Perhaps you were motivated by rebates or other federal stimulus
incentives. Or by your budget-busting energy bills.

Whatever the reason, to those who spent a small fortune in
recent years replacing home windows, you have the sympathies of
a couple of Malvern chemical engineers.

Jay Reyher and John Siegel, along with a Wisconsin partner,
Thomas Culp, have put their scientific minds together to create
an alternative to replacement windows that is more
cost-effective yet proven to be as energy efficient as new,
Energy Star units.

Their company, Quanta Technologies Inc., has developed a storm
window made with a low-emissivity (low-e) glaze to control heat
transfer that has impressed the U.S. Department of Energy; the
head of Pennsylvania's energy-conservation program; and the
Mark Group Inc., a fast-growing weatherization contractor in
Philadelphia that is partnering with Quanta on the sale and
installation of its panels.

Equally significant for a start-up, Quanta, founded in April
2009, has secured more than $1.8 million in federal and state
investments to broaden its product line for use in different
climates.

While there are other manufacturers of low-e storm windows,
QuantaPanel's creators say their product's uniqueness, in part,
is the glass-coating technology that maximizes insulating
performance while optimizing passive solar gain, and the
enhanced air-sealing qualities of its frame and sash system.

"These are smart people that are, I think, onto something
special," said E. Craig Heim, executive director of
Pennsylvania's Office of Energy Conservation and
Weatherization.

That is not likely to trigger rejoicing among manufacturers and
retailers of full window units, who are already experiencing
sales drops since the tax credits for new windows expired Dec.
31. Quanta officials say they are not out to make life
miserable for the replacement-window industry, but to serve a
segment of the population that cannot afford new windows - or
does not need them - but could benefit from improved
performance by the windows they have.

"We saw the opportunity to fill this commercialization gap,"
Siegel, Quanta's chief operating officer, said last week, at
the company's factory near Lancaster.

Quanta bought the assets of a Chicago-area window-manufacturing
company that was going out of business, and, in July 2010,
began moving the equipment into 50,000 square feet of what had
been an RCA television-tube factory just outside downtown
Lancaster. Timing could not have been better.

Studies by the federal Energy Department showed enough energy
savings from low-e storm window retrofits to enable them to pay
for themselves within five years. Consequently, Pennsylvania
added them to its Weatherization Assistance Program priority
list - recommended energy-savings actions - in the fall of
2010, about the same time Quanta introduced its first
commercial product.

It was that federally funded weatherization program, which
provides retrofits to low-income homes, that Quanta first set
out to serve. Its QuantaPanel 500 series, a low-e storm window
that attaches to the exterior of existing single-pane or
double-pane clear-glass windows, cost typically less than
one-fifth the installed cost of an Energy Star replacement
window, according to Quanta officials.

In this region, the QuantaPanel is expected to reduce heating
and cooling costs on a single-family residence by 15 percent to
30 percent, which could amount to about one-sixth of a home's
total utility bill, said Reyher, Quanta's chief executive
officer.

Last year, Quanta launched a product line designed for interior
installation, targeted for multifamily buildings, as well as
light commercial and historic properties. All window units are
custom-made.

Quanta's game plan sounded promising from the time Reyher and
Siegel approached the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of
Southeastern Pennsylvania for funding in 2009, officials there
said.

"To find a technology that basically can do what a window
upgrade would do but at a substantially lower cost I found very
intriguing," said Mark deGrandpre, director of investments in
the physical-sciences area. Ben Franklin has issued Quanta two
grants totaling $500,000.

From the U.S. Department of Energy, Quanta received $853,962 in
stimulus funds in June 2010. In essence, Quanta was a dream
come true, suggested P. Marc LaFrance, technology-development
manager.

"We've been trying to get companies interested in developing
and promoting low-e storm windows for a long time," LaFrance
said. "Having a company interested in making this their sole
business model was very interesting to us."

By the time Jeff Bartos joined the England-based Mark Group in
August 2010 as president and chief executive of its U.S.
affiliate, the company was already intrigued by what Quanta was
selling. He was soon sold.

If a homeowner "is already spending resources, time, and
dollars to insulate walls, you should insulate your glass as
well," Bartos said, adding that a typical Mark Group
installation of a Quanta panel costs $225 to $250.

Not that a storm window is the answer for everybody. Quanta's
founders are the first to say that if, for instance, your
window frames are rotting out, buy new ones.

That still leaves plenty of potential for low-e storm windows,
Reyher said. By some estimates, 43 percent of all residential
windows in this country are single-pane glass. Assuming that
Mid-Atlantic winters do not remain balmy and natural gas prices
start inching up, Reyher foresees a potential market for low-e
storm windows of nearly $1 billion, and Quanta sales reaching
$100 million. They currently are under $2 million. Its
workforce of 12 is expected to expand to 60 within a year,
Reyher said.

 

Diane Mastrull:

Quanta Technologies Inc. founders Jay Reyher and John Siegel
discuss the QuantaPanel insulating glass system and its
energy-efficiency role at http://www.philly.com/business

Contact staff writer Diane Mastrull at 215-854-2466,
dmastrull@phillynews.com,
or @mastrud on Twitter.

More here:
Diane Mastrull: Malvern engineers marketing high-tech storm windows

Expectations were
high throughout Europe when the January transfer window opened
some four weeks ago, but there has been relatively little
movement in the big leagues up to now.

Nevertheless, clubs
still have two more days in order to strengthen their squad for
the remainder of the 2011-12 campaign, and plenty could happen
in the remaining hours.

