AIA Architecture Billing Index for September 2013 reaches 54.3 !!!

Architecture Billings Index Surges Higher

Design firms citing increased productivity

For immediate release:


Washington, D.C. – October 23, 2013 – Showing a steady increase in the demand for design services, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) continues to accelerate, as it reached its second highest level of the year.

As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lead time between architecture billings and construction spending.

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the September ABI score was 54.3, up from a mark of 53.8 in August. This score reflects an increase in design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings).

The new projects inquiry index was 58.6, down from the reading of 63.0 the previous month.



“The prolonged economic downturn that has affected the design and construction industry has actually resulted in the increased productivity levels as reported by architecture firms,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “In addition to new approaches to business challenges, a very competitive marketplace, the utilization of new technologies, and a renewed focus on efficiency have architecture firms realizing all-time highs in workplace productivity, and these new efficiencies can greatly benefit clients from a project timeline and budget standpoint.” 


Key September ABI highlights:


• Regional averages: West (60.6), South (54.1), Midwest (51.0), Northeast (50.7)


• Sector index breakdown: commercial / industrial (57.9), multi-family residential (55.6), mixed practice (55.4), institutional (50.4)


• Project inquiries index: 58.6


The regional and sector categories are calculated as a 3-month moving average, whereas the index and inquiries are monthly numbers. 


Contact: Scott Frank, 
202-626-7467, 
sfrank@aia.org

August construction spending rises 0.6%

Oct. 22, 2013, 10:06 a.m. EDT

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Outlays for U.S. construction projects rose 0.6% in August, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.

Economists polled by MarketWatch had expected a 0.5% increase. Spending in July was revised to a 1.4% gain from the initial estimate of a 0.6% rise. In August, spending on residential construction rose 1.2% while nonresidential construction increased 0.1%. The data are already a bit outdated. Anecdotal reports about September construction activity have already been released. The Federal Reserve's most recent survey of economist conditions released last week found residential construction continued to increase at a "moderate pace" in September while business construction expanded at a relatively slower rate.

Press Release from Barker Blue: Bringing Document Management Services to iPad Blueprint App for Large-Scale Construction Projects

Blog Publisher’s Comments:

In the Press Release below, you’ll read this in one of the paragraphs:

Webcor, a leading commercial construction contractor with headquarters in San Francisco. “We have been using the PlanGrid blueprint app on the SFMOMA (San Francisco Museum of Modern Art) Expansion project, and we are close to achieving an entirely paperless process….

I continue to wonder where the reprographics industry is headed, revenue and profit wise, if GC’s continue initiatives to go paperless.

The Press Release mentions…. “BarkerBlue started 50 years ago providing construction companies and architects with the traditional paper blueprints they needed for major projects, and a decade ago we were the first company to provide these firms electronic plan rooms for storing their digitized documents.

Well, perhaps BarkerBlue was the first reprographer in its market to offer electronic plan room services, but that certainly wasn’t true of the U.S. marketplace.  Our former company, NGI, developed an electronic plan room service for Hilton Hotels Development back around 1999 (our “Virtual Plan Room”) and there were other reprographers offering electronic plan rooms before 2000.

The Press Release mentions….US construction industry that had more than $400 billion in capital expenditures on structures in 2011, according to the US Census.

A couple of weeks ago, I did a post on this blog about the value of construction spending in the U.S., year over year, according to the Department of Commerce, and these were the numbers I published:

	Total value of construction spending
	Year	Value
annual	2006	$1,198.0 billion	actual
annual	2007	$1,161.3 billion	actual
annual	2008	$1,078.9 billion	actual
annual	2009	$939.1 billion	actual
annual	2010	$814.2 billion	actual
annual	2011	$787.4 billion	actual
annual	2012	$850.2 billion	actual
annualized	2013	$900.8 billion	estimated

We introduced PlanGrid.com on the Reprographics 101 Blog in a post we put up in March 2012.

FRIDAY, MARCH 9, 2012- Link:

iPad App to Replace Printed Blueprints? (PlanGrid.com)

Best wishes to BarkerBlue on finally hooking up with PlanGrid.

Okay, here’s the PRESS RELEASE ISSUED BY BARKERBLUE:

Bringing Document Management Services to iPad Blueprint App for Large-Scale Construction Projects

Pioneers in Digitizing the Construction Industry
 Enable Construction Firms & Building Owners to Manage and Control Online Blueprints on iPads

SAN MATEO, Calif. – Oct. 21, 2013 – BarkerBlue, Inc. announced today that it has partnered with PlanGrid to provide a suite of professional services for construction firms and building owners to manage and control digitized blueprints and other construction documents on the PlanGrid blueprint app for the iPad.

A San Francisco-based startup, PlanGrid launched its initial iPad app in March 2012 with the goal of replacing traditional paper blueprints at construction sites. Since then, the PlanGrid app has been adopted by many leading construction firms as well as major corporations on more than 35,000 construction projects, bringing an entirely new level of collaboration and efficiency to the US construction industry that had more than $400 billion in capital expenditures on structures in 2011, according to the US Census.

