This year's Builders Scholarship Foundation Golf Outing was nothing if not exciting. Between beautiful sun interspersed with storms, a power outage, and blaring storm sirens, Builders Association membership and their guests managed to create yet another memorable and successful outing. Thank you to all member companies who contributed to this year's outing, and special thanks to Union Carpenters and Contractors for their generous support as event sponsor! Read more about the winners of the outing, view this year's video montage, and check out pictures taken throughout the day.

Intensifying its effort to dissuade the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) from interpreting its new recordkeeping regulations to restrict drug testing or safety incentive programs, AGC of America presses for a formal audience with the top OSHA official.

The Builders Scholarship Foundation is now accepting applications for its 2016-2017 cycle. Applicants will be notified of status by the end of the year; interviews will be conducted in early 2017. Mechanical engineering students are now eligible to apply as well as civil and environmental engineering candidates.

Mayor Emanuel introduced a new bid incentive on July 20, 2016, designed to assist ex-offenders in acquiring gainful employment and also give city contractors a break on locally-funded construction projects with an estimated contract value of at least $100,000. Per the press release, "contractors who employ ex-offender apprentices will be awarded a bid incentive on future bids, based on the total number of labor hours performed by the individuals under the contract. The bid will be applied on a sliding scale: if five to 10 percent of the total labor hours are performed by ex-offender apprentices, the bid incentive will be 0.5 percent of the contract base bid; and if 11 to 15 percent of the total labor hours are performed by ex-offender apprentices, the bid incentive will be one percent of the contract base bid."

The Builders Association, in partnership with MCA, will be distributing information on its Fall Construction Education Institute course offerings shortly. The catalog will include educational opportunities such as Hands-on Contracting, Dynamics of Supervision, The Foreman’s Role in Project Documentation, Everyday Negotiating Skills, and more.

Contributing to Builders Association's annual Building Chicago magazine is an excellent way to share your expertise with fellow Builders Association members, gain recognition as an active member company, and join the narrative on Chicago's construction industry. Contact Abby Koppers at akoppers@bldrs.org or 773/444.0465 if you would like to contribute to the 2016 magazine.

It is imperative to cultivate a culture that promotes health, wellness, and injury prevention in order to avoid soft tissue injuries as the construction industry faces the effects of an aging workforce.

Ergonomics And The Aging Industrial Athlete will better prepare your safety personnel to prevent workplace injuries by defining ergonomics, identifying its risks, and strategizing how to minimize ergonomic risk.

Understanding ergonomics and its relationship to construction is critical in a time where over half of all trades workers are over 45. It is necessary to be informed of OSHA’s ergonomic risks, and understand how age impacts the risk of injury and what strategies your firm can implement to accommodate for those risk factors.

The Builders Association CLC presents An Evening With Industry Icons this September 22, 2016. Join us at the University Club of Chicago for a panel discussion with some of the city’s most esteemed construction professionals to gain new insights into your career, learn valuable leadership skills from accomplished experts, and network with peers.

This session will include the perspectives from teams piloting the Certificate of Development in BIM (CD-BIM) free training curriculum to streamline projects & validate modelers' ability to work in BIM. CD-BIM includes a growing Body Of Knowledge (BOK) in the form of an online library of curated, professional, free content. The BOK presents a unified approach to the use of BIM in the built environment with training BIM practitioners. Best practices will be shared in the CD-BIM curriculum for using BIM on small, mid-sized and large projects with Autodesk products. This presentation will address practical ideas for how construction teams can economically deliver BIM to their projects utilizing the CD-BIM resources. Finally, the presentation will present reasonable requirements for trades in BIM.

Fox Valley AGC has extended an invitation to its Day At The Races networking event to all Builders Association members. Builders Association members can join Fox Valley AGC members at the Arlington Race Track on August 26th for a day of networking, races, and dinner.

To register, call FVAGC at 630-443-0055 or email mike.hampson@fvagc.org.

AGC’s Construction HR and Training Professionals Conference provides two days of education and networking for HR, training, and workforce development professionals in the construction industry. Educational sessions for training professionals cover the most cutting-edge techniques in training and development currently in use and envisioned for the future in the industry. The HR sessions help HR professionals in the industry remain up-to-date and compliant with employment laws and best practices. Some sessions interest both HR and training professionals alike.

Walk away from this year’s conference with practical skills that you can begin to implement immediately. Plus, take away insights from colleagues who face the same challenges you see every day. Learn more about the conference and register today!

OSHA is delaying enforcement of the anti-retaliation provisions in its new injury and illness tracking rule to conduct additional outreach and provide educational materials and guidance for employers. Originally scheduled to begin Aug. 10, 2016, enforcement will now begin Nov. 1, 2016. Under the rule, employers are required to inform workers of their right to report work-related injuries and illnesses without fear of retaliation; implement procedures for reporting injuries and illnesses that are reasonable and do not deter workers from reporting; and employers are prohibited from retaliating against workers for reporting injuries and illnesses.

Technology is changing the backdrop for all businesses and construction is an industry that needs to embrace it now, more than ever. LCI Chicago CoP will be hosting a Technology Exploration Event that will demonstrate how General Contractors, Subcontractors and Suppliers are using technology that help innovate and create lean spaces. From this event you will walk away with project approaches from industry leaders and visionaries on how they are able to leverage technology to enhance the Lean Initiatives and project outcomes. Builders Association member company The Hill Group will also be presenting at this program.

Date: Thursday, August 11, 2016
Time: 4:00 pm to 6:00 p.m. 
Location: DIRTT Environmental Solutions
325 North Wells, 10th Floor
Chicago, IL  60654
Cost: $75 for BA members. 

Register here.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently introduced relaxed regulations concerning the use of drones for commercial purposes. The new regulations could have a significant impact on drone usage in the construction industry.

At this point, most people have at least a general understanding of drones, which are relatively small, remote-controlled, battery-powered flying aircraft. Less understood is the significant utility drones can provide for the construction industry...

Read on for a detailed article contributed by member company Ogletree Deakins on the latest in drone regulations.

The AGC's Chief Economist Ken Simonson has released the latest outlook report on Construction Spending, Labor & Materials. According to the report, contractors are coping with work shortages primarily through increased hiring of subcontractors and increased use of staffing companies. Simonson hypothesizes that total construction spending will increase by 3-8% in 2016 and 2-7% in 2017. Illinois construction employment change is up 2 points in Illinois from April 2015 to April 2016 despite a -0.2% change in state population. Read the full report for more information.

Welcome to the Builders Association as our newest member! Old Republic Construction Program Group (ORCPG) provides quality insurance products and services exclusively for the construction industry. As a member of the Old Republic Companies, ORCPG has offices in Pasadena, New York City, Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta and Kansas City.

Congratulations to Joe McEvoy, Megan Mockbee, and Kenneth Osmun of Wight & Company for passing the Lean credentialing exam and earning their CM-Lean! There are about 220 individuals with this credential in the nation. The Builders Association is proud to have three more credentialed members.

Interested in becoming Lean certified? Contact the Builders Association office at 773-444-0465.