January 25, 2007

INDUSTRY ACCESS*

PPG Appoints Bogdan as Manager, Green Building Initiatives

In response to market demands for environmentally friendly building products, PPG Industries, Pittsburgh, has named James J. Bogdan as Manager-Sustainable Design & Green Building Initiatives. In this newly created post, Bogdan will accelerate PPG's growth in the commercial construction market and position PPG as a premier provider of glass, coatings and paints to the green construction industry.

In this role, he will serve as a conduit between practitioners of sustainable design and PPG's Performance Glazings, Architectural Coatings and Industrial Coatings businesses. He will serve the sustainable design community by identifying new green building trends and opportunities and translating them into new products and services for green architects, designer and construction professionals.

Schlage Multi-Technology Card Readers Receive FIPS201 Approval

Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies announced that three of its multitechnology card reader models have received Federal Information Processing Standards Publication 201 (FIPS 201) compliance. The models are: Schlage Mullion reader (SXF1100-PIV), Mid-Range reader (SXF2100-PIV) and Keypad reader (SXF2110-PIV), reported Security Sales & Integration. Full Story

Click here for more Industry Access news including recent new hires, merger & acquisition activity and who's offering new products.

* DHI Members may submit news releases to be considered for inclusion in DHI's IndustryWatch. Send to: jmadden@dhi.org.

BUSINESS UPDATE

Following a six point jump in November, the AIA's Architecture Billings Index (ABI) increased even more in December and finished 2006 with its highest score. The commercial/industrial sector recorded its highest reading in the history of the survey that originated in 1995, while scores in the institutional market also showed improvement. Full Story

The year-to-date value of construction starts through December 2006, excluding residential contracts, totaled $281.1 billion, 9.2% higher than in 2005, according to Reed Construction Data. Allowing for construction cost inflation, the real volume of new starts increased about 3% in 2006 compared to 2005, approximately matching overall growth in the economy. Full Story

The December Producer Price Index for Wood Doors (flush & panel, interior & exterior) was up 2.8% from 2005 and the Other Wood Doors (Incl. garage, screen, storm, etc.) PPI was up 1.9% compared to a year earlier. Compared to November the unadjusted December PPI was unchanged for Wood Doors and the PPI for Other Wood Doors was up 0.5%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The PPI for Metal Doors, Sash & Trim was up 0.1% from November and up 3.9% from 2005. The December PPI for Door locks, locksets & locktrim was unchanged from November, but was up 7.7% from 2005. Click here to view the full December Producer Price Index report. (PDF file - Wood Door information is on page 12, Lock data and Metal Door data is on page 17)

The price of lumber is down about 10% from this time last year. The bad news is that almost all other key materials for residential and nonresidential construction are flat or up from a year ago. This year will likely see a rise in materials costs, other than lumber, that will be twice the rate of inflation. Ken Simonson, chief economist for Associated General Contractors of America, is calling for price increases averaging 6% to 8% for most construction materials in 2007, reported The Wichita Eagle. Full Story

Eight technology trade groups have banded together to form an alliance to promote the use of RFID technology and to educate lawmakers about the benefits of RFID. The main goal of the alliance, which is called the RFID Technology Council, is to educate senators and their staffs about what RFID technology is and how it works, reported DC Velocity. Full Story

A coalition of major corporations and environmental groups recently announced an agreement to support bold action on global warming, reported Facilitiesnet. The companies, including Alcoa, BP America, Caterpillar, Duke Energy, DuPont, Florida Power & Light, GE, Lehman Brothers, PG&E Corporation and PNM, joined with Environmental Defense, Natural Resources Defense Council, Pew Center on Global Climate Change and World Resources Institute to brief congressional leaders on the plan. Together, the companies form the U.S. Climate Action Partnership (USCAP). USCAP’s goal is to help the U.S. create public policy that would act aggressively and sustainably to slow, stop and reverse the growth of greenhouse gas emissions, according to the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Full Story

CONSTRUCTION & DESIGN

The U.S. Green Building Council is offering a full rebate for the certification fees for any project that earns LEED Platinum certification. This rebate opportunity applies to projects applying for LEED for New Construction, LEED for Existing Buildings, LEED for Commercial Interiors, or LEED for Core and Shell Platinum certification. All fees ordinarily paid to the USGBC will be refunded when the LEED plaque is awarded, reported Buildings.com. Full Story

Richard Fedrizzi, CEO of U.S. Green Building Council, outlines the benefits of environmentally responsible building in an interview with The Miami Herald. Full Story

Commercial real estate in Indianapolis saw solid but not record-setting gains last year, reported IndyStar.com. The office-vacancy rate shrank to its lowest level since 2000. Newly occupied industrial space topped an 5 million sq. ft. for the third year in a row. Full Story

