Happy Spring! I hope you are enjoying the longer days, better weather, and more normal times! March is not only the season of "March Madness," it is also a busy time in the construction industry as exterior site work starts or resumes in colder parts of the U.S. where snow cover and frozen ground slowed or halted outside progress during colder months. Beacon's team members are currently out in the field at many sites, providing construction management, monitoring and other consulting services for a wide range of projects across the U.S. In this month's E-news, we highlight one rooftop emergency generator project which our team is helping a leading Surety to complete in New York City. This month has also meant the resumption of some in-person industry events...
This Surety Consulting Project Profile highlights a project Beacon is currently working on in New York City. Our team is currently helping a leading Surety with the completion of an emergency generator / backup power project in the lower East Side of Manhattan. The generator is located on the rooftop of a building owned by the Henry Street Settlement, a well-known NYC-based social services organization...
Beacon’s President, Dennis O’Neill participated in “Zurich’s 2022 CE/CLE Extravaganza” on March 9-10, 2022. The event enabled employees to obtain CE/CLE credits through attending multiple virtual presentations given over the course of a few days. The topic of the presentation was the False Claims Act. The federal False Claims Act is sometimes known as “Lincoln’s Law,” because it was enacted during the Civil War to counter widespread fraud by defense contractors supplying the military. Congress passed the False Claims Act on March 2, 1863...
Women in Surety is an organization dedicated to the professional development and career advancement of women working in the surety industry. Founded in 2016, the group has grown to provide a range of services and events for its members, including educational and networking opportunities and a mentoring program...
This article by Beacon Project Engineer Ed Forester examines how New York City plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the decades ahead and what some of the impacts will be on existing buildings and new construction. Because buildings currently account for two-thirds of greenhouse gas emissions in New York City, new regulations focusing on reducing building emissions and improving energy efficiency are prominent parts of NYC's climate action plan...
Mike Yeung joined Beacon Consulting Group in early 2019. Mike provides a wide range of construction consulting services to Beacon's clients by supporting our Project Managers and Engineers based in our NYC, Florida, and Boston offices. Mike has a strong background in finance and accounting. He earned an MBA from Regis University (Finance/Accounting), a B.S. in Finance/International Business from Temple University, and spent 15 years at Standard & Poor's where he worked as a Primary Credit Analyst in the Structured Finance area. Click below for Mike's full bio...
Beacon's team members always enjoy a good St. Patrick's Day Celebration. Below are some photos from this year's festivities on March 17th. Beacon's President Dennis O'Neill celebrated by marching up Fifth Avenue in NYC's St. Patrick's Day Parade as part of the Irish Business Organization (IBO) of New York contingent. Dennis was honored to serve as an aid to the IBO's Grand Marshal, Niall O'Leary. Click below to see some photos from the day ...
Even if you don't have Irish roots, St. Patrick's Day can be a great day to celebrate the end of the winter. Across the U.S., St. Patrick's Day means parades, parties, and "corned beef & cabbage" dinners. Downtown Chicago has one of the more unusual and famous traditions -- Every St. Patrick's Day the local plumbers union dyes part of the Chicago River emerald green. Members of Local 130 use 50+ lbs of vegetable dye mixed with water which then gets sprayed into the river from boats.
Happy "Twosday" (2/22/22). This reminds me that Beacon is entering our 20th year in business in early March (Beacon was launched 03/03/03). Time truly flies, especially when you're busy doing something productive which you have a passion for. We are lucky to be working in an industry where we can see the tangible results of our efforts in terms of successfully completed construction projects. Our team has been keeping particularly busy over the past two years, with construction consulting assignments going on across the country and the launch of our new office in Florida. Thankfully, we seem to be seeing light at the end of the tunnel as far as the pandemic goes (knock on wood): In-person industry meetings are starting to happen again (see Beacon's Calendar of upcoming 2022 events); many states are easing up mask mandates (and other restrictions); and business travel / in-person project meetings are once again becoming the norm rather than the exception in many industries. Click the link below for the full message...
One of the most important consulting services that Beacon provides to our clients is performing Cost-to-Complete (CTC) Analyses for ongoing construction projects. Having a good understanding of where a project stands financially is critically important for all project stakeholders, especially for Surety companies dealing with troubled projects. Developing a high-quality CTC Report for a complex construction project requires skill, experience, and a good methodology. Click below for full article...
