Construction + Economy

On the heels of a more than 3-point dip last November, the American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) Architecture Billings Index (ABI) had a negligible increase of less than 1 point in December. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate 9- to 12-month lag time between architecture billings and construction [...]

As part of LEED v3 (LEED 2009), the latest version of the U.S. Green Building Council’s program for green building design, construction, operations and maintenance, buildings seeking LEED certification will begin submitting operational performance data on a recurring basis as a precondition to certification. Projects can comply with the performance requirement in one of three [...]

The US architecture industry includes about 17,000 firms, with combined annual revenue of $20 billion, according to a new report by Research and Markets. The industry is highly fragmented: only about 100 firms have annual revenue of more than $100 million. The typical architecture firm has 10 employees and annual revenue of $1 million. See [...]

The Electroindustry Business Confidence Index (EBCI) for current North American conditions fell 5.7 points in December to 48.2. The index failed to top the critical 50-point threshold for the first time since July, indicating modest deterioration in the business environment following a period of steady, if slow, growth over the last several months. By contrast, [...]

Highlights of Int. No. 973: * Lighting systems in buildings larger than 50,000 gross sq.ft. (or buildings that combined with other buildings on same tax lot in total exceed 100,000 sq.ft.) must be upgraded * Deadline for upgrade is 1/1/2025 * Upgrade defined as meeting minimum requirements of New York City Energy Conservation Code * [...]

Following its highest mark since August 2008, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) dropped more than three points in November. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the November ABI rating was 42.8, down from 46.1 in October. This score indicates a continued decline in demand for design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase [...]

Here, here and here. What do you think? Maybe the answer is it’s transformational, but not worth the cost in applications other than high-end projects. Has BIM impacted your business? Are there any ramifications for lighting in the short term? One thing for certain, it’s revolutionary:

Construction spending during October 2009 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $910.8 billion, about the same as the revised September estimate of $910.4 billion and 14.4% below the October 2008 estimate of $1,064.1 billion, according to the Department of Commerce. During the first 10 months of 2009, construction spending reached $794 billion, [...]

NEMA’s Lighting Systems Index (LSI) increased 3.3% on a quarter-to-quarter basis during the third quarter of 2009. This marks the LSI’s first increase in nine quarters. Nonetheless, the index is only one quarter removed from its lowest reading on record and declined 19.3% on a year-over-year basis. After adjusting for seasonal influences and inflation, emergency [...]