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What is a Home Improvement Contractor’s Bond?

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. Who Needs a Home Improvement Contractor’s Bond? Some states don’t require contractors to be licensed or bonded, regardless of the kind of construction work they do. Other states require contractors to be licensed, but not bonded. And in some states, home improvement contractors are exempt from the license and bonding requirements that apply to other contractors. To make things even more complicated, in states that do not require home improvement contractors to be licensed or bonded at the state level, they may be subject to local licensing and bonding requirements, either at the county or city level. When this is the case, the local jurisdiction (the “obligee” requiring the bond) has established the required bond amount at $10,000. To add another level of complexity, any license or bonding requirements may depend on the dollar value of the projects the contractor undertakes. For example, in certain counties in Tennessee (Bradley, Davidson, Haywood, Hamilton, Knox, Marion, Robertson, Rutherford, and Shelby), home...

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Caterpillar and Axenox Strike an Exclusive Deal for Asphalt Paving

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’s the Deal? If your business involves building or working on asphalt paved roads, the deal between Caterpillar and construction supplier Axenox could be a very big deal in terms of its impact on your company. Here’s what happened in a nutshell. Axenox came up with two products, “Oxclaw” (a textured screed plate system) and “Bullox” (a modular screed plate system) that could revolutionize the asphalt paving industry. Caterpillar entered into a deal with Axenox to acquire sole intellectual property rights to Oxclaw and Bullox and become the exclusive dealer for both through the CAT dealer network. To gain the advantages offered by Oxclaw and Bulllox, you must become a CAT customer if you’re not one already. Benefits of Oxclaw and Bullox Axenox developed its patented screed plate systems to reduce the time required to remove and replace a screed while getting better densities and a more uniform and smoother asphalt surface. In the past, it was assumed that...

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Repairing Sanibel Causeway after Hurricane Ian

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. In the Aftermath of Hurricane Ian After Hurricane Ian wreaked havoc in parts of Florida, drones captured images of the 3-mile-long Sanibel Causeway that revealed some sections to be heavily damaged. Other sections were completely submerged or washed away by the storm surge. Damage from the storm completely cut off Sanibel Island from mainland Florida and knocked out all power. An emergency response network of contractors was mobilized immediately, and internet and cell phone communication was restored through a Starlink satellite. But all the initial phases of repair work had to be accomplished with power from generators. The immediate repairs included using dredged material, rip rap, and other materials trucked in from various parts of Florida to rebuild the causeway islands and fill in the areas that Ian had washed out. A paving crew contracted by the Florida Department of Transportation repaired nearby roads. With resources that included not only drones but also underwater survey equipment and barges, the...

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Virginia Casino News: Project Pushed to 2024

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. Caesars’ Entertainment Game Plan: Virginia Casino News Caesars Entertainment was slated to open a casino in Danville, Virginia, in 2023, but that has now been postponed to 2024. The main factors entering into the postponement decision were supply chain disruptions, a shortage of skilled labor, and problems with the preparation of the building site. That involves digging up hundreds of years of concrete and clearing the existing structures on the site, which was formerly occupied by a textile mill. Virginians voted to legalize commercial casinos in 2020, and five developers were approved to build casinos in the state. Which has led to many staying on top of the Virginia casino news trends. The now-postponed Caesars Virginia project, estimated to cost $500 million, is the largest and most expensive of the five. It is projected to bring the city of Danville $38 million in revenue each year. Additionally, in September 2023, Caesars will begin paying a $5 million annual subsidy...

