Masonry Magazine February 1987 Page. 61
Distributors Adjust to Changing Construction
Equipment Marketplace for '87
Full-service construction equipment distributors are preparing to meet growing customer demand for still more short-term rentals and used equipment purchases in 1987, according to a forecast survey among members of Associated Equipment Distributors (AED).
The change in customer purchasing plans is directly related to the new federal tax law and elimination of the Investment Tax Credit, AED survey respondents reported. The random sampling of 160 equipment distributors also expressed concern over when Congress will release funds for federal highway and bridge projects in 1987. Congress adjourned in the fall without taking the action necessary to provide states with federal-aid funds and may not resolve this issue until spring.
Overall, the AED-member distributors are conservative about the 1987 construction market, predicting a national median increase of 6% in gross sales in first-half 1987, compared to the same period in 1986. Dealers of earthmoving, paving and general lines of equipment see a median 5% gain in gross sales. The light equipment supplies segment of the business is more optimistic, expecting a median 10% sales increase during the first six months of 1987.
Heavy equipment distributors said their sales gains in 1987 will stem from an ability to meet customer needs for machine rentals and from an increased emphasis on parts and service business. On new equipment sales, they see tight competition keeping prices and margins down.
General equipment distributors also find themselves in a market that continues to move away from new equipment sales. Through nine months of 1986, the general-line dealers participating in AED's MATRIX market trends program reported a 9% gain in rental income and a 31% jump in used equipment revenue.
Most light equipment dealers expect rentals and rental conversions to continue to dominate their businesses in 1987, but they also are coping with tighter price competition.
Regionally, the Northeast continues to enjoy brisk business, while the oil areas of the Southwest, particularly Houston, and the Denver area are holding on in depressed economies.
ACI to Publish Two
New Journals
The American Concrete Institute says it will phase out its ACI Journal and publish two new journals in its place beginning in 1987.
They will be known as the ACI Structural Journal and the ACI Materials Journal. The intent is to afford ACI members a choice of which type of information they prefer for their professional needs.
Va. Concrete Masonry
Assn. Elects Officers
Richard D. Maley of Lone Star-Richmond is the newly elected president of the Virginia Concrete Masonry Association. Other officers serving with him are:
Vice president. Don Hogston, Lightweight Block Co., Inc., Lynchburg; secretary/treasurer, Peter W. Schmidt, Allied Concrete Co., Charlottesville, and William A. Corbitt. Jr., past president.
NCMA Predicts Boom In
Lower Level Construction
One of the ways homeowners are adding valuable living space while cutting home building costs is by renovation or building lower levels in their homes, according to an industry forecast released by the National Concrete Masonry Association (NCMA) on lower level living construction.
The NCMA expects 550 million concrete block to be used in 1987, a 10 percent increase over last year. The NCMA also cited these trends for 1987: Total use of concrete block is expected to rise 6 percent to reach an industry record of 4 billion units. Use of customized concrete masonry, or contemporary patterns and textures, will increase to a record 15 percent of total production.
"Renovation of an existing or planned lower level is far more economical than adding on above ground," said John Heslip, president of NCMA. "As individual residential building costs rise this causes an increasing number of home builders to remodel their basements to create additional living space," he said.
Concrete block are readily available and relatively inexpensive. Their durability, resistance to rodents, and fire and insulation against noise and cold combined with the large selection of contemporary block pattern and textures, have made them an integral building element for below ground construction.
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