April 19, 2007

Comments by DHI President Terry B. Hamlet, AHC

The recent tragedy at Virginia Tech underscores the changing landscape in life safety and security in our nation's schools. Our sympathy and prayers go out to the families who lost children and family members in a way they never could have anticipated.

As an Industry we must and will continue our efforts to assist our school community in developing solutions to keep our schools safe. During the past year, both The Foundation for the Advancement of Life Safety and Security and the Door and Hardware Institute have been in dialogue with the Department of Education in an effort to develop safety and security solutions for our schools. Because of the changes in our social environment, the school community will be attempting to address a different set of precautions than in the past and our expertise will be needed.

INDUSTRY ACCESS*

Honeywell Inks Deal to Acquire Burtek Systems

Honeywell has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Burtek Systems Corp. and the Security Systems Division from Richardson Electronics Ltd. for $80 million. Burtek will be integrated with Honeywell’s ADI security and low-voltage products distribution business, which has more than 200 branch locations in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, reported Security Sales & Integration. Full Story

Home Depot Debuts Green Product Line

Home Depot will introduce a line of 3,000 products, like fluorescent light bulbs and natural insect killers, that promote clean water and energy conservation. The product line, expected to reach 6,000 products by 2009, or 12% of the chain's total, would become the largest "green" labeling program in American retailing and could persuade competitors to speed up similar plans, reported the International Herald Tribune. 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

The March Architecture Billings Index was virtually identical to the February figure. The American Institute of Architects reported the March ABI rating was 52.6 (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings), versus the 52.5 mark in February. With an approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending, and significant inquiry levels for new projects this news continues a forecast that remains favorable for the nonresidential construction market throughout 2007. Full Story

The March Producer Price Index for Wood Doors (flush & panel, interior & exterior) was up 2.7% from 2006 and the Other Wood Doors (Incl. garage, screen, storm, etc.) PPI was up 2.4% compared to a year earlier. Compared to February, the unadjusted March PPI was up 0.5% for Wood Doors and the PPI for Other Wood Doors was up 0.4%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The PPI for Metal Doors, Sash & Trim was down 0.1% from February and up 2.8% from a year ago. The March PPI for Door locks, locksets & locktrim was up 0.4% from February, and was up 8.2% from 2006. Click here to view the full March Producer Price Index report. (PDF file - Wood Door information is on page 12, Lock data and Metal Door data is on page 17)

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, has released a new guide intended to help campuses overcome a major barrier to implementing sustainability projects. The how-to manual, entitled Creating a Campus Sustainability Revolving Loan Fund: A Guide for Students, describes an innovative and powerful mechanism for financing sustainability projects, such as energy efficiency upgrades and renewable energy installations, on campus. Full Story Download the guide (PDF file)

Federal research dedicated to green building practices and technologies is disproportionately low when compared to the energy buildings consume and the greenhouse gases emitted, a new study has found. The report, Green Building Research Funding: An Assessment of Current Activity in the United States, has found finds that research related to high-performance green building practices and technologies amounts to only 0.2% of all Federally funded research — an annual average of $193 million per year (2002-2005) and only 0.02% of the estimated value of annual U.S. building construction and renovation, reported Facilitiesnet.com. Full Story Download Report (37 page pdf file)

The Greenguard Environmental Institute has announced an agreement with the Collaborative for High Performance Schools to recognize its Greenguard Children & Schools Product Certification Program as a strategy for supporting the CHPS Best Practices Manual for K-12 schools, reported Facilitiesnet.com. Full Story

CONSTRUCTION & DESIGN

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has selected members of a committee that will be charged with developing a universal standard for residential green-building practices. The so-called Consensus Committee on the National Green Building Standard — whose members were selected by NAHB and the International Code Council (ICC) — will represent the home-building industry in its efforts to develop a sustainable design baseline that is sanctioned by the American National Standards Institute. Full Story

Reed Construction Data's latest regional starts show the Midwest (+43.2%) leading in terms of percentage gain in non-residential buildings through the first quarter of this year versus the same period last year. The West (+20.9%) and South (+20.3%) are virtually tied for second place, with the Northeast (+12.7%) trailing, reported Building Team Forecast. Full Story

Iowa’s prisons and community corrections programs need more than $250 million in new construction to accommodate future growth of the state’s population of criminals and to replace out-of-date facilities, a consultant has told state officials, reported the Des Moines Register. Full Story

SECURITY & SAFETY

The National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities reviews a number of articles from around the country detailing colleges' efforts to review security procedures, following the recent tragedy at Virginia Tech. Read More

Security Distributing & Marketing offers some tips from dealers who regularly install electromagnetic locks and door strikes. Full Story