Teams will have to
bear in mind, though, that the January window closes at
different times in the various European leagues.

Naturally, clubs
can no longer sign players after their domestic window slams
shut, however, they could still lose players to a league where
the January window is still open.

Serie A giants
Inter, for example, have so far been unsuccessful in adding a
new midfielder to their squad, and have until 19.00 CET on
January 31 to get their man.

However, the
transfer window closes at midnight in France, meaning that they
could still lose Thiago Motta to Paris Saint-Germain between
19.00 and midnight, and will not have the opportunity to sign a
replacement.

To avoid any
confusion, Goal.com lines up the exact times
on Tuesday, January 31 that the transfer window closes in all
the big European leagues:

Here is the original post:
When does the transfer window close in Europe's major leagues? Here are the times

A soft economy prompted some homeowners to take a new look at their
existing footprint. Even as housing-market conditions turn a
little brighter, many homeowners
still opt to stay put and update their current quarters
instead of selling at lower prices.

The numbers prove it. Remodeling industry sentiment, as
tracked by the National Association of Home Builders'
Remodeling Market
Index (RMI), hit a five-year high in the fourth quarter.

[See the
5 Best (and Worst) Home Remodeling Projects.]

In many cases, these decisions are fiscally motivated and
reflective of the times, but the following remodeling trends
may be here to stay:

Suite spot of the market. Builders and
remodelers are finding more demand for in-law apartments
(typically called mother-in-law suites whether mom is the sole
resident or not) as part of new additions or basement
makeovers. The first waves of baby boomers have reached their
golden years and families are
getting creative with longer-term care solutions. For some
families, this is ultimately a lower-cost option than
assisted-living or nursing home care.

According to the National Association of Home Builders, 62
percent of builders surveyed were working on a
home modification related to aging in 2010. About 1 in 5
builders added an entry-level bedroom. AARP is working with
builders on a designation for Certified Aging in Place
Specialists, who are trained in designing and modifying
buildings for the elderly. About 3,000 builders, contractors,
remodelers and architects have been certified.

[See
Will This Home Renovation Pay Off?]

There's another shift among the generations in some households.
A soft job market has occasionally landed grown children (and
their families) back at mom and dad's place, too. Lengthy stays
often lead to a call to a contractor. Given demographic trends,
these remodels have resale potential and are no longer seen as
a design burden and deal-breaker for prospective buyers.
Remember to follow municipal building codes.

Backyard haven. Booming economic times led to
luxury outdoor living--pricy natural stone hardscapes, gourmet
grilling kitchens, and major electrical upgrades. The recession
may have dinged this corner of the remodeling industry, but the
concept survives. In fact,
investing in outdoor living spaces (and installing
additional windows and doors for better inside-to-outside flow)
has been a major part of even budget-minded upgrades within
existing home footprints. Consumers may be scaling back their
wish list, but they're not cutting back on outdoor entertaining
and family time. After all, if families are traveling less,
they're playing more at home.

[In Pictures:
The Home of the Future.]

Smarter kitchens. Smarter doesn't mean the
kitchen does the cooking for you, but it can mean you're in and
out of there in less time. The peak of the construction surge
featured token real estate words like "granite," "high-end
appliances," pre-packaged cabinet "suites," and more. It's not
that people now want low-quality kitchens, they're just moving
toward more customization. Some are putting more money in
pantries and utility rooms that keep the "guts" of the
operation undercover. They're giving up dedicated food-prep
square footage in favor of larger eating and family room areas.
They're opting for open shelving and islands that do a lot of
the heavy lifting, with loads of storage. Kitchens are and will
continue to look less like a work area and more like an
extension of the living area.

Twitter:
@USNewsMoney

More From US News & World Report

See the rest here:
3 Recession Home Remodeling Trends Likely to Stick Around

SAN DIEGO, CA--(Marketwire -01/30/12)- San Diego-based
remodeling firm, winner of the 2011 Better Business Bureau
Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics, Jackson Design &
Remodeling (JDR) today announced a call for nominations for
its third annual "JDR
Industry Blogger Awards," which recognize the nation's
best blogs in the design and remodeling industry.

Nominations for the 2012 awards will be accepted online
through Friday, February 17. Blogs may be submitted in one of
five categories: Architecture, Green, Construction Business,
Interior Design and Remodeling.

"We started these awards three years ago as a fun and unique
way to recognize the best blogs in our industry," said

Todd Jackson, President and CEO of
JDR. "Since then, each year we've received a larger and
larger response and they've become the premier awards program
for remodeling and design industry blogs across the country.
More and more businesses in the industry are seeing the
importance of communicating with consumers through new media
and are providing important information, news, tips and ideas
to help consumers make informed decisions and offer
inspiration for projects of all sizes."

Voting for the 2012 Industry Blogger Awards will begin on
Feb. 27 and end at 2 p.m. PST on April 13. The five winners
will be announced April 18. The blog that receives the most
votes in each category will be the winner of that category.
Each winning blogger will receive $500 cash and a 2012
Industry Blogger Award Winner badge for display on their
website.

About Jackson Design and Remodeling
Jackson Design
and Remodeling has been serving the San Diego community for
more than 20 years with high-end
bathroom remodeling,
kitchen remodeling,
room additions, and other home redesign projects. Todd
Jackson, President and CEO, has established an enduring
tradition of quality and service in the remodeling industry.
Jackson and his team have won numerous awards for their work,
including over 40 COTY awards, dozens of Chrysalis, ASID,
NKBA and Master Design Awards as well as three consecutive
Better Business Bureau Torch Awards for Marketplace Ethics.
For more information, visit
http://www.jacksondesignandremodeling.com, call (619) 442-6125
or follow us on
Facebook and
Twitter.

