Brief
The Urethane Blog
December 4, 2018
Dive Brief:
- The Houston metropolitan area, according to an analysis of federal employment data by the Associated General Contractors of America, created 25,600 construction jobs — the largest number recorded out of 358 U.S. metros and a 12% increase — from October 2017 through October 2018.
- The construction industries in the Phoenix (16,700 jobs; 14%), Dallas (13,200; 9%) and Orlando (11,700; 16%) metro areas generated the next-highest number of construction jobs, while Midland, Texas (7,200; 25%), and New Bedford, Massachusetts (600; 22%), had the largest percentage increases. Seventy-eight percent, or 280, of the metro areas AGC tracks saw construction job growth, while 43 saw a decline and 34 stayed the same. The Middlesex-Monmouth-Ocean, New Jersey, metro had the greatest decline of 3,900 jobs, a 10% loss.
- The number of construction job openings at the end of September 2018 rose 55% to the highest level in 18 years, noted AGC chief economist Ken Simonson in the report, and construction unemployment last month fell to an 18-year low of 3.6%. Association officials said the lack of skilled labor could threaten future gains and called on federal and state officials to double funding for career and technical programs during the next five years and to reform immigration laws so that employers can bring in foreign workers if needed.
Dive Insight:
The value of construction projects in Houston also increased between Oct. 2017 and Oct. 2018, jumping to $3.4 billion from $1.9 billion, according to Dodge Data & Analytics. The energy and chemical sectors are a significant driver of building activity in the area.
In October, German manufacturing company Covestro announced it is planning a 1.5 billion-euro methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) plant in nearby Baytown, Texas. The facility will be able to produce 500 kilotons of MDI (which is used for polyurethane insulation and other materials) annually and will replace existing Covestro facilities on the site.
The Houston area is also recovering from last year’s Hurricane Harvey, which devastated commercial and residential properties with record flooding. Harvey caused an estimated $125 billion of damage, and the demand for construction services remains high. In an effort to prevent damage from future storms, Texas officials and the Army Corps of Engineers are developing a $23 billion to $32 billion plan for a “coastal spine” system of flood protection and draining infrastructure to protect the Texas Gulf Coast.
The coastal protection project will get more than $2 billion of federal money, as part of the almost $6 billion in water infrastructure projects outlined in America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 that President Donald Trump authorized in October.
https://www.constructiondive.com/news/houston-leads-construction-job-growth-for-the-year-ending-october-2018/543520/
December 3, 2018
American manufacturers warn buyers about hazardous materials in mattress foam
By:
Jordan Highsmith
Posted: Nov 30, 2018 06:13 PM CST
Updated: Nov 30, 2018 06:49 PM CST
U.S. (WIAT) — Americans buy more mattresses in December than any other month. American manufacturers of mattress foam are warning buyers about hazardous chemicals in imported mattress foam.
Consumer advocate Elisabeth Leamy says foams found in some mattresses may contain potentially dangerous chemicals.
CertiPUR-US is working to reduce health risks in mattresses. Leamy says the Michigan-based non-profit puts furniture through rigorous tests before certifying the foam is free from hazardous materials. Due to growing consumer demands, more companies are using certified foam in their mattresses.
“If your mattress is more than 10 years old it doesn’t benefit from that strict standard,” Leamy said.
One way to determine if furniture meets the safety standard is to look for the certified seal.
“We spend a third of our lives sleeping on our mattresses. So this is an investment worth making in something that is right for you,” Leamy said.
https://www.cbs42.com/news/local/american-manufacturers-warn-buyers-about-hazardous-materials-in-mattress-foam/1630951367
December 3, 2018
American manufacturers warn buyers about hazardous materials in mattress foam
By:
Jordan Highsmith
Posted: Nov 30, 2018 06:13 PM CST
Updated: Nov 30, 2018 06:49 PM CST
U.S. (WIAT) — Americans buy more mattresses in December than any other month. American manufacturers of mattress foam are warning buyers about hazardous chemicals in imported mattress foam.
Consumer advocate Elisabeth Leamy says foams found in some mattresses may contain potentially dangerous chemicals.
CertiPUR-US is working to reduce health risks in mattresses. Leamy says the Michigan-based non-profit puts furniture through rigorous tests before certifying the foam is free from hazardous materials. Due to growing consumer demands, more companies are using certified foam in their mattresses.
“If your mattress is more than 10 years old it doesn’t benefit from that strict standard,” Leamy said.
One way to determine if furniture meets the safety standard is to look for the certified seal.
“We spend a third of our lives sleeping on our mattresses. So this is an investment worth making in something that is right for you,” Leamy said.
https://www.cbs42.com/news/local/american-manufacturers-warn-buyers-about-hazardous-materials-in-mattress-foam/1630951367
December 3, 2018
Like Memory Foam
7.1
There’s a fine line between growing weary of the world and giving up on it. The latter marks a political and emotional dead end, but the former can open the door to constructive thought. Growing tired of something grants space for dreaming up its replacement. In the ’90s, guitar bands like Dinosaur Jr. and Sonic Youth managed to funnel their weariness into restive stews of noise that approached political quandaries from an oblique angle. When Kim Gordon asked, on “Kool Thing,” “Are you gonna liberate us girls from male white corporate oppression?,” she already knew the reply. It’s the asking that counts, even if you’re already sick of the answer.
Following this sly template, the Columbus, Ohio band didi eschew the blunt force of punk, investing their political frustrations instead in the more subtle vessel of melody-rich noise pop. Their second album, Like Memory Foam, darts in and out of the personal and political. Breakup songs mingle with calls for the obliteration of the old guard, and didi treat both subjects with the same swirling mix of gravitas and irreverence. Interpersonal frustrations and political oppressions both cause suffering, after all; the body buckles in the same way no matter the source of the pain.
https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/didi-like-memory-foam/
December 3, 2018
Like Memory Foam
7.1
There’s a fine line between growing weary of the world and giving up on it. The latter marks a political and emotional dead end, but the former can open the door to constructive thought. Growing tired of something grants space for dreaming up its replacement. In the ’90s, guitar bands like Dinosaur Jr. and Sonic Youth managed to funnel their weariness into restive stews of noise that approached political quandaries from an oblique angle. When Kim Gordon asked, on “Kool Thing,” “Are you gonna liberate us girls from male white corporate oppression?,” she already knew the reply. It’s the asking that counts, even if you’re already sick of the answer.
Following this sly template, the Columbus, Ohio band didi eschew the blunt force of punk, investing their political frustrations instead in the more subtle vessel of melody-rich noise pop. Their second album, Like Memory Foam, darts in and out of the personal and political. Breakup songs mingle with calls for the obliteration of the old guard, and didi treat both subjects with the same swirling mix of gravitas and irreverence. Interpersonal frustrations and political oppressions both cause suffering, after all; the body buckles in the same way no matter the source of the pain.
https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/didi-like-memory-foam/
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