AGC’s Lean Construction Forum is focused on growing the implementation of lean practices in the construction industry by providing educational opportunities and developing a community where anyone with an interest in lean construction can come together to engage in a dialog on best practices, share information, and participate in a broad, coordinated effort to promote and define the use of lean concepts and processes within the construction industry.
The AGC Business Development (BD) Forum brings together Business Development professionals in one place, for one purpose: to advance the Business Development function in the construction industry. We create business opportunities by sharing the latest techniques and tools of Business Development; follow and report on trends in the construction market; and connect a network of professionals invested in building better businesses. In addition to BD and Marketing professionals, the Forum’s members include Construction Executives, Operations and Pre-construction professionals, from General Contractors and Specialty Contractors, nationwide.
Construction spending in June declined from May but increased from a year ago as public investment shrank for nearly every type of structure, according to an analysis of new government data by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials cautioned that the significant declines in public-sector construction spending come at a time when much of the nation’s public infrastructure is deteriorating due to age or overuse.
Need a vendor? Reach thousands of suppliers and service providers in one place: AGC's official purchasing directory, Constructor Marketplace. This site places you in contact with vendors from more than 50 categories -- everything from acoustical and drywall to windows -- quickly, so you can get the materials or the help you need to get the job done right. Use Constructor Marketplace's free Request for Proposal (RFP) Automator to request custom project bids from multiple Marketplace vendors with just a few clicks.
Congress overwhelmingly passed and the President signed into law the AGC’s supported Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act. AGC successfully urged Congress to include in the WIIN Act the best provisions from the House and Senate Water Resource Development Act (WRDA) bills, passed earlier in September. WIIN authorizes 38 projects valued at $15.9 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers. The WIIN Act includes the Water and Waste Act of 2016 which makes changes to the Safe Drinking Water Act and Solid Waste Disposal Act. It gives $100 million in subsidized loans and grants through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, and $170 million in federal aid for Flint, Michigan. WIIN also authorizes the EPA approve state coal ash disposal programs.
Construction employment declined or was stagnant in one-third of metro areas between October 2015 and October 2016 amid diminishing public-sector investments in infrastructure and other civil works, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said a new infrastructure proposal being crafted by the incoming Trump administration could, if structured properly, help add more construction jobs in many metro areas.
The Senate Committee on Environment & Public Works will hold a hearing concerning “the Federal Role in Keeping Water/Wastewater Infrastructure Affordable.” AGC submitted testimony for the record emphasizing support for several financing tools that would help contractors and their local government partners build the nation’s water/wastewater infrastructure. AGC called for increased appropriations to the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Funds (SRFs), enacting a long-term dedicated revenue stream for water/wastewater infrastructure (like a water trust fund), resurrecting the Build America bonds program, funding the new WIFIA program of direct federal loans and loan guarantees, and unlocking private capital by making private activity bonds for water and sewer exempt from the PAB volume cap. AGC and its coalition partners in the Water Infrastructure Network will continue to advocate for every method of increasing funding and financing for water/wastetwaer infrastructure.
AGC’s 97th Annual Convention will be held March 9-11, 2016 in San Antonio, Texas. Please visit meetings.agc.org/convention for registration information. Below is a preview of some of the Convention sessions.
Includes 13 Percent Increase in Federal Construction Accounts
On Feb. 9, President Obama released his $4.1 trillion budget for fiscal year 2017, which proposes $1.215 trillion in discretionary defense and non-defense spending in FY 2017 and $2.565 trillion in mandatory spending. The budget, which stays within the discretionary spending limits set last November in the Bipartisan Budget Act, has been declared dead on arrival by Republican Congressional leaders. For the first time in 41 years, the House and Senate budget committees will not hold hearings with the president’s budget director.
Representatives Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), John Duncan (R-Tenn.), and Richard Hanna (R-N.Y.) introduced the Water Investment Trust Fund Act. This legislation will provide a small, deficit-neutral, protected source of revenue to help states replace, repair, and rehabilitate critical clean and drinking water facilities by creating a voluntary system that would allow businesses that rely on a clean water source to contribute to the fund.