Image Available:
http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=1869397

More here:
Jackson Design & Remodeling Announces Call for Nominations in Third Annual Industry Blogger Awards

January 30, 2012, 3:53 AM
EST

By Anna-Louise Jackson and Anthony Feld

Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Private nonresidential construction may
pick up this year, as demand grows for new U.S. projects.

The Architecture Billings Index held at 52 last month, a sign
of expansion, according to the American Institute of
Architects. The commercial and industrial component -- a proxy
for private building activity -- climbed to 54.1 in December,
the highest in 10 months, the Washington-based association said
Jan. 18.

The monthly survey of U.S.-based architecture firms is a
leading indicator of nonresidential construction, said Kermit
Baker, chief economist for the association. “Pretty solid
readings in November and December suggest some modest
improvement” may be afoot, he said.

The Federal Reserve echoed that outlook in its Jan. 11 Beige
Book report, where it noted that demand for nonresidential real
estate has “improved in a number of districts.”

Spending on lodging, office, commercial and manufacturing
buildings grew 8.2 percent in November to $9.2 billion from a
year ago on a nonseasonally-adjusted basis, data from the
Census Bureau show. These types of commercial and industrial
projects are historically the first part of the nonresidential
industry to improve during economic expansion, Baker said.

Other indicators -- including vacancy rates -- “are pointing
toward a modest recovery,” said Rob McCarthy, a Chicago-based
analyst for Robert W. Baird & Co., who forecasts
“mid-single-digit growth” for nonresidential spending this
year.

Falling Office Vacancies

U.S. office vacancies fell in the fourth quarter to 17.3
percent, the lowest since 2009, from 17.4 percent in the prior
period and 17.6 percent a year earlier, according to Reis Inc.,
a New York property-research company.

Inquiries for commercial building projects -- another component
of the Architecture Billings Index -- also suggest “we are
likely past trough,” as a multi-year recovery “could begin to
gain some traction in 2012,” Ann Duignan, a New York- based
analyst at JPMorgan Chase & Co., wrote in a Jan. 18 report.
The index of inquiries for new work was 64 in December, after
reaching an almost five-year high of 65 the previous month, the
association said.

This makes stocks of companies that design privately-funded
projects in industries such as manufacturing and utilities
particularly attractive, said Burt White, chief investment
officer at LPL Financial Corp. in Boston. Caterpillar Inc., the
world’s largest manufacturer of construction and mining
equipment, is the “poster child” for this industry, he said.

Beating Estimates

Caterpillar reported fourth-quarter earnings Jan. 26 that beat
analysts’ estimates, as revenue in its construction industries
grew 31 percent, to $5.355 billion, from a year earlier. The
Peoria, Illinois-based company is forecasting total U.S.
construction spending “to finally begin to recover” this year
after declining since 2004, with nonresidential-building
construction up 5 percent, it said in a statement.

CNH Global NV, which manufactures agricultural and construction
equipment, and Oshkosh Corp. are scheduled to report earnings
for the quarter ended Dec. 31 tomorrow.

“It’s hard to go wrong with these companies,” said White, who
helps oversee about $315 billion. “We have a big infrastructure
and industrial theme in our portfolio right now.”

For Caterpillar, “demand for construction equipment is
improving,” as customers continue to rebuild their fleets, it
said Jan. 26. McCarthy has an “outperform” recommendation on
the company, which is forecasting that total revenue will be in
the range of $68 billion to $72 billion this year.

Earnings ‘Upside’

Westport, Connecticut-based Terex Corp. and Oshkosh, in
Oshkosh, Wisconsin, also provide “upside to earnings estimates
in the mid-term” because of their exposure to the U.S.
construction industry, Duignan said. She raised these stocks to
“overweight” from “neutral” earlier this month; McCarthy also
recently upgraded Terex to “outperform” from “neutral.”

Shares of Terex, which makes aerial work platforms and cranes,
and Oshkosh, a commercial-truck manufacturer, have outperformed
the market by 98 percent and 55 percent since Oct. 3, 2011,
when the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell to a one-year
low. This followed almost 7 months of underperformance, when
Terex and Oshkosh shares lagged behind the S&P 500 by 59
percent and 43 percent.

Manitowoc Co., Ingersoll-Rand Plc and Illinois Tool Works Inc.
also have large end-market exposure to this industry, said
McCarthy, who maintains “outperform” recommendations on these
companies. Manitowoc makes cranes used in construction;
Ingersoll-Rand’s products include air-conditioning systems.

‘Mood is Changing’

The “mood is changing now” for nonresidential construction,
according to Eaton Corp., and the electrical- products maker is
forecasting “continued recovery into 2012,” Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer Alexander Cutler said on a Jan. 26 conference
call.

Even so, the Cleveland-based company reported operating
earnings of $1.08 a share for the period ended Dec. 31, missing
the average analyst estimate of $1.11, in part because
customers in its U.S. electrical business delayed shipments,
Cutler said in a statement. The revenue shortfall probably was
driven by temporary factors and shouldn’t have “a significant
impact” on sales this year, he said. McCarthy has an
“outperform” recommendation on the company.

