September 9-16, 2002

PERINI & BRINKER TEAM UP AGAIN
On Sept. 5 MGM Grand Detroit announced its selection of Perini Building Co. of Framingham, Mass., and L.S. Brinker Co., Detroit, as 60-40 joint venture contractors to build its permanent hotel-casino complex. Ground for the estimated $500 million facility is to be broken late this year. A minority owned firm, Brinker joint ventured with Perini for the construction of the $220 million temporary MGM Grand casino at the former IRS office in downtownDetroit, near where the permanent casino will rise. The temporary casino took eight months to build and will remain open while the permanent complex is rising. "As a dedicated, Detroit based company, we are thrilled to be a part of building the MGM casino," says Larry Brinker, chief executive officer of L.S. Brinker Co. "We are also happy to have the opportunity to provide employment in the city of Detroit during and after construction of the gaming and entertainment facility." Specific details about the permanent casino are yet to be released by MGM Grand. Perini is considered one of the largest builders of casinos and hotels in the country. "Based on our working relationship with MGM Grand, L.S. Brinker, and the city of Detroit, we expect to deliver a seamless, quality product," Dave Agnello, vice president of operations for Perini Building Co. says. May his expectations be realized.

STEEL FOR LOW RISES
This week the American Institute of Steel Construction will be conducting its seminar, "Practical Steel Design: Two to 20 Stories," in both Cleveland, Ohio, and sunny, delightful Dearborn. The Cleveland class will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 11.Registration starts at 12:30 a.m. and the seminar runs from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Location? The Sheraton Cleveland City Centre Hotel, at 777 St. Clair Ave. The very next day the same presentation will be made during the same hours at the Dearborn Inn. Dr. Louis F. Geschwinder, professor of architectural engineering at Pennsylvania University, developed the course. It's practice oriented and focused on the design of low to medium-rise buildings. Presenting the course will be John L. Ruddy, PE, a principal of Structural Affiliates International Inc., Nashville, Tenn. The cost is $225 for AISC members and $275 for non-members. Included in the price is the AISC's new 3rd Edition LRFD Manual of Steel Construction, valued at $149, along with a one-year AISC professional membership. The institute will even provide dinner. You can register for the seminar on the institute's web site at www.aisc.org/seminars.html. More information is available by calling the AISC at 630/369-7784.

SEEKING CRIMINAL CHARGES
An opinion was released late last month by the county corner's office in Pittsburgh, Pa., calling for the filing of criminal charges against Dick Corp., a Pittsburgh firm. It served as structural steel erection subcontractor on Pittsburgh's convention center project where, last Feb. 12, a truss collapsed, resulting in an iron worker's death. "The failures at every level of this project are so blatant and overwhelming that…errors and omissions on the part of Dick Corp. more than rise to the level of recklessness and grossly negligent conduct," states a report compiled by Allegheny County Coroner Cyril H. Welch and Michael C. George, presiding inquest attorney. "It is the conclusion that the manner of death of Paul Corsi Jr., which had been listed as accidental, be changed with homicide, and that [Dick Corp.] be held criminally liable. As reported earlier, testimony from several witnesses led the coroner to conclude that improper nuts had been installed to hold the truss together. Instead of 2-in heat treated nuts, 1-in "jam" nuts were used. "[I]t is also clear to us that no inspections were undertaken at any time that should have detected the use of the incorrect nuts," the report notes. Denny Watts, chief executive officer of Dick Corp., said his company disagrees with the report's conclusions. "We are confident that the district attorney will carefully examine all of the facts of this tragic accident before considering the coroner's recommendation," he replied in a written statement. Mr. George said an "almost cavalier attitude" practiced by Dick Corp. may have influenced the accident. "The testimony was abundantly clear that the ironworkers were never instructed about the need to use the case-hardened nuts," he charges.

