Average Hourly Wage of Brick and Block Masons, By State

Masonry workers, specifically brick and block masons, have been around for centuries and are one of the construction industries oldest professions.  Before blocks were prefabricated and purchased, masons had to cut the material by hand before placing.  Recently, robotic brick and block placing robots have threatened to take some jobs away from human masons, but that technology is still a long way away from making a huge impact on the profession

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New Technique Developed for Forming Ultra-thin Concrete Roofs

Concrete can adapt to any shape its formwork calls for while it’s being placed.  While it’s POSSIBLE to make intricate designs with the material, it’s not always easy or practical to do so.  Researchers from ETH Zurich have designed a new method of forming and placing an ultra-thin, curved concrete roof system that they plan on installing on a construction project next year.

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The 10 States with Most Workers Killed in Roadway Construction Zones

According to the Workzonesafety.com, nearly half (46%) of all work zone-associated worker fatalities from 2003-2010 were caused by being struck by a vehicle. Surprisingly, only around 2% of those workers were killed by a drunk driver.  From 2003 to 2015 (the last year this data was updated), a total of 1324 work zone fatalities have been recorded, which averages to about 102 per year.

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Chemical Reaction Causes ‘Explosions’ on New Jersey Construction Site

Residents living near a Jersey City, New Jersey construction site were frightened as they watched “explosions” of smoke coming out of holes in the ground. 

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[VIDEO] Watch 80 Year Old Bridge in Brooklyn Implode During Demolition

For almost 80 years, the Old Kosciuszko Bridge connected Brooklyn and Queens in New York.  Much like many other bridges its age, it is being replaced due to capacity issues and deterioration.  When it was completed in 1939, it was built for 10,000 cars per day.  Unfortunately for the people who needed to use that bridge that past few decades, around 180,000 cars used it.

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Bluebeam Introduces Wireless Digital Sensors for Monitoring Construction Jobsites

The immense technological growth the construction industry has seen in the past decade has been a refreshing change, to say the least.  Fax machines, large filing cabinets, and redundant work are slowly becoming a thing of the past. More importantly, software developers are actually paying attention to the construction industry, making our lives collectively easier, while giving us more data to make better decisions. Bluebeam, maker of one of the industry’s favorite construction document software, has recently announced a wireless digital sensor specifically for under construction buildings.

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Construction Worker Run Over By Dump Truck While Using Portable Toilet

Portable toilets are the setting for many pranks around a construction site, but I never thought there could be something worse than just getting stuck in one.  Turns out I was extremely wrong, because a worker in New Orleans was run over by a dump truck while using the port-a-john.

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Average Hourly Wage of Electricians, By State

Electricians are very essential to every single construction project, but it's also one of the most dangerous jobs in the construction industry,  According to OSHA, electrocutions cause almost 9% of all construction related deaths, making it one of the group's Fatal Four. Generally, an electrician in the United States falls under 1 of 3 categories: apprentice, journeyman, and master, but this data compiles all of those levels into one category.  It's also important to note that utility line installers are not included in this category.

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Augmented Reality Tape Measure Smartphone Apps Now Available for iPhones

In July, we shared an article about a new augmented reality app that would allow iPhone and iPad users to use their devices’s camera as a tape measure.  That app, Air Measure, is now available for download after Apple’s iOs 11 release. 

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OSHA’s Most Frequently Cited Violations in 2017

At last week’s National Safety Council Congress & Expo, OSHA’s deputy director of Directorare of Enforcement Programs, Patrick Kapust, announced their 10 most frequesntly cited safety violations for their fiscal year 2017, reports the National Safety Council.

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