Nonresidential construction exhibits “late-cycle” growth
because the design and building process may take several years
from inception to completion, said Russell Price, a senior
economist at Ameriprise Financial Inc. in Detroit. As a result,
companies planning projects must have confidence in the
economic outlook, he said.

“Developers have to see not only that demand has improved, but
that the improvements are sustainable,” Price said.

Expanding U.S. Economy

The U.S. economy grew at a 2.8 percent annual rate in the three
months ended Dec. 31 after rising 1.8 percent in the previous
quarter, which was less than the median forecast of 3 percent
in a Bloomberg News survey. Meanwhile, payrolls expanded by
200,000 in December, following a revised 100,000 gain in
November, Labor Department data show.

“The tone in nonresidential construction is changing” after
years of pessimism, Price said. “We’re finally starting to see
this sector perk up.”

Even so, the jobless rate remains elevated by historic
standards -- at 8.5 percent in December compared with less than
5 percent before the 18-month recession began in late 2007
--and private nonresidential spending is about 33 percent below
its January 2008 peak, so “there’s still a ways to go,” Price
said.

Later Rebound

Lackluster construction spending is a result of the economy’s
sluggishness, Baker said. The architecture association’s
billing index historically has led improvements in building
activity by about nine to 12 months; because this recovery has
been so weak, a construction rebound is coming later in the
economic cycle as “companies don’t need to add new facilities
until they’re seeing growth,” he said.

Illinois Tool Works, which makes fasteners, is forecasting a
“modest recovery” this year, with global growth in its
construction-products segment between 3 percent and 5 percent,
Vice Chairman David Parry predicted at the Glenview-based
company’s Dec. 2 investor meeting. “I think we’ve hit bottom,”
he said.

--Editors: Melinda Grenier, Daniel Moss

To contact the reporters on this story: Anna-Louise Jackson in
New York at ajackson36@bloomberg.net; Anthony Feld in New York
at afeld2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Anthony Feld
at afeld2@bloomberg.net

Read the rest here:
Construction Rises as Architects Signal Nonresidential Rebound

Private nonresidential construction may pick up this year, as
demand grows for new U.S. projects.

The Architecture Billings Index held at 52 last month, a sign
of expansion, according to the American Institute of Architects. The
commercial and industrial component -- a proxy for private
building activity -- climbed to 54.1 in December, the highest
in 10 months, the Washington-based association said Jan. 18.

The monthly survey of U.S.-based architecture firms is a
leading indicator of nonresidential construction, said Kermit
Baker, chief economist for the association. “Pretty solid
readings in November and December suggest some modest
improvement” may be afoot, he said.

The Federal Reserve echoed that outlook in its
Jan. 11 Beige Book report, where it noted that demand for
nonresidential real estate has “improved in a number of
districts.”

Spending on lodging, office, commercial and manufacturing
buildings grew 8.2 percent in November to $9.2 billion from a
year ago on a nonseasonally-adjusted basis, data from the
Census Bureau show. These types of commercial and industrial
projects are historically the first part of the nonresidential
industry to improve during economic expansion, Baker said.

Other indicators -- including vacancy rates -- “are pointing
toward a modest recovery,” said Rob McCarthy, a Chicago-based
analyst for Robert W. Baird & Co., who forecasts
“mid-single-digit growth” for nonresidential spending this
year.

Falling Office Vacancies

U.S. office vacancies fell in the fourth quarter to 17.3
percent, the lowest since 2009, from 17.4 percent in the prior
period and 17.6 percent a year earlier, according to Reis Inc.,
a New York property-research company.

Inquiries for commercial building projects -- another component
of the Architecture Billings Index -- also suggest “we are
likely past trough,” as a multi-year recovery “could begin to
gain some traction in 2012,” Ann
Duignan, a New York- based analyst at JPMorgan Chase &
Co., wrote in a Jan. 18 report. The index of inquiries for new
work was 64 in December, after reaching an almost five-year
high of 65 the previous month, the association said.

This makes stocks of companies that design privately-funded
projects in industries such as manufacturing and utilities
particularly attractive, said Burt White, chief investment
officer at LPL Financial Corp. in Boston. Caterpillar Inc. (CAT), the world’s largest
manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, is the
“poster child” for this industry, he said.

Beating Estimates

Caterpillar reported fourth-quarter earnings Jan. 26 that beat
analysts’ estimates, as revenue in its construction industries
grew 31 percent, to $5.355 billion, from a year earlier. The
Peoria, Illinois-based company is forecasting total U.S.
construction spending “to finally begin to recover” this year
after declining since 2004, with nonresidential-building
construction up 5 percent, it said in a statement.

CNH
Global NV (CNH), which manufactures agricultural and
construction equipment, and Oshkosh Corp. (OSK) are scheduled to report
earnings for the quarter ended Dec. 31 tomorrow.

“It’s hard to go wrong with these companies,” said White, who
helps oversee about $315 billion. “We have a big infrastructure
and industrial theme in our portfolio right now.”

For Caterpillar, “demand for construction equipment is
improving,” as customers continue to rebuild their fleets, it
said Jan. 26. McCarthy has an “outperform” recommendation on
the company, which is forecasting that total revenue will be in
the range of $68 billion to $72 billion this year.

Earnings ‘Upside’

Westport, Connecticut-based Terex Corp. (TEX) and Oshkosh, in Oshkosh,
Wisconsin, also provide “upside to earnings
estimates in the mid-term” because of their exposure to the
U.S. construction industry, Duignan said. She raised these
stocks to “overweight” from “neutral” earlier this month;
McCarthy also recently upgraded Terex to “outperform” from
“neutral.”