RICHARD FOLEY IS GONE
The chairman of Michigan Foundation Co., a ready-mix concrete company based in Trenton, has died. James Richard Foley was 86. He passed away in his sleep on Sept. 3. After graduating from the University of Notre Dame in 1938, he joined Michigan Foundation Co., which had been established by his father. By the time he retired from a fully active role in 1985 he had worked his way up to president. He and a friend were Trenton's first Eagle Scouts. Mr. Foley was noted for being very much an "outdoors" person and was active in hunting, boating, and golf. He belonged to the Grosse Ile Golf and Country Club, the Grosse Ile Yacht Club, and the Trenton Rotary Club. In professional activities he was a former president of the Michigan Concrete Association. Survivors include his wife, Mary Lou; a daughter, Margaret Fitzpatrick; two sons, James and William, who run the company now; two stepsons; three stepdaughters; 21 grandchildren; and a sister.

TO TOUGHEN FIRE CODES
In an effort to provide more protection for people escaping burning buildings as well as fire and rescue personnel, the National Association of State Fire Marshals (NASFM) has formed the Partnership for Safer Buildings. Its charge is to study U.S. building codes and propose changes, applying the hard experiences gathered from the catastrophic collapse of the World Trade Center to fire protection. "One of the lessons of the tragedy of September 11th is that we need to take a closer look at construction standards, maintenance standards, and fire protection systems," says Donald Bliss, NASFM president and a member of the new partnership. "We also need to pay special attention to the contents of buildings. Jet fuel started the fires in the Twin Towers but it was the contents - the furniture, drapes, wall coverings, cleaning supplies, computer equipment, and paper - that kept the buildings burning." The partnership will be focusing its efforts on the codes that govern the construction and maintenance of commercial, mercantile, and institutional structures. It will also work on applying fire safety standards to buildings currently exempt from code requirements.

RAISING THE RAFTERS
They've started hammering away on the Walter Mabry Labor Center at 23401 Mound Rd. north of Nine Mile Rd. in Warren. The center's 35,000 sq. ft. hall is to serve as the headquarters of Millwrights Local 1102 of the Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters and Millwrights. Building the center is expected to take about a year.

SPUTTERING ABOUT
In July construction spending across the nation was unchanged, according to the most recent figures posted by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce's Bureau of the Census. After declining in May and June, in July it remained stuck at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $834.1 billion. Observers said an increase in publicly funded work offset a decline in private construction levels. Private construction has sunk to its lowest in six years. Just ask my brother-in-law, a carpentry contractor who does build-outs for banks, offices, and retail outfits. The front and back yards of his house have never looked better. Not to mention the new dormer on his daughter's treehouse. Meanwhile, on Sept. 4 Turner Corp. forecast a slight increase of 0.16% in construction costs between the third and second quarters of this year. According to the Turner Building Cost Index the third quarter 2002 index will increase to 619, just a point about the second quarter 2002 figure and only 0.81% above the third quarter 2001 index of 614. "In general, the market appears to be finding an equilibrium," says Karl F. Almstead, the Turner vice president responsible for the index. "The competitive market forces are offset by a slight upward pressure of increases in labor and materials. The industry is maintaining a cautious optimism, even though many market segments have not yet rebounded significantly. Several sectors, such as education and health care, have remained strong."

STICKER SHOCK
Check out the prices for new power cranes lately? Be sure to have heart medicine and a defibrillator on hand when you do. A report issued last week by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed an unexpected and extremely large price surge for cranes and excavators in June, breaking over five years of relative price stability in the construction equipment market. In June the BLS index for power cranes and excavators spiked up by 8.4%, pushing the annual escalation rate for the index from 0.9% to 9.4%. This follows a 1.2% drop experienced in 2001. According to the BLS, the crane and excavator spike may have been an isolated event. The bureau's data for air compressors, crawler tractors, and paving equipment for June indicated steady prices. Prices for tractor shovel loaders rose 0.1% in June but that only partially made up for a 0.2% decline in May. Wheeled tractor prices shot up 0.9% in June but that didn't make up for a 1% drop in their price that took place over the previous three months. Crane manufacturers are getting ready to offer rebates and low or no percentage loans, maybe? Don't count on it.

Questions? Comments? Idea?
Please submit your responses to the Great Lakes Fabricators & Erectors Association as soon as possible. You can call our new offices in downtown Detroit at 313/309-2000. Or you can drop an email to Guy Snyder at guysny@concentric.net or call him at 313/961-9217. We hope to hear from you soon!