“PlanGrid and BarkerBlue are pioneers in digitizing the construction industry,” said Gene Klein, CEO of BarkerBlue. “BarkerBlue started 50 years ago providing construction companies and architects with the traditional paper blueprints they needed for major projects, and a decade ago we were the first company to provide these firms electronic plan rooms for storing their digitized documents. PlanGrid is now providing the industry the first iPad app for uploading and revising construction documents, and together with our services we’re taking another major step forward in reducing paper and increasing efficiency, saving significant time and money.”

Industry research shows that 98% of all submissions to construction documents create discrepancies between versions. Identifying those discrepancies is critical and a monumental task when considering many large- scale construction projects involve documents that contain as many as 50,000 drawings or more. With its technology-enabled services, BarkerBlue’s team of experts is able to rapidly identify such discrepancies so that project-critical information is elevated and documented within PlanGrid.

With the rapid adoption of their blueprint app, Ryan Sutton-Gee, one of the co-founders and CEO of PlanGrid, said, “PlanGrid is fast becoming the killer app driving adoption of iPads by the construction industry. And by partnering with BarkerBlue, we’re now accelerating that by allowing large construction companies to use PlanGrid alongside the type of sophisticated document management and control services their used to getting from Barker Blue. The combination of PlanGrid and Barker Blue will save managers of large-scale construction projects substantial time and money and guarantee that their documents are up to date and accurate. Together, we’ll keep everybody on the same page with their iPads.”

The two companies have a synergistic market presence as both are involved in a wide range of large-scale construction projects, including major commercial office buildings, hospitals, and corporate campuses.

“At Webcor, we are always looking for innovative ways to make our work more efficient,” said, Martin Ranalli, Assistant Project Manager of Webcor, a leading commercial construction contractor with headquarters in San Francisco. “We have been using the PlanGrid blueprint app on the SFMOMA (San Francisco Museum of Modern Art) Expansion project, and we are close to achieving an entirely paperless process, but we faced a big challenge in managing, controlling, and maintaining the substantial new database of digital construction documents and information. We needed a fast and efficient way to maximize the capabilities of PlanGrid.

“We tapped into BarkerBlue’s team of experts who provided the professional services we needed to help us manage our project in PlanGrid,” he continued. “They helped us quickly apply quality control processes, correct and update files, ensure metadata was accurate, and properly hyperlink all our documents. We’re getting very close to a fully digital, totally interoperable construction information management system.”

Click here for more information about BarkerBlue’s suite of professional services for document management and control on the PlanGrid blueprint app for Apple iPad.

About PlanGrid

PlanGrid is the developer and provider of a cloud-based mobile app for iPads designed to replace printed blueprints at construction sites. Its mobile app is now being used by major construction firms on more than 35,000 different projects and is now storing more than 2 million pages of digital blueprints with more than 20,000 new pages being added every day. The company emerged from Y Combinator in 2012 and has since secured initial funding from Box, 500 Startups, Y Combinator, Navitas Capital, and notable industry leaders from TinyCo, Loopt, and Google as well as from Stanford University’s Construction Engineering department.

About BarkerBlue

BarkerBlue is a leading provider of technology-enabled document management and control, digital imaging and display printing services. The company has developed unparalleled expertise built over 50 years of meeting the widest range of needs of the most demanding companies, from startups and small businesses to major Fortune 500 companies and international corporations. The company is based in San Mateo, CA, is a charter member of the ReproMAX international network of independent reprographic and document management providers, and is committed to providing the most energy-efficient, eco-friendly services. For more information, visit BarkerBlue’s website www.barkerblue.com, or follow the company on Twitter @BarkerBlue or Facebook at facebook.com/barkerblue.

Federal Reserve Beige Book - Oct 16 2013 Edition - "Construction & Real Estate"

From the Overall Summary Section of the Federal Reserve Beige Book released on October 16, 2013

“Construction and Real Estate”

Construction and real estate activity continued to improve in September.

Residential construction increased moderately on balance, growing at a stronger pace in the Minneapolis and Dallas Districts but only slightly in Richmond and Philadelphia. Multifamily construction remained stronger than single-family construction in a number of Districts. Residential real estate activity continued to improve at a moderate pace in most Districts, as home sales and prices continued to rise and inventories remained low. Home sales in the New York and Dallas Districts were strong, with the exception of the Jersey Shore, which is still recovering from Hurricane Sandy. The Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Chicago Districts experienced a more modest improvement in home sales. A number of Districts reported concerns from homebuilders and realtors over rising mortgage rates. However, contacts in the Dallas District indicated that rising interest rates were not hurting affordability and contacts in the Boston District suggested some boost to activity by homebuyers entering the market in anticipation of future increases in rates.

Nonresidential construction activity remained modest, but varied by market and District. Growth was strong in the Minneapolis District, but up only slightly in Richmond, Atlanta, and Philadelphia. The Cleveland, Chicago, and St. Louis Districts reported increased activity for industrial building, Cleveland noted strong demand from the healthcare sector, and redevelopment of vacant retail space picked up in Boston. Leasing activity continued to improve modestly in most Districts, but was particularly strong in the Dallas District. A number of Districts reported that vacancy rates continued to fall, rents rose, and the outlook for commercial real estate was generally positive.

Here’s a link to the complete Beige Book Report released on Oct 16^th.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B81al4kFAU9Ja09zdzhpYURnTDg/edit?usp=sharing