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Remote Control Construction Equipment Trends

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 Need for Remote Control Construction Equipment The construction industry is always on the lookout for better digital technology that will increase productivity and reduce project costs. It’s not uncommon for large projects to miss the scheduled completion date by as much as 20% or go over-budget by as much as 80%. Any technology that can help bring a construction project in on time and within budget is certainly worth considering, especially as remote control construction equipment capabilities expand, more options become available, and prices become more affordable. This article examines three of the most common remote control construction technologies, looking at the specific benefits associated with each. Drones Drones are remotely controlled aircrafts with an onboard global positioning system (GPS), and specialized downward-facing sensors of different types: Red/green/blue (RGB)—These sensors are essentially cameras that detect the same wavelengths as the human eye, taking pictures at certain intervals as a drone flies a mapping mission. The images are processed...

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OSHA Injury Reporting May Go Public in 2022

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 Proposed OSHA Rule In March 2022, OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, published a proposed rule, “Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses,” that changes some of the requirements for the electronic reporting of workplace injuries and illnesses for some employers. The proposed rule would also make such data public. Specifically, OSHA’s intent is to make the data from employers’ annual electronic submissions publicly available on a website after scrubbing individually identifying data, such as the names of the people experiencing a workplace injury or illness and their contact information. Company names, however, would be public. OSHA Injury Reporting Requirements Prior to the Rule Change Prior to the proposed rule change, employers were already required to report injuries and illnesses using Forms 300, 300A, and 301. OSHA injury reporting is done using OSHA Form 300, which is a yearly log of Injuries and Illnesses, where all reportable workplace injuries and illnesses are recorded including: Where and when...

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Off-site Prefabrication in Construction: Newest Trends

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 Off-site Prefabrication Construction? The National Institute of Building Sciences’ Off-Site Construction Council defines off-site prefabrication construction as “the planning, design, fabrication, and assembly of building elements at a location other than their final installed location to support the rapid and efficient construction of a permanent structure.” More simply stated, prefabrication is the process of creating various parts of a building in a factory before assembling them on the structure’s actual site. Those parts could be precast concrete components, roof trusses, or other assemblies. They could also be entire units or modules that fit together like building blocks and are assembled upon arrival at the jobsite and connected to utilities. Many people use the terms “prefabrication” and “modular construction” interchangeably. How Large is the North American Off-site Prefabrication Market? In 2021, the North American off-site construction market was valued at $49,460.1 million. It is projected to increase by 4.9% by 2031, reaching $80,851.3 million. What Is Driving the...

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IKEA Makes $3 Billion Investment in Stores for 2022

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 Changing Business Model: IKEA Investment News IKEA has long been known for its 500,000-square-foot warehouse showrooms located in suburban areas, typically near major population centers, where customers can purchase furniture, housewares, home décor, and maybe enjoy some Swedish meatballs while shopping. But the retail industry has changed dramatically in recent years, and IKEA is changing along with it. Leading some to question IKEA and its new construction investments. IKEA is reinventing itself based on market research into customer lifestyles, how they prefer to shop, and the logistical problems they encounter when shopping for furniture and home goods. The transformation of the company’s retail approach is intended not only to grow the business, but to do so in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way. (Accordingly, IKEA’s famous Swedish meatballs now are available in a meatless version!) New Store Formats IKEA’s online sales increased by more than 73% in 2021, and IKEA’s response in Europe has been to open smaller...

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Biggest 2022 OSHA Fines

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. Construction Surety Bonds and Violations During a construction project, a variety of events might occur that may cause the project to be delayed or cost taxpayers more than originally budgeted. Construction bonds (sometimes known as contractor bonds) protect the finances of everyone involved. To be a great candidate for various surety bonds, you must have a good track record and show you complete projects on time and without risk. One way to do that is to stay up to date with violations and infractions to avoid. Below, we have compiled 2022’s worst OSHA violations to be aware of. Types of OSHA Violations The list below shows the types of violations as of January 15, 2022, for OSHA fines and the maximum penalty amount for each. The penalty amounts are adjusted annually for inflation. Type of Violation/Penalty Serious ($14,502 per violation) Other-Than-Serious ($14,502 per violation for repeat violations; no penalty for a first violation) Posting Requirements ($14,502 per violation for...

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