Shares of Terex, which makes aerial work platforms and cranes,
and Oshkosh, a commercial-truck manufacturer, have outperformed
the market by 98 percent and 55 percent since Oct. 3, 2011,
when the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell to a one-year
low. This followed almost 7 months of underperformance, when
Terex and Oshkosh shares lagged behind the S&P
500 by 59 percent and 43 percent.

Manitowoc Co. (MTW), Ingersoll-Rand Plc (IR) and Illinois Tool Works Inc. (ITW) also have large
end-market exposure to this industry, said McCarthy, who
maintains “outperform” recommendations on these companies.
Manitowoc makes cranes used in construction; Ingersoll-Rand’s
products include air-conditioning systems.

‘Mood is Changing’

The “mood is changing now” for nonresidential construction,
according to Eaton Corp. (ETN), and the electrical-
products maker is forecasting “continued recovery into 2012,”
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Alexander Cutler said on a
Jan. 26 conference call.

Even so, the Cleveland-based company reported operating
earnings of $1.08 a share for the period ended Dec. 31, missing
the average analyst estimate of $1.11, in part because
customers in its U.S. electrical business delayed shipments,
Cutler said in a statement. The revenue shortfall probably was
driven by temporary factors and shouldn’t have “a significant
impact” on sales this year, he said. McCarthy has an
“outperform” recommendation on the company.

Nonresidential construction exhibits “late-cycle” growth
because the design and building process may take several years
from inception to completion, said Russell Price, a senior economist at Ameriprise
Financial Inc. in Detroit. As a result, companies planning projects
must have confidence in the economic outlook, he said.

“Developers have to see not only that demand has improved, but
that the improvements are sustainable,” Price said.

Expanding U.S. Economy

The U.S. economy grew at a 2.8 percent annual
rate in the three months ended Dec. 31 after rising 1.8 percent
in the previous quarter, which was less than the median
forecast of 3 percent in a Bloomberg News survey. Meanwhile,
payrolls expanded by 200,000 in December, following a revised
100,000 gain in November, Labor Department data show.

“The tone in nonresidential construction is changing” after
years of pessimism, Price said. “We’re finally starting to see
this sector perk up.”

Even so, the jobless rate remains elevated by historic
standards -- at 8.5 percent
in December compared with less than 5 percent before the
18-month recession began in late 2007 --and private
nonresidential spending is about 33 percent below its January
2008 peak, so “there’s still a ways to go,” Price said.

Later Rebound

Lackluster construction spending is a result of the economy’s
sluggishness, Baker said. The architecture association’s
billing index historically has led improvements in building
activity by about nine to 12 months; because this recovery has
been so weak, a construction rebound is coming later in the
economic cycle as “companies don’t need to add new facilities
until they’re seeing growth,” he said.

Illinois Tool Works, which makes fasteners, is forecasting a
“modest recovery” this year, with global growth in its
construction-products segment between 3 percent and 5 percent,
Vice Chairman David Parry predicted at the Glenview-based
company’s Dec. 2 investor meeting. “I think we’ve hit bottom,”
he said.

To contact the reporters on this story: Anna-Louise Jackson in
New York at ajackson36@bloomberg.net;
Anthony Feld in New York at afeld2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Anthony Feld
at afeld2@bloomberg.net

Read this article:
Construction Rises as Architect Billings Show U.S. Nonresidential Rebound

SIMSBURY—

— Construction work at Grist Mill Commons, the first
development to be built using the new "planned area" zoning
regulation, has started months ahead of time thanks to this
year's unseasonably warm, dry weather.

Once completed, the project will add 20 tri-level townhouses,
88 upscale apartments, a restaurant and office space near the
corner of West Street and Grist Mill Road. Construction on the
apartments was originally scheduled to begin this spring.

Ron Janeczko, developer and partner of Farmington-based
Landworks Development LLC, said the mild winter weather this
season has provided an opportunity for construction crews to
resume work earlier than anticipated. He added that crews have
already excavated the front portion of the 5-acre parcel where
the 300-year-old grist and saw mill building sits. Crews were
also able to get some work in to control drainage.

The newly renovated restaurant at 77 West St. is expected to
open within the next couple of months, said Town Planner Hiram
Peck. Construction crews have been working on a 90-space
parking lot outside the building, which will also house a new
office for Landworks Realty, currently based out of Farmington.

The project, which was unanimously approved by the zoning
commission on April 4, is the first to be approved under the
town's planned area development zoning regulation, which went
into effect in September 2010. It was developed with the
intention of creating "attractive, livable, environmentally
wholesome and pedestrian-friendly public spaces" in Simsbury, according to the
town's website.

Plans to construct upscale town homes, commercial space and
apartments perfectly fits into the mixed-use focus of the
regulation, Peck said.

"It's exactly keeping with what we had envisioned for the
town," he said.

The roughly $30 million project is expected to take another
2-plus years to complete.

Five buildings with a total of 20 townhouses are to be built on
a 2-acre lot adjacent to that of the restaurant. Each will have
with two bedrooms, a den and two-and-a-half bathrooms and will
range in size from 1,800 to 2,100 square feet. The development,
which overlooks the mill pond and gorge, will be called Mill
Pond Crossing.

The largest area, about 10.5 acres off Grist Mill Road, will be
converted into apartments called Grist Mill Commons, Janeczko
said. Eighty-eight units will be built, of which four will be
free-standing and 84 single-level with private garages and
elevator access. Both 1- and 2-bedroom units are included in
the plans and range in size from 900 to 1,500 square feet.

