2007 Legislation Affecting the Construction Industry

Posted on February 21, 2007 by Laila Louridas
New laws concerning the construction industry will go into effect in 2007, some of which are previewed below. These laws encompass a wide variety of issues including indemnification of design professionals, the ability of architects to practice as limited liability partnerships, “green” building construction, expansion of design-build procurement, revocation and suspension of contractors’ licenses, execution of public university contracts, and regulation of the conduct of architects.  Continue Reading...
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The Genzyme Center: the future of green building?

Posted on February 12, 2007 by David Gehrig
In response to our last post regarding the green building revolution, one of our readers sent me a link to a very interesting blog article regarding the Genzyme Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts.   The Genzyme Center is an office building for approximately 900 employees which received the highest LEEDS (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating of Platinum.  Some of its most impressive features include    Continue Reading...
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The "green building" revolution may be upon us

Posted on February 5, 2007 by David Gehrig
The San Francisco Chronicle ran an interesting article on the trend toward "green building" yesterday.  Increasingly, cities are looking to require privately developed buildings to comply with a series of environment-friendly construction elements.  Pleasanton was one of the first cities to adopt such requirements, Boston and Washington D.C. recently joined the movement, and San Francisco is looking to do the same.  While green building may increase construction costs up to 2%, the savings from reduced energy and water needs, reduced waste and reduced maintenance could exceed this amount by 10 times over the life of the building.  Click here for the full article. 
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Senate Bill 1359 Addresses Safety of Construction Work Near Underground Pipelines

Posted on February 1, 2007 by Laila Louridas
In response to a tragic explosion during excavation work near downtown Walnut Creek in November 2004, State Senator Tom Torlakson introduced Senate Bill 1359 to make construction work around underground pipelines safer. The bill went into effect on January 1, 2007. Continue Reading...
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