All of us at AGCVA are looking forward to seeing each other again at The Homestead for our Summer Conference in just a couple weeks. AGCVA has several major initiatives underway and we are excited to work together and have some fun at the same time. AGCVA has made great strides in the past few years with the guidance of a strategic plan focused on membership, partnership, and being more data driven. This spring we began another strategic planning process to build upon the success of the last few years and move us towards our 100th anniversary in 2024. To date, this work has been led by a taskforce comprised of state leaders and district leaders.

At the Summer Conference this taskforce will present the initial findings of its work at a meeting of the state board and the district leadership. Together, this group of association leaders will work to help set in place our strategic plan for the years ahead. There are 89 chapters in AGC of America from Puerto Rico to Alaska. Virginia is one of a handful of chapters that has a strong district model.  We will work together as district and state leaders to capitalize on this strength, streamline our efforts, and maximize member value returns. The new strategic plan will create clarity on our vision as an organization and allow us to align resources to achieve success within the district model. I''m excited to be helping play a role in leading this effort.

We hope you are having a great summer and look forward to seeing many of you soon.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, high materials prices and a skilled labor shortage, the construction industry is coming back with a vengeance, according to a noted construction economist. "I find it remarkable that so much normalcy has returned to the construction industry," said Anirban Basu, chief economist for Associated Builders and Contractors.

Everyone is talking about how to pay for an infrastructure bill, but no one is talking about how the industry is going to be able to accomplish the influx of work headed our way. These tools can build the efficiency necessary to get the work done.

In part two of this series, we explore how artificial intelligence (AI) can streamline critical construction project workflows by automating time-consuming and repetitive processes like building a submittal log and tracking changes to specs over the course of a project.

Bryan Rumple of Mortenson and Sameer Merchant of Autodesk Construction Solutions discuss document management challenges and how AI technology can improve productivity and reduce project risk.

If you missed part one of this conversation, don't worry.  You can access both conversations by clicking the "Listen Now" button below.

Negotiators are working to resolve two issues standing in the way of a bipartisan infrastructure package and hoping to vote on proceeding next week while a new poll shows support for infrastructure funding is growing nationwide.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced that the 2019 and 2020 EEO-1 Component 1 data collection filing deadline has been extended from July 19 to Monday, Aug. 23, 2021. However, the EEOC encourages eligible employers to file the required EEO-1 Component 1 report(s) as soon as possible.

Any job is better than no job – or is it? When you run a business and find yourself responsible for paying bills, meeting payroll and funding your own retirement, it can be tempting to take anything that comes your way. But some projects actually end up costing you more than they’re worth and keep you from spending time on profitable work. How do you determine if a job’s not worth taking?

Declining unemployment, increased spending and rising consumer sentiment all suggest continued strong growth in construction. Yet many construction firms are struggling to fill salaried and hourly craft positions and anticipate labor shortages to be the biggest hurdle they face in the coming year.

Virginia has felt the heat to implement a heat illness standard. Public Citizen has petitioned for such a standard, and Members of the General Assembly have introduced three bills directing Virginia Occupational and Health (“VOSH”) to promulgate a heat illness standard.

In the construction industry, maintaining a project’s schedule and safety of operations are some of the main concerns for project leaders. During severe weather season, typically spring and summer for the United States, heavy winds and rain, lightning, high temperatures, and flooding can be disastrous for scheduling and safety. See below for tips and best practices from leaders in the industry for maintaining safe, timely operations regardless of the weather.

By following a few basic guidelines, employers can implement or improve their documented safety programs in order to potentially lower their insurance costs, according to two risk management experts.