FRIDAY5 – May 17, 2019

Last week, job sites across the country celebrated Construction Safety Week by committing to building a stronger, safer industry together.  Published to coincide with Safety Week, Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) released their annual safety performance report.  The report documents the dramatic impact of using proactive safety practices to reduce recordable incidents by up to 85%, making the best-performing companies 680% safer than the industry average.  Click here to read more findings from this year’s report.

ABC also released their analysis from the U.S. Bureau of Labor for construction job growth for the month of April.  Compared to the same period last year, industry employment is up by 256,000 jobs, an increase of 3.5%.  In the nonresidential building segment, specialty trade contractors led the segment by adding 22,100 net new jobs compared to March.  To read more about construction employment and the economic factors affecting the industry, click here.
 

When we examine public spaces, what makes some places succeed while others fail?  After evaluating thousands of public spaces around the world, the Project for Public Spaces propose that those who are successful share the following four qualities: they are accessible; people are engaged in activities there; the space is comfortable and has a good image; and finally, it is a sociable place – one where people meet each other and take people when they visit. 

Ultimately, great public spaces are those places “where celebrations are held, social and economic exchanges occur, friends run into each other, and cultures mix.”  Click here to see the Place Diagram, a helpful tool for judging any place, good or bad.  You can also view some of Mexico’s best public spaces here, and if you missed the article we shared back in April with 100 notable public spaces, click here.