Construction Employment Edges Up as Stimulus Funds Begin to Reach Nonresidential Construction
Employment in construction and manufacturing sectors edged up in April, according to the employment report released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on May 7.
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The safety debate - Bill would impose prison term for willful workplace violations
Company executives, project managers and safety directors could face up to 20 years in prison for work site accidents if a federal bill becomes law.
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E-Verify backers say it's working
On Sept. 8, a new federal rule will extend use of the E-Verify program to cover federal contractors and subcontractors, including those who receive American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds, said Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokes-man Temple Black.
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What's the BIM Deal?
If you're at all into CAD you've seen the acronym BIM, short for building information modeling, all over the place the past few years. If you're a CAD manager in an architectural environment you're probably starting to plan for, or even test, BIM technology.
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Ironworkers and Glaziers Favor the Use of Project Labor Agreements
Earlier this year President Obama signed an executive order requiring the use of project labor agreements (PLAs) on all federal construction projects, stating: "Large-scale construction projects pose special challenges to efficient and timely procurement by the Federal Government.
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Stimulus Funding May Bring Growth for Hurricane Glazing Applications
The recently passed federal stimulus package may just bring some good news for commercial construction projects requiring hurricane- and impact-glazing systems.
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Contract Glaziers Can Stay Profitable
Profitability is not just about making money, but also keeping the money earned, noted Bill Dexter, risk-management consultant and trainer, during a series of March webinars hosted by the Construction Specification Institute. During the webinars Dexter provided a number of tips for doing just that, as well as creating project-specific contracts that will keep owners’ expectations realistic.
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Improving Efficiencies, Cross Training and Other Efforts Help See Glaziers Through Slow Market Conditions
February's Architectural Billing Index (ABI), which reflects the approximate nine to 12 month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending, was up two points from January's. While the upturn was slight, AIA chief economist Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA, says the improvement does provide hope that some stalled projects will resurface in the near future.
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Webinar Shares Tips for Contract Glaziers: How to Get Paid and Keep It
"There are three steps to profitability: describe the work; define trade standards; and billing with a budget report. "
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IUPAT General President Shares Views on Current Issues Affecting Contract Glaziers and Other Construction Trades
James Williams, general president of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) met with both Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis during the AFL-CIO Executive Council closed door meeting, which took place this week in Florida. Williams talked to USGNN.com today about the meeting, some of his concerns and challenges the construction industry is facing.
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Proposed Bill Could Mean More Energy-Efficient Glass and Glazing in West Virginia Schools
Legislation is currently pending in West Virginia that would amend the Code of West Virginia to allow county school boards to enter into energy-saving contracts and extend them by 15 years. If passed, the new law could help move the county schools toward the use of energy-efficient glazing.
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GANA's Fire-Rated Glazing Council Forwards Position Documents to CTC
Glass Week, the Glass Association of North America's (GANA) annual committee meeting, opened with a meeting of the Fire-Rated Glazing Council (FRGC) on Thursday afternoon.
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Illinois Glazing Bill Died
A bill that would have required that glaziers in Illinois be licensed, and which had been circulating in that state's General Assembly since January 2007, died last week.
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USGNN.com™ Talks with New York Glazier Called to Wal-Mart Tragedy
For many people "Black Friday" shopping is a yearly tradition--after all, it's a chance to save big bucks on holiday shopping. This year, however, those big savings came with a big price no one was expecting when Jdimytai Damour, who was working as a temporary employee at the Wal-Mart in Valley Stream, N.Y., was trampled to death by an estimated 2,000 shoppers fighting their way through the store's glass doors around 5 a.m.
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Follow Up: Contract Glaziers Aren’t Too Concerned About Glass Shortage
Is a glass shortage really on its way? According to some primary glass manufacturers the answer is yes. After all, a number of float glass lines were shut down earlier this year, some companies are undergoing scheduled necessary cold repairs and with the uncertainty of what Mother Nature may do (such as the case for PPG’s facility in Wichita Falls, Texas), it’s not hard to see why some may see a glass shortage on its way.
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New Addendum May Encourage Contract Glaziers to Start Using BIM
ConsensusDOCS, an industry-wide collaboration of 22 construction associations, has added a BIM Addendum to its catalog of documents. According to the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), one of the member associations involved with creating the addendum, the ConsensusDOCS 301 BIM Addendum is the first industry standard document to globally address the legal uncertainties associated with utilizing BIM.
