I’ve been trying to steer clear of a lot of virus related
material but unfortunately this week I have a bunch. Hopefully next post I can get back to more
topics that can allow you to think on something else!
I sat in on the ConstructConnect webinar this week that was
an update to bring folks up to speed on the current construction forecast
landscape. As you could imagine it was
pretty rough but as always I found a positive or two. Starting though on the bad side… the revised
AIA consensus forecast has us now down 11% for the year on non residential and
14% down on commercial. The areas that
are struggling are what you would expect- Retail, Hotels, and Office. All will surely go through some re-imagining
(see more on my thoughts on the future below).
Areas of hope are also somewhat obvious- health care, education and
public safety. The long-range non-residential forecast is being predicted to
not get back to 2019 levels until 2024.
(I wanted to throw up when I saw that)
Now the “positive news” because I have to try and be hopeful
right? There’s evidence of a moderate uptick in new projects hitting the
streets. That goes in hand with what we
were seeing with the new project inquiries on the ABI.
Obviously everything is very fluid right now and things can
and do change but this report surely was ugly. Also this is really uncharted
stuff, so there’s no playbook for this analysis- it could be right or could be
wrong- we don’t have any historical base to work from. There’s another big webinar coming up on the
26th so we’ll take that one in and report back then. Bottom line?
We all have to keep being strategic, diverse (design and code changes
WILL help glass), and active in fighting & marketing for our businesses and
world.
Elsewhere…
-- One of the questions I get asked the most is how do I see
how things are progressing at the Architect level. Personally I am hearing a mixed bag- smaller
firms struggling but bigger ones really rolling still. But like everything right now things are
changing constantly. This article gives
a deeper dive into what’s going on at that level and worth continuing to
follow.
-- A lot of articles this past week on what the office of the
“future” will look like and I still am holding strong that glass will be
playing a major role. The underlying
theme in all of the pieces I read was that people need to have separation but
don’t want to be “boxed” in. So there it
is again… we all know that glass can allow that more open feeling but still
offer the protection the stakeholders right now desire. Pre-pandemic growth on the interior was a
point I was very confident about- and now as we continue down this path I feel
even stronger. Especially seeing how glass
partitions are popping up everywhere retail wise, just a matter of time before
that office push comes together.
-- Not that we don’t have enough to think about right now- but then there’s this. What happens to the availability of the public bathroom in
our new normal? Those of us who are on
the road a lot had a routine and knew where to stop etc. Another thing that changes…
-- Last this week… once again I am using this space to remember
someone who passed and this one is someone who hit very close to home. Bobby Silverstein passed away last weekend
and I have spent the entire week trying to come up with words to do Bobby’s life
proper justice. I don’t think I can give
him the honoring he deserves but I am going to try. Bobby was a winner and a fighter. He took massive chances including starting
Arch Aluminum during a brutal economy when he could’ve just taken the easy
path and stayed where he was. But like everything he did, Bobby
made the decisions to move forward and never look back. He stressed service above all and created a
foundation and business model that most of the industry now utilizes.
Before I started working for Bobby and his family I was told
Bobby could relate to anyone. This was
very true; he had that nature about him that allowed it. Writing this made me think about the story of
when Bobby was in Las Vegas and he ended up in a conversation, a very friendly
one, with Snoop Dog- the big time rap superstar. They got along well- the older Jewish glass
man and young hip hop icon. And that was
par for the course for Bobby- he could relate.
It was those traits that had his employee base always ready to run
through a wall for him too. When it came to me, Bobby knew how to tweak me and
keep me on my toes and was an incredible supporter of mine from day 1… even
though he really did not like marketing…
Back in the early 2000’s the company honored Bobby at a
sales meeting. A video was created
showing his life and accomplishments in pictures and set to music. The song was “My Way” and it was absolutely
perfect. Bobby always did it his way and
did it right. He was way ahead of his
time on so many levels and I am thankful I got to work for him and learn some
things along the way. My sincerest condolences to Bobby’s family
and friends. This is an incredible loss
of a great man, father, grandfather, and leader. He will be dearly missed.
LINKS of the WEEK
How do you do this?
Seems impossible to do this with a car.
I know some found this story cute- but I think it’s disturbing
that people want to reward this behavior.
Both for the kid and the example it sets.
I mean this feels like fake news. Like something from the Onion or Babylon Bee. Your urine as concrete?
PROJECT of the WEEK
We go to the great state of Minnesota and project I stumbled
upon from the fine folks at Heartland Glass.
This is St. Cloud Airport and I just love the clean design and how the
glass and glazing just pop. I don’t know
any of the particulars here like suppliers or architects- but kudos to all on
some great work!
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