Valley running out of space for super-sized warehouses, distribution centers

When it comes to warehouses, how big is too big?

Massive warehouses are becoming a common sight throughout the Greater Lehigh Valley and a rising trend over the past few years. But is it sustainable and will it continue to grow?

"The evolution and size of these buildings is a new trend," said David Berryman, chief community planner for the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission, an organization that released a new subdivision and building activity report last week. "The theory in how to get goods from Point A to Point B has changed."

Based in Hanover Township, Lehigh County, the LVPC shared details of a report that charts all development that occurred in Lehigh and Northampton counties in 2013.

During 2013, the report showed, Lehigh Valley municipalities approved developments that could consume 1,577 acres or 2.5 square miles. Subdivided acreage for approved plans for nonresidential projects covered 1,274 acres, while residential projects covered 303 acres.

Much of this nonresidential development includes warehouse/distribution projects such as the Ocean Spray Bottling Plant and Bimbo Bakeries in Upper Macungie Township.

The approvals in 2013 for nonresidential development show a big jump over 2012 levels, revealing a 241 percent increase, according to the report.

Warehouses stood out as one of the biggest nonresidential development trends in the report, and Berryman noted how the size has continued to grow and could possibly get larger.

The warehouses for Dollar General and PetSmart in Berks Park 78 in Bethel Township, Berks County, are more than one million square feet in size and reach similar sizes farther west on Interstate 78 into Carlisle, Berryman said.

But Bethlehem could have the largest warehouse/distribution facility in the state if a 1.9 million square foot warehouse is built for Majestic Realty Co., according to Berryman.

In Lehigh and Northampton counties, there is not much land left to locate warehouses of that size or larger.

"The market will go as far as it can and fill up the cup until it overflows, then it will stop," Berryman said. "I don't know if these warehouses can be changed to something else; we're just consuming an awful lot of space for a single user."

At some point, the land is going to run out, Berryman said.

"I see it as a question of opportunity costs," Berryman said. "The good land will be in short supply."

In the years to come, developers may decide to go farther into northern parts of Lehigh and Northampton counties to build warehouses, he said. Now, the popular places for distribution/warehouses continue to be Upper Macungie Township along Route 100, Bethlehem along Route 412, Palmer Township near Route 33 and in Forks Township. Each of these locations has warehouses and distribution centers in industrial parks that enable easier connections to utilities and, in some cases, offer direct rail access to ship freight.

While rail freight would keep trucks off local roads and highways, not every warehouse and distribution site has direct rail-freight access.

"We are at that point now where the Lehigh Valley is really maturing," said Becky Bradley, executive director of the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission. "The onus is on the municipalities to require transportation improvements."

She cited many external factors that drive both commercial and residential development, including a rising population, the growth of families with fewer children, younger generations with higher levels of student loan debt and people with increasing mobility between jobs. All of these factors played a role in 2013 statistics and likely will in the future.

"How does all that fit together? There are tax implications with every style of development," Bradley said.

Source: LVB.com

(IND) BIM adoption: Why Can’t it Just Be About Best Practice?

In late 2013, McGraw Hill conducted 435 online surveys with architects, engineers, contractors, consultants and building owners from across Australia and New Zealand’s construction industry.

The Australia and New Zealand SmartMarket Report released on Wednesday analyses the full range of data received and, in relation to BIM adoption, the levels of experience and collaboration, expected and estimated return on investment and likely future importance and adoption rates of BIM in five years in Australia and New Zealand.

On reading the report and listening to the speakers at Wednesday’s Consult Australia Technology Symposium, it is clear that greater sharing of models and data will provide the best incentive to improve the BIM and engage all project team members to return the benefits.

What the client wants

Over two-thirds of respondents reported that working with team members who have BIM expertise improves project outcomes and increases quality.

What we are seeing on the ground is a need to shift the thinking from mandatory BIM implementation (i.e. the UK model) to best practice design and construction.

The ANZ SmartMarket Report data also suggests building owners within both the public and private sectors are likely to have the greatest influence on BIM adoption.

Clients will always expect better design and properly coordinated delivery of the project, on time and within budget. BIM is a tool that assists in delivering what the client wants. The technology facilitates the improvement in best practice. The project team should apply BIM because it makes business sense to do so. It generates savings through efficiencies like the development and implementation of any new technology or process should.

What the designer wants

Canada reports that 89 per cent of contractors ‘always or often’ receive models from designers. When it comes to expectations in receiving models from designers in Australia and New Zealand, just nine per cent hold this view. We rank at the lowest end, well below all other regions. In comparison to the US (44 per cent), South Korea (50 per cent), Brazil (50 per cent) and the UK (29 per cent) our real BIM adoption rate falls far short of what we think is happening in relation to BIM take up and real project collaboration.

According to the report, over two-thirds of architects and engineers are requesting ‘more 3D Building Product manufacturer-specific content.’ With the groundswell of take up amongst architects and engineers, the report highlights the need for this group particularly to demand content that is searchable and that can be indexed.

When working closely with designers across a range of large and small project, our 5DQS team at Mitchell Brandtman finds that the greatest benefit to everyone is reliable data that can be revised quickly and accurately as the design develops. The technology allows for this. What is critical to the process is the understanding of the power of this data across the consultancy team and that everyone is aware of its usefulness up and down the chain of supply. Inevitable data anomalies are then able to be identified and rectified collectively and quickly.

