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State Tax Advisors
Whether you are a general commercial contractor or a multistate industrial specialty contractor, State Tax Advisors promises to provide the best quality assurance and tax services.  Because each construction project has it's own challenges, our experienced tax consultants are able to assist you with the itricate requirements for federal and state tax regulations.
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News you can Use
A study conducted by the University of Texas at Austin has found that the risk of coronavirus hospitalization in the construction industry is five times more than in other occupations.
The study found a correlation between unrestricted construction work and an increased risk for COVID-19 hospitalization.
The construction industry added 84,000 jobs last month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The gain was the largest since June but still left employment in the industry down 2.6% compared with October 2019.
A gain of 3.3% in the institutional component offset a 4.4% drop in the commercial component to hold the overall decline of the Dodge Momentum Index to 1.8% in October. Planning activity remains robust in the warehouse market, but plans for hotels and retail projects could stall as developers anticipate the next wave of coronavirus cases, Dodge Data & Analytics says.
More work means greater need for costly equipment, but there are ways to keep costs in check. Caterpillar's Lonnie Fritz examines options for renting for equipment that performs multiple tasks, for adding attachments that generate revenue and for monitoring effective utilization.
Four additional states have legalized the recreational use of marijuana, which AGC has flagged as a safety concern on construction sites. Jenn Goodman examines how legal provisions in each state directly affect employers, including the question of whether they will be allowed to bar usage at places of work.
 
Chick-fil-A built a restaurant with modular construction last month in Roswell, Georgia, marking the first time the fast food chain has used the expedited building method. "The modular option gives us an advantage of starting these projects ahead of schedule, before the existing restaurant even has to close its doors," said Chad Baker, principal reinvestment lead from Chick-fil-A.
Education/Training
2021 Leadership AGC Applications Now Open
 
Creating the Building Blocks for Our Future Leaders
Designed to develop and grow our industry’s future leaders, this program will provide a forum for and increase the awareness of potential AGC leaders by giving them an intensive experience that encompasses a broad scope of community and industry concerns.
 
The 12-session series will connect Leadership AGC participants with leaders in the construction, development, business, medical, industrial, political and educational arenas.
 
 
We've had resounding requests to make available for purchase the webinar on Crisis Communications and Media Response: Construction Industry Best Practices presented on November 4, 2020.

Featuring Anthony G. “Tony” Stergio, Andrews Myers, PC; John Schmidt, Cadence McShane Corporation; John Marshall, Satterfield & Pontikes Construction, Inc.; and Dennis Winkle, Winkler Public Relations, the speakers highlighted best practices that construction firms can implement when  accidents, natural catastrophes, global pandemics and even "shelter in place" situations can bring. 
 
Moderated by Employement Committee and Safety Committee Chairs Audra Athey, Cherry Companies, and Manny Rodriguez, TAS Commercial Concrete, the webinar was a frank discussion about creating a well-thought out plan to address different types of crises.
 
Get the details here, along with other programs for sale. 
 
 

This class is taught online using Zoom Meetings. The AGC Houston Jobsite Innovation Forum brings the commercial construction industry together for an open discussion on current and future technology.
 
Ideal for Project team members including but not limited to: Superintendents, Project Managers, Subcontractors, Project Executives, Owners  
 
Slack & Co. Contracting, Inc.
Andrews Myers, PC
AGC News
"Incoming President and Congress should focus on enacting measures to rebuild infrastructure, revive the economy and avoid imposing needless regulatory burdens that will undermine growth," stated Stephen Sandherr, AGC of America CEO. 
AGC has announced that beginning November 11, 2020, it will begin surveying members about the construction industry's hiring and business outlook.
 
AGC Houston members are encouraged to take part in this important survey, which will be conducted by Sage. The survey results will be compiled trough early December, and Chief Economist Ken Simonson and other AGC staff will prepare any analysis of the findings. 
As with prior years, AGC will produce state-specific Outlook results for those states with a large enough survey sample size, which is typically 20 firms.  
 
Click here to complete the survey.
The 2021 AGC Construction Safety & Health Conference is going virtual Jan. 13-15. Join us, from wherever you are, for the same superior educational content and peer-to-peer engagement that you have come to expect from AGC. We have reduced the registration fees for this conference to reflect the virtual delivery format. And, if you are unable to join us on those dates or for a specific online session, your registration gives you access to recordings of the education sessions.
 
 
The Construction Risk Partners Build America Awards (including the Marvin M. Black Partnering Excellence category) and AGC in the Community competitions recognize the nation's most impressive construction projects ranging across the building, highway and transportation, utility infrastructure, and federal and heavy divisions; those contractors excelling in their partnering and collaborative endeavors; and the charitable contractors and chapters giving back to their communities.
The AGC Diversity & Inclusion Excellence Awards recognize contractors who are champions in advancing diversity and inclusion within their workforce, subcontractor partners, supply chain, the association and in the communities they serve.
Events

AGC Houston is proud to partner with Grace After Fire to promote the Construction Industry to female veterans entering the workforce after active duty. Grace After Fire was founded by women in 2008, to empower and serve women veterans and their families.

Our Women In Construction group is planning to work closely in the coming weeks with the organization and to sponsor veteran families during the holidays. 

