66 Gigawatts Under Construction, 95% of It Already Spoken For
JLL’s midyear report puts North American data center absorption at a record 25 GW in H1 2026, with vacancy at 1% and 66 GW under construction.
BlackRock Just Bought Something Contractors Can’t: Two Years of Warning
NABTU, BlackRock and the AI Infrastructure Partnership signed an MOU giving the building trades forward visibility into AIP’s project pipeline.
A Federal Judge Just Upheld Denver’s Gas Appliance Limits, and the Circuit Split Got Wider
A federal judge dismissed a challenge to Denver’s building electrification rules, holding EPCA doesn’t preempt local limits on where gas appliances go.
Maryland Legislators Hit Pause on a Building Code That Dropped the Solar Requirement
A Maryland legislative committee put the state’s proposed building code on hold after climate groups showed it stripped IECC on-site renewable requirements.
Fort Worth, Chicago and Aurora All Moved on Data Centers in the Same 48 Hours
Fort Worth voted to start a 90-day data center moratorium, Chicago signed an executive order and Aurora adopted new rules, all within two days in mid-August.
Bechtel Now Controls the Site of Poland’s First Nuclear Plant, and 2028 Is the Number That Matters
Bechtel took site control of Poland’s first nuclear plant from state developer PEJ as earthwork starts on 740 acres, with first nuclear concrete set for 2028.
Another Independent Rebar Yard Just Became a Branch of a 575-Location Chain
White Cap is acquiring Austin’s Ace Contractors Supply, pulling another independent concrete accessories and rebar distributor into a 575-branch network.
A Guardrail Was There. It Had Been Unbolted.
A 52-year-old carpenter died in a 10-foot fall from a deck in Harbor Springs, Michigan. The employer’s initial report says the railing had been unbolted.
Xylem Is Paying $1.46 Billion for the Pumps That Dewater Your Site
Xylem agreed to buy Cornell Pump and Roper Pump from Indicor for $1.46 billion, consolidating the dewatering and bypass equipment contractors rent every day.
Autodesk Put $2.5 Million Into a Degree Before It Built the Robot Lab
Autodesk gave the University of Florida $1M for an industrialized construction robotics lab, on top of $1.5M that created the degree program feeding it.
592 Silicosis Cases, 65 Lung Transplants, 31 Dead. California May Ban the Material.
A peer-reviewed study counts 592 silicosis cases among California engineered-stone workers, and Cal/OSHA is drafting emergency rules to ban fabrication.
Meta Signed the Building Trades. That’s Three AI Union Deals in Eight Days.
Meta and NABTU announced a skilled trades partnership tying America’s Workforce Academy to union Registered Apprenticeships, days after BlackRock’s AIP did.
North Carolina Just Took ADU Parking Minimums Away From Its Cities
Gov. Stein signed SB 445, requiring every NC city over 50,000 to allow ADUs by right with no parking minimums and no size cap below 800 square feet.
The MTA Wants to Store Subway Platform Heat in Boreholes Until Winter
New York will study the first thermal energy network in a U.S. transit system, capturing 96-degree platform heat at Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall for winter reuse.
Only 41% of Contractors Spot Cost Overruns While They Can Still Fix Them
A CMiC and Dodge study found most U.S. contractors contain overruns to 3-5% but can’t see them coming, with only 22% reaching a decision within hours.
92% of Subcontractors Floated Payroll Last Year Waiting to Get Paid
A new Siteline survey finds 43% of subcontractors wait 90+ days for retainage against 15% of GCs, and 56% missed a mechanic’s lien deadline in two years.
Procore’s Asset Register Goes After the Closeout Binder Dump
Procore shipped Asset Register worldwide, capturing warranties, manuals and as-builts against each installed asset during the job instead of at handover.
Construction Input Prices Are Up 7.1%, and the Damage Is Concentrating
July PPI data puts nonresidential construction input prices up 7.1% year over year, with individual materials hitting multi-year highs as the average holds.