APPA has published University Facilities Respond to the Changing Landscape of Higher Education, which provides a contextual overview of the changing landscape of higher education. The paper also relates these trends to the top ten issues affecting facilities professionals. Download the report (32 page pdf file)

SECURITY & SAFETY

The electronic security industry experienced a 9% growth rate in 2006, while sweeping technology changes and market demands put pressure on security companies, reported Security Distributing & Marketing. Full Story

Many in the industry think that wireless access control devices have a promising future, but opinions vary on whether the technology is only suitable for niche applications or ready for use throughout an access control system, reported Security Distributing & Marketing. Besides not having to pull wires, wireless access control systems can be advantageous for retrofitting in existing buildings where wiring installation might be difficult, such as concrete block or historic buildings, and for connecting to remote locations, such as guard houses or gates, and other buildings. Full Story

GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is seeking comments to recognize the International Building Code (IBC) and International Fire Code (IFC) as meeting or exceeding OSHA Exit Route requirements. The International Code Council requested the recognition to reduce confusion and regulatory overlap, as many jurisdictions already use the IBC and IFC for commercial construction. Full Story (pdf file)

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled an ambitious new $43.3 billion public works program during his State of the State speech outlining the need for more school, university, prison and courthouse construction projects, as well as levees and dams. Schwarzenegger will first need a two-thirds vote of the Legislature to get his proposal on the ballot and before voters, which could happen by 2008. The plan calls for a new round of construction bonds over three years to prepare the state for an anticipated 30% population boom over the next two decades. The spending follows $42.6 billion in construction bonds approved by voters in November, reported Engineering News Record. Full Story

New Jersey has enacted new building codes that require all nursing homes to be retrofitted with automatic sprinklers, reported Security Sales & Integration. Nursing home owners will have three years from Jan. 2 to bring their facilities into compliance. The newly adopted regulation amends the retrofit requirements of the state’s Uniform Fire Code, which previously had allowed nursing homes constructed of noncombustible materials to be exempt from the sprinkler system requirement. However, these types of structures still threaten the risk of fatal fire because of flammable building contents Full Story

SMALL BUSINESS NEWS

Health Care

Suddenly, health care reform is a popular topic. Senator Mike Enzi (R-WY) apparently is getting some traction for a modified version of the association health plan concept. It is not clear what will stick, but it would feature extensive state regulation and probably will require a commitment to a more extensive package of mandated benefits.

The President also staked out new ground in the health care reform debate in his weekly radio address. He is proposing a PERSONAL tax health care deduction of approximately $15,000 for a family, $7,500 per individual. The value of employer provided health care insurance would be considered taxable income to the employee. It would be part of the employee's compensation. If Congress were to embrace the President's plan, it would turn the world of health care insurance on its head. Individuals would become more savvy health care shoppers as they try to stay within the bounds of their deduction.

FOUNDATION NEWS

Foundation Conducts First Class for 'Fire-Rated Doors and Hardware - A Guide to Field Inspections'

Twenty-eight code enforcement officials from South Carolina attended the first 'Fire-Rated Doors and Hardware - A Guide to Field Inspections' on Monday January 22nd at the South Carolina Fire Academy in Columbia. These officials were invited to this one-day course to learn about the NFPA 80 Standard for Fire Doors and Other Opening Protectives, installation, operation, features, basic criteria and maintenance of fire-rated doors. The class was sponsored by the Foundation and done in coordination with the State Fire Marshal's office of South Carolina.

Immediate feedback was very positive and the Foundation is working on an offering to teach this class at fire academies across the country.

Special thanks to Keith Pardoe DAHC/CDC, Richard Barnhard FDHI, DAHC/CDC, William Elliott DAHC, FDHI, and Robert Johnson, DAHC/CDC for leading this instructional effort.

Foundation Meets with the Assistant Deputy Secretary, Department of Education

Jerry Heppes CAE and Bill Johnson met with Deborah Price, Assistant Deputy Secretary to Margaret Spellings, Secretary of Education.

The meeting provided the Foundation the opportunity to supply information in regards to school safety and security and to raise awareness for the door and hardware industry. Ms. Price oversees the Department of Education's Safe and Drug-Free Schools Advisory Committee. A direct result of the meeting will be a follow-up with the Asst. Deputy Secretary's Chief of Staff to discuss guidelines and opportunities at the state and local levels.

Foundation works with National Governors Association and National Association of State Fire Marshals

The Foundation is working with the National Governors Association and NASFM to raise the awareness for the Fire-Rated Doors and Hardware training course. The NGA has contact with all the state governor's offices on a daily basis and is pleased to provide information that supports are efforts in the fire-door training area. Bert Polk, retired South Carolina fire marshal continues to guide the Foundation by coordinating these important classes with fire departments across the country. The Foundation is targeting Florida, California, New York and Maine as a few of the next training areas for this important class.

DHI NEWS

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