Metal Construction News, January 2021

EDITORIAL VOL 42 NO 1 Modern Trade Communications Inc 7836 Frontage Rd Skokie IL 60077 Phone 847 674 2200 Fax 847 674 3676 www moderntrade com www metalconstructionnews com Editorial Production Paul Deffenbaugh Editorial Director pdeffenbaugh@ moderntrade com ext 19 Marcy Marro Editor mmarro@ moderntrade com ext 25 Mark Robins Senior Editor mrobins@ moderntrade com ext 27 Christopher Brinckerhoff Associate Editor cbrinckerhoff@ moderntrade com ext 26 Quentin Brown Production Manager qbrown@ moderntrade com ext 28 Grant Kollar Art Director Business Sales John S Lawrence Chief Executive Officer johnlawrence@ moderntrade com John Paul Lawrence President jplawrence@ moderntrade com ext 21 Sarah Lawrence Director of Operations sarahlawrence@ moderntrade com ext 14 Tina Lawrence Treasurer tinalawrence@ moderntrade com Bob Higgins National Sales Manager bobhiggins@ moderntrade com ext 22 Blanca Arteaga Operations Manager barteaga@ moderntrade com ext 20 Rosa Soto Circulation Manager rsoto@ moderntrade com ext 15 Subscriptions For subscription inquiries or changes of address go to www metalconstructionnews com or contact Rosa Soto at rsoto@ moderntrade com or 847 674 2200 To order custom hard copy reprints or PDF eprints please contact Jill Kaletha Mossberg Co 574 347 4211 jkaletha@ mossbergco com Memberships Circulation audited by METAL CONSTRUCTION NEWS ISSN 8756 2014 is published monthly and bimonthly in March by Modern Trade Communications Inc 7836 Frontage Rd Skokie IL 60077 Subscriptions are free for those in the metal construction industry in the United States For those outside the industry the subscription price is 90 per year in the United States 120 in Canada and Mexico and 195 per year in all other countries Periodicals class postage paid at Skokie IL and additional mailing offices POSTMASTER Address service requested METAL CONSTRUCTION NEWS 7836 Frontage Rd Skokie IL 60077 A Year of Recovery I am writing this on the winter solstice the darkest day of what has been a very dark year It seems like every day in 2020 we awakened to some fresh new pain our country like an aging body that discovers new knocks and pangs and tweaks as it tries to navigate the normal day to day These are indeed remarkable times and that was best summed up for me when I heard someone say In the future when historians say they are studying 2020 their colleagues will ask Oh really Which week Coming from that situation you cant help but feel positive about 2021 When youre at the bottom of the pit the only way out is toward the light In our 2021 State of the Industry every contributor exuded a positive attitude about the coming year Alex Carrick chief economist ConstructConnect foresees growth in the construction economy especially in the residential market as increased mobility due to work at home programs prove successful On the labor shortage front Tim Seyler president Metal Building Institute announces a new workforce development coalition of construction associations that are pooling their efforts and is dedicated to attracting young new talent to the industry Metal Building Manufacturers Association general manager Tony Bouquot reports on the optimistic attitude at the annual meeting in December that is propelled in part by manufacturers already seeing a shift in the market due to an increased demand for larger buildings being used for warehouse and distribution centers to support the shift toward e commerce The residential metal roofing market will get a boost from the surging real estate market and increased mobility of the workforce says Renee Ramey executive director Metal Roofing Alliance For homeowners who have found their forever home their focus will now be on investing in long lasting improvements and renovations she writes Architect Rick Harlan Schneider AIA APA LEED AP principal ISTUDIO Architects Washington D C discusses how the move to biomimicry design is making our buildings perform better and fit into the environment around them more seamlessly The economy is driven in large part by small businesses and Art Hance president of the Metal Building Contractors Erectors Association speaks to how its members are taking advantage of increased demands for metal buildings and adjusting to a fast changing environment James Bush chair Metal Construction Association reports that most of those in metal construction appear to have weathered 2020 well Going forward new opportunities will arise in certain market segments while the depressed starts of this year gets spread out over the next two years Cofounder of METALCON Frank Stasiowski FAIA believes that the next decade will mimic the Roaring 20s of a century ago The CEO of PSMJ Resources Newton Mass says investments in technology by designers and architects have positioned them to take advantage of the new mobility and deliver a design revolution There is a sense of optimism among all those contributors that I hope is contagious and allows our country to recover from the dark times weve lived through With luck we will learn to be more resilient because resilience is what is getting us through And hope Hope has arrived in the form of vaccines that are now being distributed and the long difficult process of inoculating an entire country has begun Predictions among experts vary but it will take at least until summer for the whole country to have been inoculated Still thats progress and on this darkest day of the year we have hope Paul Deffenbaugh Editorial Director pdeffenbaugh@ moderntrade com January 2021 METAL CONSTRUCTION NEWS 3 www metalconstruct ionnews com