 

AGC Houston's annual State of the Chapter meeting featuring guest speakers Bob Lanham and Steve Sandherr and presenting the 2021 Standard of Excellence Award

Join us virtually for this special event featuring:

Jerry Nevlud, CEO AGC Houston
2019-2020 AGC Houston Chairman Tony Mansoorian, COO, W.S. Bellows Construction
2021-2022 AGC Houston Chairman, John Marshall, VP, Satterfield & Pontikes Construction

Special guests:

2020-2021 AGC of America Chairman Bob Lanham, Jr., President Williams Brothers Construction
Steve Sandherr, CEO,  AGC of America

Register now and don't miss out on an opportunity to hear about the state of the commercial construction industry and plans for the Chapter in the coming year.

Details here

 

12/3/2020 7:30 a.m.- 8:30 a.m.

Free event - Sponsorships Kindly Requested - Registration details

An annual meeting to address issues common to both construction HR and Safety professionals as well as avenue to create best practices and forum to foster better communication processes between the two departments.

Moderator: Zeke Smith, Satterfield & Pontikes Construction, Inc.

Panelists: Anthony G. “Tony” Stergio, Andrews Myers, PC, Shannon Gatlin, Cokinos|Young, Dr. Rick McShane, Occucare International, Susan Phillips, Tellepsen and Bobby Skyles, Marek Brothers Systems, Inc.

 

We're Planning A Starry Night! 
Due to ongoing uncertainties related to COVID-19, AGC Houston is moving the APEX Awards Gala to Saturday, May 22, 2021. We will be celebrating Excellence In Construction From The Group Up and honoring John Kirksey, Kirksey Architecture, 2020 Master Builder Award recipient.
 
Tickets and sponsorship opportunities available through May 9, 2021.
Click here for all the details. 

 
Wyndham Hotels and Resorts
Membership Benefits
 
AGC of America is happy to announce a new member discount program with Michelin Tires.
This program covers Michelin, BFGoodrich, UNIROYAL and TWEEL tire brands as well as automatic enrollment in Michelin ONCall. 
 
With MICHELIN® ONCall, drivers can get roadside assistance all day, every day, no matter where they are. This gets your trucks back up and running, whether it is tires, mechanical, or towing, to ensure that you maximize your productivity.
 
AGC MEMBERS SAVE UP TO 31% 
Get all the details.
 

Safety
The 2021 Construction Safety Excellence Awards (CSEA) competition is now open.
Click here to access the application; you will be directed to Formsite, AGC of America's application platform. You must create an account to view/complete the application. You will also see an option to download an application PDF.
 
Applications are due on Tuesday, December 15, 2020 
Resources
Discover a multitude of information related to trenching and excavation, including OSHA's trenching and excavation construction regulations, hazard recogition, possible solutions and general resources. The website provides technical bulletins, hazards and solutions, as well as industry resources. 
 
OSHA has published additional frequently asked questions and answers regarding the need to report employees’ in-patient hospitalizations and fatalities resulting from work-related cases of the coronavirus.
 
These FAQs are the latest effort by OSHA to provide employers and employees with more information about how it will enforce its standards and regulations during the pandemic. OSHA has also previously published revised enforcement guidance detailing how OSHA will enforce the recordkeeping requirements of 29 CFR 1904 for employee coronavirus illnesses for all employers.
 
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued guidance and an accompanying one-pager to help employers understand which standards are most frequently cited during coronavirus-related inspections. OSHA based these documents on data from citations issued, many of which were the result of complaints, referrals and fatalities in industries such as hospitals and healthcare, nursing homes and long-term care facilities, and meat/poultry processing plants.
Here's Looking at You

Helping to transform lives – that has been the driving force behind AGC Houston creating a scholarship fund for students pursuing a degree in a construction-related field. This past April 22, Houston-area students received the news that they were awarded a Patrick J. Kiley Excellence In Leadership scholarship. In all, AGC Houston awarded $50,000 to selected students. 

Recently, AGC Houston reached out to some of the recipients to capture their feelings about receiving a scholarship. The end result? A heartwarming video that was shown during the last Distiguished Speaker Breakfast Series in which Patrick J. Kiley, Kiley Literary Legacies,  spoke about leadership and the commitment of AGC Houston to help nurture the next generation of leaders. 

View the video

 

Shout out to Instructor Don Kerl, who virtually taught the last Introduction to Construction Plan Reading & Specification Documents class of the year. The virtual hybrid class gave students a basic understanding of the language of building plans, specifications and other supporting documents used on a construction project.

Students met six evenings in October and November at AGC Houtston as the course was transmitted live, with Don Kerl instructing remotely. The popular class will kick off in spring 2021 - stay tuned for new dates soon!

 

  

Construction 3D Printing In The Here And Now: There’s real potential that we will be printing large concrete buildings in the future. In a recent episode of AGC's podcasts,  Ryan Shults of Gilbane Building Company and Steven Koehler of Linbeck Group, LLC, discussed how contractors can easily benefit from Desktop 3D printing technology. They also shared how they are using 3D printing in various construction applications to help them get, plan and execute projects.

Listen here.

 

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