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Still Showing Weakness, Architecture Billings Index Increases Slightly |
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Thursday, 19 August 2010 07:30 |
The AIA released its monthly report on the Architecture Billings Index (ABI). Commercial construction category continues to outperform other sectors. Following a two-month soft patch the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) rose almost two full points in July. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the July ABI score was 47.9, up from a reading of 46.0 the previous month. This score reflects a continued decline in demand for design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings). The new projects inquiry index dropped substantially from 57.7 to 53.1.
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AIA Urges Senate to Put Partisanship Aside and Pass Legislation to Help Solve the Credit Crunch |
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Monday, 02 August 2010 09:59 |
The American Institute of Architects last week called on Congress to address the persistent lack of credit that has exacerbated the economic crisis and disproportionately affected the design and construction industry.
“The design and construction sector in which architects compete has seen employment drop by 25 percent since the recession began in 2007,” said Paul Mendelsohn, AIA Vice President, Government and Community Relations. “The AIA Architecture Billings Index has remained in a negative state for nearly 2 years.
“The industry continues to be affected by an extremely risk-averse attitude on the part of lending institutions,” Mendelsohn said. “This is especially true for large construction projects.”
The AIA submitted its statement today to the House Financial Services Committee ahead of its hearing that will examine the alternatives available to promoting liquidity in the commercial real estate markets, and as the Senate continued debating small business relief legislation. The AIA congratulated the Committee for passing legislation on a voice vote that establishes a regulatory framework for a U.S. covered bond market. Such a market will increase liquidity in many credit markets by giving banks access to a separate source of funds for secured lending.
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AIA Urges Congress to Save Clean Energy Bond Program |
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Tuesday, 20 July 2010 07:38 |
Calls on Congress to Pass Legislation Eliminating Regulatory Obstacles to PACE Bonds.
The American Institute of Architects today called on Congress to pass legislation that guarantees local governments the right to establish clean energy programs through Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) bonds.
PACE bonds are municipal bonds in which the proceeds from the sale of the bonds are loaned to commercial and residential property owners for the purpose of financing energy retrofits. These loans are then re-paid over long periods of time – much like a mortgage - via an annual assessment on their property tax bill. Given the numerous, well-documented benefits that energy efficient buildings offer, PACE bonds are viewed as an innovative tool to help property owners reduce energy consumption.
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USGBC and AIA Announce Architecture for Humanity Sustainability Design Fellow |
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Wednesday, 14 July 2010 15:46 |
Stacey McMahan, LEED AP, Selected to Head Haiti Sustainable Rebuilding Efforts
One month after the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and the American Institute of Architects (AIA) announced the search for the Architecture for Humanity (AFH) Sustainable Design Fellow to lead AFH’s sustainable rebuilding efforts in Haiti, Stacey McMahan, AIA, LEED AP, has been appointed to the fellowship. McMahan will work directly with community members on the ground in Architecture for Humanity’s Rebuilding Center based in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
USGBC, AIA and AFH recognize that this crisis presents an unprecedented opportunity to learn from the reconstruction work and improve disaster responses elsewhere in the world and here in the U.S. through green building. McMahan’s work on the ground in Haiti will be vital to future education on how sustainability after a disaster can be achieved. “Sustainability needs a strong voice in Haiti’s reconstruction,” said Eric Cesal, Regional Program Manager for Architecture for Humanity in Haiti. “Faced with urgent needs on the ground, there is always a temptation to do it fast, instead of doing it right. We expect McMahan will help us do both.”
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 14 July 2010 15:49 |
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Architecture Billings Index Falls Back After Three Months of Improving Conditions |
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Wednesday, 23 June 2010 12:12 |
Lack of available credit continues to plague design industry
After three straight months of improving conditions, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) fell nearly three points. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the May ABI rating was 45.8, down substantially from a reading of 48.4 the previous month. This score reflects a continued decline in demand for design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings), and comes on the heels of the highest score since January 2008 when revenue at architecture firms headed into recession. The new projects inquiry index was 55.5.
“This dip is somewhat of a surprise since it appeared that conditions were pointing towards a recovery,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA. “The overriding issue affecting the entire real estate sector is unusual caution on the part of lending institutions to provide credit for construction projects that apparently would be successful in this economic environment.”
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AIA Applauds U.S. Mayors’ Endorsement of International Green Construction Code (IGCC) |
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Tuesday, 15 June 2010 09:19 |
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) applauded the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ endorsement today of the International Green Construction Code (IGCC), a comprehensive set of requirements intended to reduce the negative impact of buildings on the natural environment while maintaining safety standards and increasing long term peak performance.
The Mayors’ Conference endorsement today of the IGCC at its annual meeting is a major expression of support from an organization outside of the building and construction industry. Such resolutions document support for a policy and represent ways for mayors to learn about and support policies nationally that they are free to adopt in their communities.
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AIA Advocates for Open Standards in Interoperability for Design Software |
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Friday, 11 June 2010 12:17 |
According to the 2009 Business of Architecture, a survey of firm characteristics published by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the share of firms that have obtained Building Information Modeling (BIM) software has doubled in period from 2006-2009 and is up to 34 percent of all architecture firms, representing about 50% of AIA architects. Due to challenges associated with the use of BIM with different operating standards among design teams that results in productivity loss, the AIA is calling for the ongoing development of open standards for design software. The software must support non-proprietary open standards for auditable information exchange and allow for confident information exchanges across applications and time.
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