"We are building this as if we would be living there," said
Janeczko, a Farmington resident, in
reference to his business partner Chris Nelson, also a
Connecticut native. "We're from here, we live here, we've
raised our kids here.

"Our vision is to create a place where people will want to
live, where they will be happy and comfortable."

Excerpt from:
Construction Resumes At Grist Mill Commons In Simsbury

During his many trips to the Miller home last summer, John Dyer
noticed that often when he showed up, brothers William, Bobby
and Herbert were sitting outside under the shade of an old oak
tree.

They were always sitting together.

So as Dyer oversaw a volunteer construction project for a new
home that would allow the Miller brothers to spend their senior
years in comfort, he kept that picture in his mind.

And when it came time to build the porch on the new house, he
scratched his original plans, which called for a small one.
Instead, Dyer reconfigured the location of the front door and
made the porch large enough for all three brothers to sit
together and observe the comings and goings of life from their
vantage point at the end of Clinton Heights Drive in Ashland.

It's a view they have had nearly all their lives.

The Miller brothers were given a new home this month thanks to
people such as Dyer and countless others from Ashland and the
far corners of the metro Richmond area.

Ashland Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) led the effort
to raise about $51,000 to build the men a new home after church
leaders learned of the conditions in which they were living.

William, 69, Bobby, 68, and Herbert, 66, were living in the
house their late father built in the 1940s. They never left.

The home was in terrible shape. But what started out as a
suggestion to fix a few things turned into a massive
undertaking that brought the community together.

 

* * * * *

 

"Just have faith." The phrase came to
represent a motto for church members who turned their focus
toward Bobby's House Project in fall 2010.

Donna Dennehy, an Ashland resident and church member, knew the
Millers. Bobby spent nearly three decades working on her horse
farm. Herbert also had worked there, along with their father.

She knew their home was in poor condition, and fixing it up for
them "had been on my list of things to do," she said.

Dennehy went to her church with her ideas.

The church had $1,800 set aside for service projects that
members routinely took on in Appalachia. But no new projects
were on the horizon, and after hearing about the Millers'
needs, church officials, including the Rev. Kathy Reinger,
decided to put the money toward renovating the Miller home.

After getting the brothers' permission, Dennehy and others,
including a representative from the Richmond Housing Coalition,
visited the Miller home in November 2010.

"I called them and asked if we could come and look at the house
to see if we could fix some windows or doors or something,"
Dennehy said.

"I knew this house needed some help, but I had no idea …" she
continued, her voice trailing off. The home had well water, but
the indoor plumbing didn't work. The roof was sagging in some
areas and the flooring was questionable. Plywood replaced glass
in some of the windows.

Reinger, the pastor, echoed Dennehy's thoughts.

"It became apparent that we couldn't do the repairs," she said.
The Millers "were going to need a new house."

They were told a new home could be built for about $35,000,
much more than the church's $1,800 service projects fund.

Dennehy remembers wondering how their 65-member church could
raise that kind of money.

It was then that Reinger "threw some words at me that I'd
thrown at her," Dennehy said. "'Just have faith.'"

 

* * * * *

As Reinger recalled, the first of many small
miracles occurred in January 2011, when church officials and
members met to formalize their plans. The idea was to seek
donations from area churches to pay for the project. But they
also needed someone to run the show, someone with construction
knowledge.

 

They found that someone in Dyer, who had only been attending
the church for two months.

"They were saying they needed someone with experience to lead
the project," Dyer said, so he volunteered. He and his brothers
run his family's commercial construction business.

Reinger said church members were prepared to take on the
monumental task of building a home, but when Dyer took over,
"we realized we didn't know a thing."

Dyer created plans, obtained construction permits from the
county and did the legwork necessary to get things on track.
Churches raised money and organized people to work. Businesses
donated materials. The list of those involved — from churches
to business contributors to private donors and workers — was
extensive.

On a hot August morning, a group including the Miller brothers
broke ground.

Reinger recalled something she had been told years before by a
friend: " 'When God calls a church to do a project, God sends
the people to help.' "

 

* * * * *

 

William, Bobby and Herbert
didn't ask for much.

They were getting central heat and air conditioning for the
first time in their lives, two bathrooms and appliances such as
a microwave that they had never owned before.

Throughout construction they worked quietly alongside the many
volunteers. The brothers expressed no preferences for carpet
colors or brand names or cabinetry hardware or anything else
that someone building a home might get excited about. About the
only preference they conveyed, Dyer said, was shower stalls
rather than bathtubs.

On a cool Sunday afternoon this month, the three men gathered
on their new porch in front of a small crowd of relatives,
neighbors and church members. They each accepted keys to their
new home.

Dyer did the honors.

After five months of construction, the 1,500-square-foot home
was finished. It was just steps from their old house, though
the structures were worlds apart.

With the money raised, their first year of homeowners insurance
is paid, as well as all of the back taxes on the property.

In his quiet manner, Bobby said simply of their new home:
"We're blessed."

Reinger said in building this house, a community came together.
Volunteers came out on weekends, some from as far as
Chesterfield and Orange counties. Others made lunches for those
who were working. Many were generous with donations.

Reinger remembers a Saturday when her husband, Bill, was
working on the roof and two men stopped by to help get the job
done. One was an unemployed roofer.

"That kind of stuff just happened," she said. "It was just
amazing."

