CIRT in conjunction with APCO Worldwide have collaborated on an Op-Ed that focuses on the role of the design / construction community for the nation's recovery from the pandemic and shutdown.
The Op-Ed contends that the design and construction community is a critical industry segment to measure the recovery of the nation. To that end, the opinion piece lays out two essential elements:
(1) The A/E/C industry is a good barometer of the overall economic activity/prosperity given it serves a broad cross section of markets, including private and public sector; [APCO’s Insight Survey indicates that 95 percent of the U.S. public thought it very or somewhat important “for the U.S. to continue to invest in its infrastructure” emerging from the shutdown]; and
(2) The A/E/C industry is labor intensive with good paying jobs and career paths, many not requiring four year college degrees. . . decentralized and scattered across the nation in communities of all sizes and backgrounds. [The same APCO Insight Survey found: 90 percent of Americans agreed “apprenticeships & credentialing programs can lead to good paying jobs and career paths.”]
In addition, the editorial points out that many of the leading industry companies have elevated safety to the highest levels, creating a cultural paradigm shift that enables its managers, employees, and projects to “seamlessly adopt COVID-19 health and safety best practices and protocols.”
[See the Op-Ed and APCO Insight Survey for details].
