All posts by SEO Team

March 20, 2023

IIJA Funding and Cyber Security Risks in Construction

Surety Bond Professionals is a family owned and operated bonding agency with over 30 years of experience. With access to a broad range of surety markets, our expert agents are ready to assist with all of your construction bond needs. The Threat of Cyber Attack Cybersecurity experts have warned us for several years of the threat that cyber attacks pose to critical infrastructure and those who rely on it. Water supplies, electrical grids, banking, and communication systems are particularly vulnerable to disruption through cyber attacks. Sensitive personal and corporate information can be acquired through data breaches and sold, held for ransom, or used for other nefarious purposes. The construction industry is far from immune to cyber attacks. In 2021, construction was the third most frequently targeted industry as far as ransomware is concerned, accounting for 13.2% of all ransomware attacks in North America. It’s a favored target because of a lack of awareness and inadequate cybersecurity measures. One study found 74% of businesses in the construction industry are unprepared to respond to a cyber attack, despite the abundance of sensitive data and financial information they accumulate. And as the use of artificial intelligence and degree of connectivity in construction...

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March 20, 2023

How Construction Smart Sensors Are Changing the Industry

Surety Bond Professionals is a family owned and operated bonding agency with over 30 years of experience. With access to a broad range of surety markets, our expert agents are ready to assist with all of your construction bond needs. What Are Smart Sensors? Sensor technology has come a long way since the early days of factory automation when sensors made machine control of machine-controlled equipment possible. Back then, sensors could do little more than trigger an action by detecting the presence or absence of an item. Today’s smart sensors can gather a wide range of information and transmit it wirelessly. Some sensors contain onboard microprocessors that can act on the data collected before transmitting it elsewhere to support monitoring and decision-making. Some sensors are capable of detecting their own functioning and reporting the need for recalibration or maintenance. Advances in technology result in sensors that are smarter, smaller, lighter, and less vulnerable to outside forces. You can expect to see continued expansion of the possible uses of smart sensors, particularly in the construction industry. How Are Smart Sensors Used in Construction? These are just a few of the ways in which smart sensors are modernizing the construction industry:...

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March 20, 2023

How Carbon-Based Fuel Regulations Will Affect Construction

Surety Bond Professionals is a family owned and operated bonding agency with over 30 years of experience. With access to a broad range of surety markets, our expert agents are ready to assist with all of your construction bond needs. Renewed Emphasis on Elimination of Greenhouse Gas Emissions The Biden administration is engaged in ongoing rulemaking intended to move the U.S. ever closer to zero emissions of greenhouse gasses (GHG) that have played a major role in global warming and climate change. This involves the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration proposing rules that reverse the previous administration’s rollbacks of fuel efficiency and emissions standards. Every sector of the economy is under scrutiny to determine the greatest opportunities for improvement and set priorities for reducing the amount of carbon being released into the atmosphere. Strategies for Reducing Use of Carbon-Based Fuel President Biden signed an Executive Order including a schedule for developing standards governing fuel efficiency and multi-pollutant emissions for light-duty vehicles through model year 2030, with standards for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles starting with model year 2027. In December 2021, the EPA issued final gas emissions standards for passenger cars and...

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March 20, 2023

Bridge Formula Program Set to Improve Infrastructure in the U.S.

Surety Bond Professionals is a family owned and operated bonding agency with over 30 years of experience. With access to a broad range of surety markets, our expert agents are ready to assist with all of your construction bond needs. What is the Bridge Formula Program? The Bridge Formula Plan is another name for the Bridge Replacement, Rehabilitation, Preservation, Protection, and Construction Program created by the passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Job Acts (IIJA), better known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The Bridge Formula Program establishes rules and guidelines for allocating the billions of dollars earmarked for the repair, replacement, preservation, protection, and construction of highway bridges throughout the United States and Puerto Rico. Described by Transportation Secretary Buttigieg as the “single largest dedicated bridge investment since the construction of the interstate highway system,” the total amount to be distributed over five years to states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico is $26.5 billion with another $825 million going to Tribal transportation facilities. What Bridge Projects Will Be Funded? The Bridge Formula Program funds repairs and upgrades to highway bridges as well as “off-system” bridges. These typically are owned by county, city, town, or other local government entities and...