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ENR Names Top 20 Glazing/Curtainwall Contractors; Harmon Tops List
The Engineering News-Record has released its report on the top 600 specialty contractors in the October 13 edition of the magazine. Among the specialty building niches it ranked was that of glazing/curtainwall, of which it named the top 20 in the field.
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Glazing Contractors Discuss Keeping Jobsites Safe from Metal Theft
The scrap metal business is booming, and as a result a number of construction sites have fallen victim to aluminum theft. On September 18 the London Metals Exchange reported the cost of aluminum to be more than $2400 USD/ton. With these high prices, some contract glaziers have been had to find ways to ward off thieves from stealing aluminum products available on jobsites.
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Census Report Shows Median Salary of $35,500 for Glaziers
A recent report from the U.S. Census Bureau shows a median salary of $35,500 for glaziers. The report, which was released in August 2008 and is titled the "Income, Earnings, and Poverty Data from the 2007 American Community Survey," shows a margin of error of +/-972.
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Contract Glaziers Don't Have Concerns of Possible Glass Shortage
Is a glass shortage really on its way? According to some primary glass manufacturers the answer is yes. After all, a number of float glass lines were shut down earlier this year, some companies are under-going scheduled necessary cold repairs and with the uncertainty of what Mother Nature may do (such as the case for PPG in Wichita Falls), it's not hard to see why some may see a glass shortage on its way. However, some contract glaziers are not in agreement that a shortage of glass is really a big concern.
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Crane Safety of Paramount Importance for Contract Glaziers
In early 2003 the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) announced it would move forward with the negotiated rulemaking process to update its cranes and derricks standard. Now, more than five years later, the standard-which has not been revised since 1971--is still not done, and crane-related accidents and fatalities are becoming an increasing concern for construction-related associations, unions and contract glaziers.
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ICC Agrees to Study Labeling of Fire-Rated Glazing
At the International Code Council's (ICC) board of directors meeting on July 19-20, the board ultimately approved a motion from its Code Technology Committee (CTC) to allow the CTC to further research the labeling of fire-rated glazing.
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GICC Creates New Membership Level, Opportunity for Glazing Industry
(TOPEKA) - The Glazing Industry Code Committee (GICC), an advocate of the glass and glazing industry in the code arena, for the first time in its history created a new level of membership for industry leaders looking to stay aware of the landscape in the increasingly tumultuous building and energy code arenas.
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ICC Code Technology Committee Proposes Further Research into Labels for Fire-Rated Glazing
The International Code Council's (ICC) Code Technology Committee (CTC) heard testimony on marking standards for the rating of fire-resistance and fire protection glazing during a meeting this morning in Baltimore. A motion to recommend to the ICC board of directors that the CTC further study this issue ultimately was approved.
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Fire-Rated Glazing Labeling Remains Unchanged, Deflection Limits Amended
The International Code Council (ICC) change proposals hearings continue this week in Palm Springs, Calif. Many of the changes, if accepted by the Council, could impact the glass industry.
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A New Age of Consensus? Alignment Shattered By New Contract Documents
"Can't we all just get along?" —Rodney King
These frustrated words issued as a result of riots in L.A. may also have some application to the construction industry. For too long, the industry has been driven by conflict that begins when the owner puts one-sided contract documents out for bid, the contractor sends a subcontract at least, if not more, one-sided to the subcontractor and so forth, all the way down the construction "food chain."
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Top Building Glass Installer Harmon Rolls out PDF Editor Bluebeam PDF Revu
Harmon, Inc., one of the nation's largest full-service building glass installation, maintenance and renovation companies, is digitizing project workflows with Bluebeam Software. The company is rolling out Bluebeam PDF Revu, the leading PDF editor for the design and construction industry, to 200 users and plans to make Revu its primary PDF solution.
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Fontainebleau Glazing Contractor No Stranger to Overcoming Adversity
Las Vegas businesswoman Weina Zhang says she works all the time not for the money, but to help young girls in her native China. Zhang, chief executive and majority partner in Zetian Systems Inc., is a relatively unknown but fast-rising name in the worldwide construction industry. Her company supplies glass panels and other architectural products, mainly from China.
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Cincinnati Insurance Co. Files Complaint Against Gate City Contract Glazing for Alleged Condo Damages
The litigious nature of condo construction is not new for contract glaziers. In fact, the high risk involved has sometimes steered contract glaziers away from the work. According to the white paper, "Risk Management Ideas for Condominium Projects," written by G. William Quatman, FAIA, Esq. Of Shughart Thomson & Kilroy, P.C., condominium projects carry a higher than average number of claims.
