MCAA Regional Report, Region G

Words: Glenn HottmannArizona - Clemens Hellmann
Colorado - No State Chair
New Mexico - Randy Saponaro
Utah - Alan Johnson
Wyoming - Jim Thompson

Workforce Development

Arizona

The Apprenticeship Program continues to operate both in the Phoenix area and in Tucson. The enrollment of the first-year apprentices is still a challenge due to lack of work. Phoenix enrolled two new apprentices in August, 2011. Our Tucson classes are going well with eight apprentices enrolled. Tucson will honor its first graduating class at the end of this year at AMCA’s Annual Meeting, and Phoenix will graduate four more, for a total of eight graduates in 2011.

Colorado

No State Chairman

New Mexico

No report as of this writing

Utah

No report as of this writing

Wyoming

No report as of this writing

General Conditions

Arizona

The economic recovery in Arizona is very slow. So much of that is due to the magnitude of the real estate crash that we continue to experience here. There were only a handful of states that had as big a boom and bust in both real estate and construction as Arizona had. There continues to be a slight increase in residential, and although small, it is a huge improvement from the year before.

The AMCA (Arizona Masonry Contractors Association) Safety Program continues to promote safety in the workplace. So far this year, we have offered Foreman Development training as well as Developing a Superior Safety Program. Our loss ratio is slightly up from last year but continues to be on the low end.

Materials are available and prices have increased in 2011. Suppliers continue to be very competitive in the market and prices are checked on a per-bid basis.

Colorado

No State Chairman

New Mexico

No report as of this writing

Utah

One of the big problems in Utah is a labor force that does not want to work in the construction trades. Most young men born in the US are growing up not having to work hard and do not want to enter the field of construction. Those that have not attended college and are unemployed, have a high rate of drug dependency, keeping them unemployed. Along with that, there are not enough Hispanic workers wanting to work that can pass E-verify, making it difficult to find the labor force we need.

Wyoming

No report as of this writing

Economic Conditions

Arizona

The economy in Arizona continues to suffer and the predictions are that it will continue through 2012. Although housing starts seem to be slightly up from where they were one year ago, the commercial sector is almost at a stand-still with the exception of public work.

Colorado

No State Chairman

New Mexico

No report as of this writing

Utah

Utah was just rated the number one state in the US for the most positive business climate. There are a few areas around the country that are doing extremely well because of hot spots in energy development. Utah is also rated one of the top 5 most diversified economies in the US. Utah’s unemployment dropped from a high of 8% early last year to 7% in October, 2011 and is expected to continue to decline at almost the same pace.

There has been ample work to bid on but as in most of the country, prices are low, with low margins for the contractors. In order to compete, small contractors continue to drop labor prices. Bankruptcies are happing at a little faster pace as those that target that business method lose their equity trying to hang in. The Utah market outlook is expected to be this way for a couple more years with a positive swing in 2015.

Wyoming

No report as of this writing

Market Expansion & Initiatives

Arizona

The AMCA and AMG (Arizona Masonry Guild) are partnering to promote masonry like never before in the state of Arizona. In January, we launched the Arizona Masonry Promotion Plan and Promotion Fund designed to stop the erosion of masonry market share in Arizona. We have utilized the experience and resources of Florida, Illinois and Texas and customized our programs to meet Arizona’s unique needs. We are working with a lobbying firm to help communicate our message to political figures and decisions makers, offering box lunch presentations to architectural firms and developing relationships with school board officials, structural engineers, cities and municipalities to get our message across.

Colorado

No State Chairman

New Mexico

No report as of this writing

Utah

In a recent Utah Masonry Council Association (UMCA) board meeting, the board members which include: mason contractors, vendors/suppliers and friends of masonry, voted to restructure and lower dues significantly for the mason contractors. It was noted that in this tough economy, they would get far more contractor participation if dues became low enough to not put a hardship on them to participate in their trade association. They are working diligently to recruit many new members while working hard to retain those existing members who have been involved. They will be holding an evening dinner event in mid-January, to introduce the new fee structure and educate members of all the positive things they are creating and working on in Utah.

Wyoming

No report as of this writing
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