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March 20, 2023

Benefits of Adopting a Supply Chain Risk Management Strategy in Construction

Surety Bond Professionals is a family owned and operated bonding agency with over 30 years of experience. With access to a broad range of surety markets, our expert agents are ready to assist with all of your construction bond needs. Potential Impact of Construction Supply Chain Disruptions The integrity of a contractor’s supply chain is critical to timely project completion with no cost overruns. Unfortunately, supply chains are vulnerable to disruption for a number of reasons and lead times can be difficult to predict. Supply chain management became more difficult during the pandemic, and while the situation is improving with regard to some construction materials, recovery is ongoing. External Causes of Supply Chain Problems The lingering effects of the pandemic are not the only challenges, either. Any number of factors can affect how long it takes for materials to get to a construction site. Some lead time problems stem from a supplier’s problems in obtaining raw materials for their own production processes. Labor shortages and labor disputes involving strikes and work stoppages can also cause problems, both for companies producing construction materials and for transportation carriers. Materials ordered from companies in some parts of the world may be delayed...

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March 20, 2023

Subdivision Bonds for Developers: A Guide

Surety Bond Professionals is a family owned and operated bonding agency with over 30 years of experience. With access to a broad range of surety markets, our expert agents are ready to assist with all of your construction bond needs. What Are Subdivision Bonds? A subdivision bond, also called a plat bond, developer bond, or completion bond, is a specialized type of performance bond guaranteeing that certain improvements will be made in a subdivision. Such improvements include streets, sidewalks, streetlights, curbs, gutters, sewers, water mains, fire hydrants, and more—anything considered to be public infrastructure. A subdivision bond guarantees these improvements will be completed and tied in with public infrastructure according to municipal code. The bond gives the municipal authority or other party requiring the bond (the “obligee”) a way to recover monetary damages from the developer (the bond’s “principal”) if the subdivision work is not completed satisfactorily. Who Needs a Subdivision Bond and Why? Developers, not contractors, are required to purchase subdivision bonds. A subdivision bond is needed when a developer divides a piece of land to build homes for individual sale. With a subdivision bond in place, the developer can go ahead and sell individual lots or homes...

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March 15, 2023

Will Construction Costs Go Down in 2023?

Surety Bond Professionals is a family owned and operated bonding agency with over 30 years of experience. With access to a broad range of surety markets, our expert agents are ready to assist with all of your construction bond needs. A Burning Question It’s only natural for contractors to worry about the possible erosion of their profit margins due to unanticipated increases in construction costs. Bids based on today’s construction costs that would yield a certain profit today can turn out to be less profitable a few weeks or months down the line if those costs increase. So, it’s understandable that contractors, from independent operators to the owners of large construction firms, are eager for any information on the direction and magnitude of likely movements in construction costs. Questions such as will construction costs go down in 2023 are on everyone’s mind. Construction Cost Components In putting together estimates and budgets for potential construction jobs, contractors must include both direct and indirect costs. Direct costs are the cost of labor and the cost of construction materials. Contractors have little control over these. Sure, they might be able to negotiate supplier discounts here and there. And some might try to...

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March 15, 2023

Top Women in Construction in 2023

Surety Bond Professionals is a family owned and operated bonding agency with over 30 years of experience. With access to a broad range of surety markets, our expert agents are ready to assist with all of your construction bond needs. Women in Construction Today As of October 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 14% of the 7.7 million people working in the U.S. construction industry were female. The number of women in construction is increasing every year. As the construction labor pool continues to shrink with the aging of the construction workforce and the number of young people entering the trades declines, employers increasingly are hiring female candidates. And more women are launching their own construction businesses, though relatively few of them have annual revenues in excess of $500,000. Construction Champions Clearly, there is still plenty of room for growth for women in construction. Women with some construction experience are a valuable resource for bringing more women into the industry and helping them advance in their construction careers. Every year, Construction Dive selects from hundreds of nominees the women doing the most to elevate the industry and make it an attractive employment option for women. These are...

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March 15, 2023

Guide to Commercial Construction Loans

Surety Bond Professionals is a family-owned and operated bonding agency with over 30 years of experience. With access to a broad range of surety markets, our expert agents are ready to assist with all of your construction bond needs. Purpose of Commercial Construction Loans Few project owners can put up all of the capital to pay for a commercial building project without borrowing from a bank or other lender. There may be several different sources of funds, different layers in the “capital stack,” that go into financing a commercial building project—often a combination of equity and debt. While certain stakeholders and investors contribute equity, our concern here is with the commercial construction loans that constitute the debt portion of a project’s financing. A commercial construction loan is a business loan obtained by a project owner to finance the construction or renovation of a commercial structure. Sources of Commercial Construction Loans Up to $5 million in construction financing can be obtained through one of the Small Business Administration’s commercial construction loan programs: CDC/504 loans or SBA 7(a) loans. Many project owners prefer to finance construction with a commercial construction loan from a bank they have an established relationship with. Even...

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