The Federal Government’s recent imposition of tariffs appears designed largely to bring manufacturing back inside the United States. News reports indicate the Government understands that tariffs may initially cause pain but accepts that trade-off to press investment in future growth of U.S. manufacturing. As such, there may be increased opportunities for construction companies who build
Artificial Intelligence will impact construction in ways that are both predictable and unexpected. Similar to technologies such as Building Information Modeling (BIM) and GPS, the use of AI hopes to make construction safer, less prone to error, find issues earlier, and reduce delay and costs. However, AI (like a human) is only as good as
President Trump’s prospective assessment of 25% tariffs on certain materials coming from Canada and Mexico, and prospective 10% tariffs on certain material from China, may increase contractor costs in fulfillment of construction contracts. While the details of which materials are tariffed will be clarified in the coming days, impacts on project costs may be substantial.
Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) has roared into the discourse of the new economy. While the construction industry has lagged behind in its implementation, there is no doubt that AI has become an inescapable reality. Opportunity for improvements in efficiency make the construction industry primed for a boom in the expansion of construction-related AI applications. The Stanford
Original article in June 2023 issue of Properties Magazine
According to the Pew Research Center, the majority of Americans view climate change as a major threat and two-thirds believe that the government and corporations should be doing more to address climate change. Young Americans, in particular, are interested in curbing their carbon footprint and living
Owners and contractors should be knowledgeable in the various contract forms and their associated risks. Among the most common construction forms are 1) lump sum, 2) cost plus a fee and the hybrid, 3) cost plus a fee with a guaranteed maximum price. Each allocates risk differently and has different benefits for the parties.
A lump
The Ohio General Assembly is considering a revision to Ohio private lien law to make it clearer when projects start and end and enable title to be clear on lien rights. Under 1311.04, a Notice of Commencement (NOC) is to be recorded before a project commences and remains in place for six years (1311.04(S)). That
Contractors learned many lessons from 2020-2022 on material/labor availability, price escalation, and contractual allocations of risk. Prudent contractors will consider this in contracts moving forward.
Long gone are the days of large projects that are simply private or public. Large projects are multi-layered when it comes to funding. Federal, state, and
Supply chain interruptions are reaching critical levels and suspending work on projects. Shortages of bridge coating materials is the most recent area of concern and could be potentially catastrophic to unprepared contractors and owners. The inability to obtain materials may force painting contractors into a position where they cannot advance painting work, cannot retain painting
On April 1, 2020, ODOT provided direction on enforcement of COVID-19 social distancing on ODOT projects. The April 1, 2020 memo is linked HERE. ODOT project staff are directed to observe contractors’ work to confirm both six foot social distancing and look for visibly sick employees. The memo directs ODOT project staff to notify