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Themed Concepts Announces Play4Change, a Park and Playground Product Line to Benefit Children's Charities09-08-15 | News

Themed Concepts Announces Play4Change, a Park and Playground Product Line to Benefit Children's Charities
Play4Change Hopes to donate $1 million to Three Charities in the Next Five Years

Themed Concepts, founded in 1971, is based in Forest Lake, Minn. Its play equipment, furniture, and decorations adorn thousands of amusement parks, restaurants, hotels, parks and shopping centers.

Nonresidential construction spending for the month of July was at its highest level since April 2008 in year-to-year percentage terms, the Associated Builders and Contractors said.

Citing the U.S. Census Bureau's latest construction spending report, nonresidential spending climbed 0.5 percent from June to July, and 12.7 percent compared to July 2014.

Developers and builders spent a total of $696.1 billion in July, the most in monetary terms since March 2009, the ABC said. This compares to $692.8 billion in June.

"A number of forces are at work and are conspiring to help push nonresidential construction spending higher," Anirban Basu, chief economist for the Associated Builders and Contractors, said. Job growth is robust, he said. This is helping to drive down office and other vacancy rates, and spurring more construction starts.

Recreational and business travel spending have been trending higher, too. This helps support construction in the lodging and amusement categories on a year-to-year basis, Basu added.

The U.S. auto and aerospace industries are expanding, consumers are spending more, and state and local governments seem to be laying out increased sums of money for capital projects.

Key construction materials prices have been declining, and that has also motivated developers to fast track their building projects.

"Among the factors suppressing spending growth are an ongoing lack of coherent federal policy regarding the nation's infrastructure shortfalls and a weak global economy that has limited export growth," Basu said.

But overall, the ABC believes the current upward trend will continue in the months ahead. "For now, the outlook for nonresidential construction spending remains upbeat, as the positives significantly outweigh the negatives," said Basu.

"Trends in aggregate spending tend to lag the broader economy by roughly a year, and the second quarter gross domestic product growth estimate of 3.7 percent is consistent with the notion that the broader economic recovery remains an ongoing one."

Seven of the 16 nonresidential construction sectors increased spending in July on a monthly basis:
• Manufacturing grew 4.8 percent in July, and is up 62.1 percent for the year.
• Power-related construction expanded 2.8 percent for the month, but is down 11.9 percent on an annual basis.
• Offices climbed 1.2 percent in July. This sector is up 26.1 percent year-to-year.
• Conservation and development jumped 11.2 percent for the month. This category has increased 15.7 percent annually.
• Religious facilities went up 5.7 percent in July. It is also up 7.3 percent from a year ago.
• Communications inched 0.1 percent higher for the month. This group has improved 14.2 percent compared to July 2014.
• Sewage and waste disposal climbed 1.6 percent on a monthly basis, and expanded 11.3 percent year-to-year.

Nine nonresidential construction sectors fell in July on a monthly basis:
• Education fell 2.2 percent for the month, but is up 3.6 percent year-to-year.
• Commercial dropped 1.5 percent in July, but is up 5.5 percent on an annual basis.
• Health care declined 0.5 percent for the month, but is up 6.4 percent for the year.
• Lodging lost 0.7 percent in July, but is up 40.3 percent on an annual basis.
• Water supply projects dropped 4.8 percent from June to July, but are up 4.3 percent on an annual basis.
• Highways and streets dipped 0.2 percent for the month, but are up 9.7 percent from a year ago.
• Amusement and recreation fell 5.3 percent on a monthly basis, but is up 34.3 percent from the same time last year.
• Transportation declined 0.2 percent from June to July, but has expanded 7.9 percent on an annual basis.
• Public safety lost 2.8 percent for the month, and is down 4.9 percent annually.

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