Inspired by the volunteerism she witnessed, Reinger said the
church is going to continue to raise money for local service
projects, perhaps even another home construction project, for
those in need.

"We didn't build a house," she said. "We built a community."

A community is what Dyer said he was looking for when he and
his wife started attending Ashland Christian Church.

"I see a lot of people around town that are strangers," he
said, and by going to a new church, "I thought that would be a
good way to meet some new people and make some new friends."

He made three, in particular.

Though not officially condemned, the Millers' old house was
ordered torn down by the county. It was the final piece of
Bobby's House Project, though as Dyer said, "it doesn't end
when the house comes down."

"Hopefully we'll have another project coming up," he said. "If
not I've always got the Miller brothers to look after."

Read more from the original source:
Church and community come together to build a home

By Dave Lieber

watchdog@star-telegram.com

Homeowners in Tarrant County's biggest cities -- Fort
Worth, Arlington and North Richland Hills -- contacted The
Watchdog last week to ask about a mailing they received
advertising a new company selling repair protection for water
and sewer lines. They wonder whether it's legitimate.

American Water Resources of Texas, which bought its state
license in November, is a residential service company that
promises to cover some repairs to water and sewer lines outside a
home.Generally, water and sewer lines would be covered to the
point where the cities take over the lines -- at the water meter
and where the sewer line hits the main drain.Enough homeowners
peppered their water and sewer departments with questions about
the mailing that all three cities felt compelled to take
stronger-than-usual action to address concerns.Fort Worth posted
a notice on its website with the headline "Water Department does
not endorse service line warranty programs."North Richland Hills
spokeswoman Mary Peters told me, "I'm glad you are writing about
this" because the city received questions. She wanted to counter
what she considered an exaggeration in the mailing.Arlington
officials went as far as contacting the company and asking for
changes on the website. Arlington wants residents to know that it
offers a repair program that goes beyond what many other cities
offer.Water Resources' plan works much like an extended warranty
for an appliance. Buyers gamble that they will need it someday.
The key word is gamble.First, as
Water Resources says in its mailing, cities generally do not pay
for repairs to water and sewer lines from the house to the city's
portion of the lines. That's the homeowner's responsibility.
Repairs can cost thousands of dollars but sometimes cost far
less.Many insurance companies cover little of the repair cost
from leaks. Water Resources does somewhat, but it doesn't pay to
repair any waterline clogs or blockages. The company also says it
pays for leaks or breaks in sewer lines only if they're caused by
a blockage or a clog.Water Resources charges $5 a month for up to
$5,000 in waterline repairs and $9 a month for up to $4,000 in
sewer-line repairs, with $4,000 more covered if a roadway has to
be dug up. There's also a $50 service fee per sewer line problem
but no charge for a waterline problem.Company officials told me
that those are the only out-of-pocket costs for customers. After
a problem is found -- if it is covered -- the company hires a
contractor, gets required permits and completes the covered
repairs.The company has a perfect rating from the Better Business
Bureau. The Texas Real Estate Commission, which regulates home
warranty companies, says the company is too new to have any
complaints on file.The company is a subsidiary of the
126-year-old American Water Co., a publicly traded water- and
wastewater-utility company based in New Jersey. Cities that
outsource their water and sewer services use such
companies.American Water Resources of Texas was formed as part of
the company's expansion into other states.As with any service
warranty company, it's important to look at what isn't covered.
Anything not resulting from normal wear and tear on water and
sewer lines, such as problems caused by a homeowner or other
third party, problems caused by natural disasters or anything
caused by poor construction or defective materials, isn't
covered.Arlington officials wanted the company to make sure that
the public knows that Arlington offers a repair program for the
portion of a sewer line in the public right of way or in a
utility easement, even if it's on a homeowner's property, but
only in cases of structural failure of the sewer line in that
area.North Richland Hills officials want residents to know that a
photograph on the company's brochure showing a bulldozer digging
up a front yard is a bit overdone."Most service line problems we
hear about from homeowners are minor issues such as roots getting
in the line," Peters said. "In that situation, all a homeowner
needs to do is call a plumber to clear the line."Fort Worth
offers a program for water customers who have a leak. They can
send receipts for plumbing repairs and parts to the Water
Department and request a 50 percent cut in their water bill for a
leak adjustment.Fort Worth gives sound advice on its website:
"Like with any insurance or warranty program, individuals should
do their own due diligence to learn what is and is not covered
and what exceptions apply."The Watchdog
column appears Fridays and Sundays.Dave Lieber, 817-390-7043Twitter: @davelieber

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Waterline repair insurance is legitimate, but DFW cities may have better deal

We are seeing a shift of power away from the
companies to the customers: Naresh K Malhotra

Interview with Regents' Professor, DuPree College of
Management

Rajarshi Bhattacharjee / Jan 30, 2012, 00:53 IST

Consumers in India and
around the world have become more value conscious post a
protracted slowdown, says Dr Naresh Kr
Malhotra, Regents' professor, DuPree College of
Management, Georgia Institute of Technology. Malhotra is
also a visiting consultant for business, non-government
and government organisations in the US and around the
world. During a recent visit to India, he spoke to
Rajarshi Bhattacharjee about the relevance of
marketing research during economic uncertainties.

How can marketers leverage marketing research to
reduce the risk of product/ business failure during a
slowdown?
Marketing research is all about the things that help in
making better decision that does reduce — if not
completely eliminate — the risks associated with decision
making. So even during an economic slump, marketing
research is important. There are systematic procedures
for determining what kind of research should be
undertaken during specific market conditions.

