 72nd Avenue
You wouldn’t go to your dentist for oral surgery without asking exactly what procedures he or she will be performing and what it will cost, would you? But this is exactly the trap that many architectural and engineering consultants fall into: neglecting to provide a specific list of services that they will perform as part of their contract. Outlining your scope of services is important to helping reduce professional liability and risk as well as boost your bottom line. To avoid surprises, it is important to nail down exactly what you are going to do and not do, including a
he Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had improved in February, declined in March. The index now stands at 59.7 (1985=100), down from 68.0 in February. The Present Situation Index decreased to 57.9 from 61.4. The Expectations Index declined to 60.9 from 72.4 last month. Consumers’ appraisal of current conditions declined in March. Those saying business conditions are “good” decreased to 16.0% from 17.6%, while those stating business conditions are “bad” increased to 29.3% from 28.2%. Consumers’ assessment of the labor market was mixed. Those claiming jobs are “plentiful” decreased to 9.4% from 10.1%, but those claiming jobs are “hard
With increasing demand for design services, the Architecture Billings Index is continuing to strengthen. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine- to 12-month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects reported the February ABI score was 54.9, up slightly from a mark of 54.2 in January. This score reflects a strong increase in demand for design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings). The new projects inquiry index was 64.8, higher than the reading of 63.2 the previous month – and its highest mark
At a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $435.4 billion, new construction starts in February dropped 7% from the previous month, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Cos. The loss of momentum was present in two of construction’s three main sectors – nonresidential building and nonbuilding construction (public works and electric utilities). Meanwhile, the housing sector in February continued to strengthen. For the first two months of 2013, total construction starts on an unadjusted basis came in at $62.4 billion, up 5% from the same period a year ago. The February statistics lowered the Dodge Index to 92
Construction employment increased in 145 out of 339 metropolitan areas between January 2012 and January 2013, declined in 141 and was stagnant in 53, according to a new analysis of federal employment data recently released by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials noted that after years of declining construction employment contractors in some metro areas are beginning to worry about the availability of skilled workers now that they have resumed hiring. “Not only are a slight plurality of metro areas adding construction jobs, but those areas appear to be adding jobs at a faster rate than places where
The construction industry added 48,000 jobs in February, the ninth consecutive month of job growth for the sector, as more people are working in construction than at any point in the last three-and-a-half years, according to an analysis of new government data by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials cautioned, however, that employment gains remain tenuous and could be undermined if Washington officials fail to reach a deal on federal investment levels later this month.“With construction employment increasing by the largest amount for a single month in nearly six years, the steady improvement in construction hiring is particularly
Construction spending snapped a nine-month string of monthly gains with a sharp decline in January but still rose from year-ago levels, according to a recent analysis of new Census Bureau data by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials cautioned that across-the-board federal spending cuts known as sequestration, which took effect on March 1, along with a possible shutdown of the federal government later this month, could hit construction harder than most sectors and dampen demand for needed projects.“At first glance, January was a bad month for construction, with a sharp drop in private nonresidential spending, along with small
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