Tag Archives: construction

Why Everything You Learned from Law & Order won’t help you win your professional malpractice case!

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Secret confession time here:  I *love* my Law & Order.  And while I’ve been known to suffer through SVU or, God forbid, Criminal Intent, it’s the original Law & Order (with uber-cool Detective Lennie Briscoe and the always wild-eyebrow of Jack McCoy) that really makes my day. 

Some clients wonder why I like to watch a legal show on television after a day of practicing law.  The answer is because the real world of law is nothing like that on shown on TV.  Things happen so fast and so amazingly on the show, it is fun way to wind down the day. 

On Law & Order, a subpoena is issued for bank documents, and, faster than you can say, “cha-chunk”, the documents are rolling through the office.  Court cases are wrapped up in neat tidy 60 minute packages (including time for discovering the real killer).  The lawyers get to ask unfair questions—make self-serving testimony and arguments to the jury—and it doesn’t matter, because they are on the side of truth, justice, and the American way.  Law & Order is many things, but an accurate representation of a court case, it is not.

What does this have to do with YOUR court case?  Everything.  Sure, you expect your construction case will be different from a “sexy” homicide case, but are you really prepared for just how different it will be?  How long it will take?  The delays, stalling, and prevarication the other side will be allowed?   Probably not.  Until now.

Over the next several weeks, I plan to walk you through a “typical” construction defect lawsuit—from the first initial phone call from the project manager that something might be amiss, to the dreaded yellow paperwork delivered by the Sheriff (if you are really lucky), the famed “courthouse steps” settlement discussions, and even the angst-producing knock on the jury room door announcing a verdict.  Stay tuned for Part 1 of the new series:  Law & Order: Hard Hat files, starting next Tuesday.  [And Dick Wolfe, if you steal my title for your next television series, please give me credit and a cut!] 

If you haven’t already, be sure to sign up for email delivery of blog posts direct to your inbox.

2012 Construction Jobs That Are in High Demand (guest post) (Tue Tip)

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Today’s guest post is by Derek Singleton, ERP Analyst with Software Advice, a website that reviews construction software. 
 

The construction industry is undergoing a change–several states are showing positive signs of job growth. A June report released by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) indicates found that 20 states added new construction jobs. The catch, however, is the jobs that are available require highly skilled individuals. 

 

The chart above aggregates survey data of the top five anticipated engineering and skilled labor shortages from 2,223 construction industry professionals. As you can see, engineers of all types are expected to remain in high demand.To find out what’s driving job gains in the industry, I recently caught up with AGC’s Chief Economist, Ken Simonson. In my conversation with Simonson, he highlighted three key drivers to the current trends in construction employment.

  1. Low vacancy rates are spurring investment in apartment complex construction.
  2. The acceleration of natural gas extraction is fueling related construction job growth.
  3. Manufacturing investment is leading to new manufacturing facility construction.

So what kinds of jobs fit well with these market drivers? Below I’ll profile a few relevant professions that are currently in demand.

Apartment Complex Construction
Apartment construction requires nearly every kind of construction trade on the job. However, there are a few particular positions that are particularly high demand.

Architects: Efficiently building an apartment complex starts at the design process. With new apartment construction increasing, architects familiar with designing multi-family residences will be in high demand.

Carpenter: Naturally, carpenters are in high demand as more complexes are built they’re needed for everything from framing to setting crown molding.

Millwork: The millwork trade is in high demand to produce the doors, crown moldings, window casings, etc. needed to finish an apartment.

Electrician: Electricians that are familiar with multi-family electrical wiring are know how to run standard power distribution to lighting and other outlets in apartments.

Natural Gas Extraction
The growth in natural gas extraction from underground shales is also supporting new construction jobs. The majority of these jobs involve heavy construction or civil engineering.

Plumbing Engineering: Natural gas extraction is complex process that involves a lot of fluid dynamics. For this reason, drilling sites typically need a plumbing engineer to help figure out how to manage the hydraulics needed to extract gas from thousands of miles below the Earth’s surface.

Civil Engineering: Of course, effectively planning these roadways requires civil engineers that can effectively plan the infrastructure of these projects.

Manufacturing Facilities
Construction jobs are also being supported by the uptick in domestic manufacturing, which is prompting manufacturers to build new facilities in the U.S. As a result, there are two main professions that are in high demand.

Structural Engineering: Structural engineers are needed both for apartment construction and for manufacturing facility construction. These engineers need to be able to check facilities to ensure that buildings are up to code, and help amend design plans as construction is underway.

Iron work: Iron work professionals are needed to put together the large steel frames that facilities require. Within the iron work profession, welders are among the most in demand professions as certified welders are hard to find given that it can take several years to achieve certification. /

Electrician: Commercial electricians are needed when constructing a new manufacturing facility because of the need to install power and controls to motors and HVAC systems at the facility–in addition to run power distribution directly from the electrical grid.

Thanks, Derek, for your post.  Please comment below, or check out Derek’s map of construction employment by state and comment there. 

And, be sure to pick up your copy of “7 Critical Mistakes that Engineers & Architects make During Project Negotiation and Execution that Sabotage their Projects & Invite Litigation” by signing up for email updates on blog posts or by sending me an email at mbrumback at rl-law dot com.

Research Produces New Standards for Construction (guest post)(& more)

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Welcome Back!  The “regular season” of Construction Law in NC blog posts has now officially started.

Recently, I had the privilege of writing on the subject of Private, Single Panel Arbitration on Chris Hill’s blog.  Please read the article if haven’t already. 