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UNITED KINGDOM - Glazing company Ceases Trading
CONSERVATORY and glazing company Complete Seal Windows (North East) has ceased trading and is being run by administrators from accountants Tenon.
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UNITED KINGDOM - Pentagon Sees New Sales Opportunities with Launch of Glazing Divison
Pentagon Protection, the company that makes enhanced glass protection, has formed a new division specialising in glazing to expand its product and service capabilities to include a comprehensive range of glass and glass fabrication products.
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UNITED KINGDOM - Man Jailed for Threat to Smash Glass in Face of Glazing Boss
A man who threatened to smash a glass into the face of a local businessman in a row over windows has been jailed for five months.
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UNITED KINGDOM - Glazing Firm's a Glass Act When it Comes to Health and Safety
A MORLEY company put the spotlight on the environment, health and safety as part of an international day of action.
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UNITED KINGDOM - It’s Looking Good for Glazing Firm!
A FIRM in Huddersfield has landed a plum contract as part of a major construction project.
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UNITED KINGDOM - Glazing Company's Multi-million Investment
A SCARBOROUGH company which makes double glazing units has made substantial investments in highly automated equipment that bosses say will firmly place the company ahead of competitors.
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UNITED KINGDOM - Curtains For Dodgy Glazing Company
Drawn in by his confident sales patter, clients have laid down money left, right and centre and are now awaiting delivery of a product they may never receive. The majority placed their order with First Choice Glazed Curtains because it offered a double glazed option to prevent their home from becoming draughty during the winter.
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Glazing Consultants International Open New Office in Atlanta
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Feb. 8, 2008 – Glazing Consultants International (GCI), a consulting firm specializing in protecting the exteriors of buildings from water leakage and other perils, has opened a new office in Atlanta, GA, and hired Kevin Fonville as a business development specialist for the area. Headquartered in Florida, GCI provides design and construction consulting services to clients throughout the United States and internationally.
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Is BIM Still Big?
“This is definitely the biggest thing to happen in my career and I’ve been in this business almost 30 years.” That’s what Steve Jones, senior director for McGraw-Hill Construction, said about building information modeling (BIM) when he talked to USGlass last year. Not long after, BIM presentations were showing up at just about every industry association meeting and company after company announced that their products were now available in the different BIM libraries. Indeed, it seemed the majority of companies felt that BIM was the one thing that would revolutionize the way construction projects and specified and built. Now, a year later, does the industry still feel the same way about BIM?
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Dog- Eat- Dog: In Today's Economy, Everyone's Looking to Sink Their Teeth Into Your Market Share
Times are tough. Profits are down and glass companies are closing every day; it’s no wonder some people will do anything to make a buck. Competition is certain to become more intense in 2009, with companies bidding for a smaller number of available jobs.
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The Results Are In: Contract Glaziers Speak Out in USGlass Magazine's Survey
You don’t know until you ask, they say. To know how better to serve our readers in these challenging times—where rumors of recession circulate, and the country waits to see what course commercial construction will take after the limping residential housing market—we at USGlass sent out an in-depth survey to our readers in the contract glazing business. Respondents were asked via e-mail to answer anonymously questions about their time in the industry, their businesses, the challenges they face and their plans for the year ahead.
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Super Model: BIM Expert Steve Jones Talks about this Emerging Technology (Part Two)
"This is definitely the biggest thing to happen in my career and I've been in this business almost 30 years." That's what Steve Jones, senior director for McGraw-Hill Construction, says about building information modeling (BIM). McGraw-Hill Construction operates the online Sweet's Network, a site where companies can post their modeled products. And what, exactly, is BIM? Simply put, it's a tool that allows planners, designers, manufacturers, contractors, glazing subcontractors and owners to work from the same object-related database.
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A Model Approach? Is BIM the Next Big Thing?  Suppliers Share their Views on Using the Technology (Part One)
Just because building information modeling (BIM) hasn’t yet made its way into the contract glazing realm of construction doesn’t mean other segments of the glazing industry aren’t jumping in.
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Some Assembly Required: Interest in Unitized Curtainwall Continues to Rise
Unitized curtainwall isn’t necessarily new to the glazing community, but over the last few years, its use has increased noticeably.  According to Larry Long, president of Oldcastle Glass Engineered Walls in Dallas, unitized systems are a new “old” trend—they have actually been around for a long time.
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Culp and Carney Advise Glaziers on NFRC, Other Upcoming Code and Standard Changes

Glassopolis Seeks to Serve Contractors By Seeking Glazing Information at GlassBuild