A Buildings.com feature discusses various aspects of building security. Full Story

Maintaining a secure workplace is increasingly important. The heightened need for security is reflected in the emergence of a discipline, Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design, that is increasingly becoming the route taken by architects and others interested in designing secure buildings and communities. CPTED methodology is used to identify, prevent and solve crimes, says Art Hushen, president of the National Institute of Crime Prevention. The institute conducts seminars offering instruction in this security technique to a wide-ranging group of law-enforcement and community officials, reported Charlotte Business Journal. Full Story (Registration required)

Students at Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania will be given the option of using RFID-enabled student ID cards this fall. The school plans to replace its current student ID cards with RFID-powered ones that will allow students to gain access to university services like the school library, buy goods at stores both on and off campus, as well as manage their own accounts online. There will be 120 spots on campus where the RFID cards would be accepted, including the cafe, the student book store, and vending machines. The school hopes that students will opt to embed an RFID chip into their cell phones, making their phone their de facto student ID card, reported DC Velocity. Full Story

GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS

Though several Palo Alto City Council members are pushing to impose "green" building requirements, City Attorney Gary Baum warned them this week they cannot legally do so. "It is in our best interest to incentivize rather than to restrict," Baum said at a joint study session of the council and the city's Architectural Review Board. He said attorneys for cities with environmentally friendly building mandates admit there is "no legal basis" for their policies on private construction. Cities can only require green measures for public projects, reported Building Design & Construction. Full Story

The Rhode Island Department of Education is proposing a new set of regulations that would hold school districts more accountable for construction and maintenance of school buildings, and require districts to set aside millions in their budgets each year for upkeep, reported Buildings.com. Full Story

Maryland’s developers were disappointed, but hardly surprised, when the state’s legislative session ended without funding the Maryland Green Building Tax Credit, reported GlobeSt.com. Full Story

SMALL BUSINESS NEWS

Minimum Wage

The two Chambers of Congress cannot agree on how to help small businesses. Democrats, frustrated by the stalemate between the House and Senate, decided to circumvent the entire process by putting the increase in the 2007 supplemental bill. This set the table for a showdown between President Bush, who wants a clean war supplemental and has vowed to veto the supplemental as it currently stands, and the Democrats, who see the bill as an omnibus vehicle for their pet projects.

The question the majority must decide this week is whether they want to force the showdown on multiple issues. They had not even decided on the final composition of the tax relief portion of the package. There is an undercurrent of sentiment that it might be better to drop the minimum wage increase/tax relief package from the supplemental and focus strictly on war issues.

Tax Time

To help "celebrate" another successful year of taxation, the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing Wednesday on the tax gap. The purpose of this hearing was to further examine the Administration's plan to reduce the tax gap. This hearing provided an opportunity for Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) to chastise the Administration for not doing enough to close the tax gap. Chairman Baucus asserted that the proposals offered so far will only bring in a fraction of the necessary revenue; as such there should be even greater regulations and enforcement.

DHI's Jerry Heppes sits on the board of the Small Business Legislative Council. If you'd like more information on these or other issues affecting small businesses, feel free to contact him at jheppes@dhi.org.

FOUNDATION NEWS

Fire-door Inspection Course Taught to 40 Fire Officials in Florida.

Forty code enforcement officials attended "Fire-Rated Doors and Hardware - A Guide to Field Inspections" on April 10th in Fort Myers, Fl. 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 Florida Fire Inspectors Association.

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

The class is now approved through the Florida State Fire College to be taught anywhere in the state of Florida.

Keep up-to-date with the latest Foundation news and programs, please visit www.lifesafetysecurity.org

DHI NEWS

Upcoming DHI Education Opportunity!

Have you made your plans to attend DHI National Education in Scottsdale, AZ, June 3 - 8, 2007? Registration is now available online at www.dhi.org/education or call our registrar, Linda Saylor directly at 703-766-7021. With a wide variety of classes, you can build a schedule that meets YOUR education needs! Not sure which class to take? Contact us at 703-222-2010 and we can help you select the right one for you!

Fire Door Annual Inspection Program!

Don't miss the release of the Fire Door Annual Inspection Program at DHI's 32nd Annual Conference and Exposition, October 13 - 20, 2007 in Nashville, TN! The inaugural presentation of this program will include education sessions on the new inspection process guidelines as well as the certification process for companies and individuals.
PLUS! This year's Forum for the Future, sponsored by the Foundation for the Advancement of Life Safety and Security, will address business models for creating annuity revenues from this initiative. This is an event you can't afford to miss! Watch www.dhi.org for further details!