The first issue of my brand-spanking new newsletter, The Construction Professional, went out yesterday to those on the email list.  If you want to be one of the cool kids, be sure to sign up now by visiting the right hand side of the blog.  (Or, you can simply shoot me an email at mbrumback at rl-law dot com).

Finally, today’s post is a guest post by Susan Wells.  Susan is a freelance blogger who enjoys writing about automotive and health news, technology, lifestyle and personal finance. She often researches and writes about automobile, property and health insurance, helping consumers find free insurance quotes, and the best protection available. Susan and I welcome your thoughts and comments on this article.

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The Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS) sits on a 90-acre parcel of land in South Carolina. The research facility is dedicated to advancing building science by evaluating various residential and commercial construction materials and systems.

In layman’s terms, IBHS builds things and then attempts to destroy them by recreating conditions of natural disasters. In a studio-like production, the laboratory builds houses and then submits them to fire, wind, ice and water damage.

The IBHS research center even has a few videos on YouTube that demonstrate the effects of wind damage and fire.

two houses compared in wind damage situation

This destruction is an integral part of the construction industry as insurers work to identify risks and mitigate them through improved materials and structures. IBHS President Julie Rochman explains that the research center allows them to produce controlled experiments that are not being conducted anywhere else in the world. No longer forced to rely on case studies or opinions, the IBHS can record its findings and actively search for (and test) stronger systems.

Engineer Scott Sundberg explains the value of the research center in a single sentence, saying, “One test is worth a thousand expert opinions.”

To those at the IBHC, the information produced by these experiments is essential to advancing a sustainable community. Using hard data and conclusive evidence, such large-scale and detail oriented research allows the insurance and construction markets to focus on effective mitigation techniques. The average consumer will also have more access to product knowledge and has the potential to become more informed about products and strategies that can make their homes and buildings safer.

“Predictability and reliability of building materials and information is extremely important to the sustainability of the community, “says Mississippi Housing Director Gerald Bessey.

“Collectively as we apply these to public policy decisions and as the market place makes market choices. I think the market will react to good information that’s reliable and stable.”

In insurance underwriting laboratories like IBHS, disaster resistant and energy efficient technologies are merging to produce a new definition of sustainability.

Admittedly, there are few market standards for “green” products, and the FTC is actively working to mitigate the damage caused by “greenwashed” products that touted false claims of durability and environmental benefit. For uninformed consumers and construction managers, the wrong green system could put building structure at risk.

Some elements, such as vegetative roofs, can actually serve as fuel for fires or pose a threat under high winds. The IBHS proposes that energy efficiency and structural durability can work in tandem to create a truly sustainable product: one that will be environmentally friendly yet resilient in the face of environmental disasters.

One such recommendation is retrofitting older homes. Owners can replace windows and doors with energy efficient and wind resistant materials and seal energy leaks. Simple weatherization steps can actually help the average homeowner reach a new level of sustainability without rebuilding their home using entirely new green technology.

Interestingly, there are green insurance policies that allow policy holders to rebuild after a disaster using green upgrades. This would allow for recycling of debris, LEED certification as well as coverage for new appliances.

Most insurance policies do not currently consider products like wind-resistant glass to be a green upgrade, but as research begins to define standards of sustainability, it’s only a matter of time before green technologies and resistant materials merge to produce the highest standards of construction.

Thoughts? Comments? Questions?  Drop me an email or leave your musings below.

 

When is a Construction Project truly “Complete”? That depends. (law note)

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Crossing the finish line

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Long-time readers of the blog may remember my earlier post on substantial completion.  However, in looking over my blog stats to see what search terms lead people here, it looks like this is hot topic.  The blog searches came in two general categories:

1.  Those searching strictly for a definition of substantial completion.  Some examples:

  • What does “substantial completion” mean?
  • when does a building achieve substantial completion
  • contracts “substantial completion”
  • substantial completion undefined
  • when is a project substantially complete

For those of you who want a definition, I refer you to my earlier post.  Essentially, however, the term is not always defined, which can be part of the problem.  If you are using AIA contract documents, there is a built in description that defines it as when the Owner can occupy or use the building.  Even the AIA definition, however does not state that there must be a permanent or temporary certificate of occupancy before substantial completion can occur.  While some might presume that a certificate of occupany is required, better practice would be to include language that specifically states that substantial completion also requires that the Contractor deliver to the Owner a certificate of occupany. This leads to the second major category of blog search terms related to substantial completion:

2.  Those looking to compare substantial completion with certificates of occupancy.  Examples include:

  • certificate of substantial completion vs certificate of occupancy
  • substantial completion or final completion
  • completion vs substantial completion
  • construction certificate of substantial completion

This can be a confusing distinction, but in reality the two are generally unrelated to each other [unless you state that a Certificate of Occupancy is part of the Substantial Completion process.] A Certificate of Occupancy is issued by the Building Department official when the building fulfills all requirements to be safely occupied.  In contrast, a Certificate of Substantial Completion is requested the contractor and granted by the architect.  Sometimes things that need to be completed before the architect can issue a certificate of substantial completion do not prevent the building of receiving Certificate of Occupancy.  [Unless, that is, you are in an odd jurisdiction, where a Building Inspector will demand a Certificate of Substantial Completion before issuing a Certificate of Occupancy.] A final note:  for those who were wondering about Final Completion, this occurs after the final inspection; i.e., after the architect verifies that the punch list is complete and all contract terms have been met.   [The punch list work can be conducted while the Owner has beneficial use of the building.]  At Final Completion, the final Certificate of Payment is issued. Confused yet? Drop me a line.  And, share below:  what has been your experience with certificates of occupancy and whether or not they relate to substantial completion?

Photo (c) Euromotorworks.