If you look at more innovative and more creative firms,
what they try to do is, use the ‘down period’ or ‘slump
times’ to actually increase their market share. They come
out stronger with what they are doing because other firms
or weaker competitors cut down. And the easier things to
cut down are the activities that have long-term impact and
are not immediately felt. So they tend to cut down on
marketing research because the impact of it is long term.
But the more innovative firms actually increase their
marketing and marketing research expenditures during slow
periods so that they cater to the customers better and
capitalise on the weaknesses of the competitors and grab a
bigger share of the market.

In a globalised era, how important is it for
companies to adopt a cross-cultural marketing research
projects that go beyond states/provinces or ethnic
groups?
Because of globalisation, cross-cultural marketing
research, sometimes called international marketing
research, has become extremely important. The growth in
the marketing research industry is coming more in
cross-cultural research compared to domestic marketing
research. The successful entry of Procter & Gamble
(P&G) in China can be an appropriate example for
this. When P&G was trying to enter the Chinese
market, it was said that P&G will face a big
challenge as its products are more expensive than the
Chinese ones or its other counterparts and that it caters
only to the affluent consumer segments.

But P&G, being a good marketing firm, and realising
the value of marketing research, chose to ignore the
advice and did detailed marketing research. They spoke to
the Chinese consumers, tried to understand their values,
how they go about making decisions, their challenges in
life etc. One of the important challenges for Chinese
consumers that was largely unaddressed was dandruff.
Chinese people have jet-black hair and so the dandruff
stands out. Different shampoo brands were available in
the market at that time in China, but with a substantial
focus on the middle-class segment of the market. P&G
found that the Chinese are quite willing to spend up to
six times the price of local brands for a shampoo that is
effective in fighting dandruff.

Based on all this information, P&G chose shampoo as
the entry category and used Head & Shoulders as the
entry brand in China. The launch was very successful and
today P&G has managed to capture around 70 per cent
share in the shampoo market in China.

Another example can be the entry of Unilever in Japan.
Unilever aimed to enter the market through the detergent
category and had information that the Japanese are
convenience oriented and freshness and fragrance were
important to them. Based on the information they had,
without undertaking systematic marketing research at all,
Unilever launched a detergent in tea bag-like sachets
that can be put into the washing machine and cloths will
come out fragrant. But the product failed because they
didn’t take into account the fact that the Japanese use
low agitation washing machines and the detergent doesn’t
dissolve adequately in such machines. The fresh-fragrance
positioning also failed because the Japanese people
prefer hanging cloths out on a clothesline than using
driers.

On the other hand, before entering the Japanese market
Johnson & Johnson did extensive market research with
Japanese housewives, about their problems, issues and
challenges. Johnson & Johnson found that women are
sensitive to their environmental issues and the disposal
of tempura oil (used for cooking) was an issue. The
feedback that they got from the housewives was, if it
could be solidified somewhere it could be disposed as a
solid waste like other garbage. Johnson & Johnson
developed a product which, if added to tempura cooking
oil, solidifies the oil and can be disposed like any
other solid waste. And the product was very successful.
So the same market in the same country delivered
different results for the two companies — the right kind
of market research being the deciding factor.

How has the integration of social media in recent
times redefined the basics of market research
globally?
Let me put it this way: it is rapidly changing. To make a
statement that social media had no impact on marketing
research is not true, and to say that social media has
radically changed marketing research
technologies/procedures will also be incorrect. Marketing
research is about obtaining information from the
respondents. Typically what researchers do is prepare
questionnaires, give it to respondents and analyse the
responses. But social media is a domain in which
conversations are taking place naturally. There is a
wealth of information out there in social media and it
can complement standard market research procedures, which
I also expressed in the recent edition of a marketing
research book.

Social media can be a good additional source of
information for marketing research professionals. What
one can do is monitor the conversations that are taking
place in the social media — all the blogs, micro blogs,
Facebook etc. Researchers can also develop and refine the
expertise to analyse qualitative information available in
the social media. In the near future we will see that
social media as a domain in which to conduct marketing
research is becoming more and more important.

What are the latest technologies global companies
are adopting to win a marketing edge over
competitors?
We are in a technological age. Social media is only one
among the many gifts of technology. Together with the
consumers, companies also update themselves with the
latest in the technological domain to be on par with the
market demands. We have seen Philips, for example, that
had in the past made many technological innovations that
excelled and successfully introduced those to the
marketplace. The key is one needs to know how to cash on
technology in a marketplace that can meet the needs of
the consumers. In order to do that one has to rely on
marketing. I would say that marketing research can give
the guidance on how to translate technological
developments and available technologies in production and
business processes that will cater to the needs of
consumers in a competitive marketplace.

Have you identified any structural shifts in the
urban consumption patterns in India as a result of the
economic slowdown?
What has happened is, consumers have become more value
conscious. What we have seen in recent years is that
consumers have become more knowledgeable and have also
become more demanding. Now you can go on the internet
anytime and get information about products, stores,
compare prices and so on. What we are seeing is a shift
of power away from the companies to the customers. But
the most distinct change that we have seen is that
consumers have become more value conscious. This is true
in many parts of the world including India. If you look
around now, how many ‘sale’ offers do you see around in
the retail stores across markets? Almost throughout the
year the ‘sale’ phenomenon continues. This is because
marketers have realised that if they want to cater to the
value-conscious consumers, they will have to increase the
value of their products and services.

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We are seeing a shift of power away from the companies to the customers: Naresh K Malhotra