More workers may be attracted to the construction industry because of wage increases, but there’s still a gap between the number of workers now on payrolls and what contractors need to have to complete projects, according to...
An early summer heatwave has much of the nation scrambling to keep cool. That means more demand on the electric grid as people turn on more fans and dial down their air conditioner settings. The National Oceanic and...
According to a report from market research firm Guidehouse Insights, smart technology is beginning to make inroads into emergency lighting systems for commercial buildings—a market segment that has typically been slow to...
The cable fault locator market is on the verge of considerable growth. A recent report from Future Market Insights (FMI) predicts an impressive 10.1% year-over-year growth rate through 2029, surpassing $1.5 billion in value...
With any new technology, standardization is a key element of success. Recognizing this imperative, on June 9, 2022, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking to develop minimum...
In May 2022, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced an expansion of its SolSmart program to bring solar energy to underserved communities. The expansion will provide additional funding and technical assistance to help...
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon aims to inspire the next generation of clean energy professionals. At the 2022 Competition Event in May, the DOE announced that it would be expanding the program through two new...
The demand for new data centers is as hot as ever, but with that comes “plenty of challenges and uncertainties,” according to the 2022 outlook for data center construction from Turton Bond, a construction consultant firm...
As the economy continues to recover from COVID-19, employment is on the rise, and like many industries, construction is adding jobs. According to figures released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), May was a good...
As the world goes electric, so goes the demand for energy storage with lithium-ion batteries and storage cells. And as that demand grows, so does demand for a hot commodity that keeps getting hotter: lithium. Where the supply...
The North American uninterruptible power supply (UPS) market saw a decline due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but a new report indicates it is expected to show future growth. According to Graphical Research in an April 2022 report...
As gas prices soar and climate change concerns become more urgent, Americans are increasingly considering electric vehicles. While less than 1% of the cars on the road in December 2021 were electric and EV sales since 2010...
Renewable capacity is increasing, and as utility-scale generation is often located in remote locations, the development of these resources brings the added challenge of getting all that new power online. Renewables in the...
Government and private industry make great partners in the pursuit of new, greener technologies. The Industrial Assessment Center (IAC) program is a federally funded program that pairs colleges and universities with...
Climate change has arrived, and it is having a significant impact on power systems. The North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) has released a report that reminds us summer is less than a month away. With it will...
According to a May 2022 report from Dodge, total construction starts in April were 3% higher than in March, rising to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $945.8 billion. These modest gains offer a mixed bag, however, with...
Construction started on April 21 on the Grid Storage Launchpad (GSL), a Department of Energy (DOE) project that aims to overcome challenges in battery research and development (R&D) while working on technology that will...
Contractors are increasingly forgoing manual billing and payment processes and adopting financial tech (fintech) apps specifically designed for the complexities of the construction industry. “We were doing everything with...
A coalition of states reaching across the country and into Canada is in the final stages of developing an action plan for the complete electrification of trucks and buses. This could spell substantial opportunities for ECs to...
Long-awaited news of continued broadband deployment to rural communities came in May as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced authorization of nearly $200 million ($199,336,695, to be exact) to fund new...