What the contractor wants

According to McGraw Hill’s report, Australian and New Zealand contractors are more likely to focus on whole of project team benefits through improved BIM processes. Contractors rated more highly (in comparison to architects and engineers), better data integration, functionality and interoperability of the software as the factors most likely to increase the BIM benefits for users.

Contractors in Australia and New Zealand also seem to be leading the way in their plans to invest/upgrade IT infrastructure, expressing high to very high importance for BIM. More than half of the contractors who responded also plan to invest in developing collaborative BIM processes, which McGraw Hill reports is outpacing the average of all other global regions.

What is also evident from the statistics overall is the role of contractors. The data supports the view that this group is most likely to be the key drivers of BIM adoption in Australia and New Zealand in the next few years given their calls for greater functionality of the software and more clearly defined deliverables to support BIM.

In our experience when working with contractors, particularly on large scale commercial and public sector projects, they are focused on IPD (Integrated Project Delivery) and VDC (Virtual Design and Construction) as the means to successfully deliver a project on time and on budget. IPD provides contractors with a softer way to contract. VDC allows contractors to rehearse the build which reduces waste and delivers a leaner project more likely to be on time and within budget.

Contractors want to de-risk the project through accurate and fast updatable documentation. All parties participating in BIM achieve this. Efficiency should be the driver for increased adoption and this is only going to come from greater sharing of project successes, knowledge sharing of work-arounds and software developments and full collaboration across the project team from preliminary design through construction and post construction.

Trades Take Up Fast

Contractors are reporting high proficiency use amongst mechanical/sheet metal/plumber trade contractors in Australia and New Zealand. It is most likely that these trades can more readily see the immediate financial benefits and process improvements, particularly where they are moving to greater prefabrication.

Given that trades make up approximately 83 per cent of costs on a typical building project, it is expected that BIM will most likely bring about the most immediate savings and benefits to the subcontractors. This is certainly what we are seeing on our 5D projects.

Engaging Non-Users

When we look more closely at the non-users responses, more than two-thirds believe their competitors are using BIM but over 40 per cent of them feel that it is at a low implementation level of less than 15 per cent of projects. The report points specifically to this being more commonly thought within companies working domestically only.

By contrast, all large contractors (revenues of $250 million or more) say their competitors are using BIM and half of those believe it is at a high implementation level.

The most significant benefit that would influence take up for both non-user contractors and architects/engineers is more accurate construction documents followed closely by improved communication. What is surprising is that amongst the early BIM adopters these are both generally considered as immediate and achievable deliverables when implementing BIM across the project team.

It’s always about industry Best Practice

The report makes a strong case for greater education amongst domestically focused and small companies in Australia and New Zealand yet to adopt BIM or who are still at a very low level of implementation.

Whilst the strength of the advocacy of BIM in Australia and the number of organisations collaborating and conversing on how to improve it is essential, developing sound business strategy at the individual level to improve ROI is imperative. This can be achieved through better design and model data management and is likely to have a greater impact on adoption rates and encourage best industry practice. Historically this has always remained the greatest incentive for adoption of any new process or technology.

Whilst the industry debates the need for a national standard, what may serve us better is focusing on standardising the elements that can report the ROI coming out of better design and model integration of 4D and 5D.

We also need industry-wide education on the best practice benefits of project collaboration along the supply chain. We know early decisions have a high ability to influence time and costs. We need to look beyond the issues of where we should be on the BIM journey and focus efforts on who can influence best practice at the early stages of design. This may create far greater success in leveraging BIM’s benefits throughout the design, construction and post construction phases for those in the project team who choose to adopt.

Source: Sourceable.net

Council hires Concentric Energy Advisors to evaluate PGW sale

City Council will pay Concentric Energy Advisors at least $425,000 to help it decide whether to sell the Philadelphia Gas Works, Council President Darrell Clarke announced today.

The deal with Concentric, of Marlborough, Mass., includes two contracts. The first, worth $225,000, asks the firm to evaluate Mayor Nutter’s proposal for the PGW sale — a $1.86 billion deal with UIL Holdings Corp., of New Haven, Conn. — and compare it to bids the administration rejected.

Under the other contract, worth $200,000, Concentric will explore alternatives to selling PGW, like developing its liquefied natural gas capabilities.

Selling PGW is a major priority for Nutter this year, and the question of whether Council will go along with his proposal is the big question in City Hall this spring’s budget season.

Nutter has said he is supportive of Council’s efforts to evaluate the proposed sale, which also must be approved by the state Public Utility Commission.

UIL can walk away from the deal if it isn’t approved by July 15.

Clarke said yesterday he isn’t concerned with any timeline established in the administration’s deal.

“That’s not a document that I signed,” he said. “Whatever time it takes, we’ll use that time. The reality is that this is the most significant municipal contract slash transaction in the history of the city of Philadelphia.”

The $425,000 cost reflects “base contracts,” meaning the price tag could go up if Council renews or expands the contracts.

“This is a $1.86 billion proposal,” Clarke said. “If it takes us $400,000 to make sure that we make the appropriate decision, I think that’s money well spent.”

Concentric’s bids were in the “low to mid-point” of proposals submitted to Council, according to a press release.

The release said the costs will be shared between the city budget and Council’s budget. A spokeswoman for Clarke did not immediately respond to a request for a breakdown.

Source: Philly.com

Negotiations Continue to Prevent SEPTA Strike

Source: NBCPhiladelphia

SEPTA Tries to Avoid Strike

SEPTA and its union workers met Monday. The transit union wants a shorter contract with higher raises but SEPTA is looking for a longer-term option.

Source: NBCPhiladelphia.com