1. A time for fearlessness: Lessons from high growth AEC firms (Hinge)
"Nothing motivates change more than a crisis. Many professional services firms have made more radical shifts in how they do business over the past two months than over the past decade."
2. OSHA construction safety inspections fall 84% during COVID-19 pandemic (BD+C)
"Agency focuses on preventing disease transmission in healthcare industry."
3. PPP loans now only require 60% of funds for payroll use (Construction Dive)
"Borrowers only have to use 60% of their loan funds for payroll costs under changes the federal government made to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) that President Trump signed into law Friday. Previously, the program required borrowers to use 75% of the funds on payroll, a requirement contractors and other businesses said was too restrictive. For many companies impacted by mandatory stay-at-home orders, the money would have been better spent on rent and other operating costs, they argued."
4. The office isn't dead. It's just convalescing: Nisha Gopalan (Bloomberg via National Real Estate Investor)
"There are many office jobs that can’t be done remotely."
5. Minimize your risk when reopening construction projects (AIA Contract Documents)
"In this video, we discuss risk management methods when re-opening a project and how to discuss re-opening procedures and protocols with the owner, the contractor, and the entire project team."
6. Trump orders federal agencies to waive environmental regulations (Construction Dive)
"Through a new executive order issued last week, President Donald Trump directed federal government agencies to waive environmental regulations and to take other actions necessary to streamline and expedite infrastructure projects in order to hasten the economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic."
Related Stories
Market Data | May 19, 2020
5 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 19, 2020
Clemson's new mass timber building and empty hotels as an answer for the affordable housing shortage.
Market Data | May 18, 2020
5 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 18, 2020
California's grid can support all-electric buildings and you'll miss your office when it's gone.
Market Data | May 15, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 15, 2020
Nonresidential construction employment sees record loss and Twitter will keep all of its office space.
Market Data | May 15, 2020
Nonresidential construction employment sees record loss in April
The construction unemployment rate was 16.6% in April, up 11.9 percentage points from the same time last year.
Market Data | May 14, 2020
5 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 14, 2020
The good news about rent might not be so good and some hotel developers consider whether to abandon projects.
Market Data | May 13, 2020
House democrats' coronavirus measure provides some relief for contractors, but lacks other steps needed to help construction
Construction official says new highway funding, employee retention credits and pension relief will help, but lack of safe harbor measure, Eextension of unemployment bonus will undermine recovery.
Market Data | May 13, 2020
5 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 13, 2020
How to design resilient libraries in a post-covid world and vacation real-estate markets are 'toast.'
Market Data | May 12, 2020
ABC’s Construction Backlog Indicator falls in April; Contractor Confidence rebounds from historic lows
Nonresidential construction backlog is down 0.4 months compared to the March 2020 ABC survey and 1.7 months from April 2019.
Market Data | May 12, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 12, 2020
A 13-point plan to reduce coronavirus deaths in nursing homes and Bjarke Ingels discusses building on Mars.
Market Data | May 11, 2020
Interest in eSports is booming amid COVID-19
The industry has proved largely immune to the COVID-19 pandemic due to its prompt transition into online formats and sudden spike in interest from traditional sports organizations.