News

Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Greater Tennessee Chapter News & Updates

ABC: Tennessee ranks 12th in nation for construction business climate

WASHINGTON, Dec. 21— Tennessee ranks 12th in state rankings for construction business climate, according to the 2021 Associated Builders and Contractors Merit Shop Scorecard. Tennessee returned to the top tier of the rankings this year based on the state’s continued encouragement of fair and open competition. Rounding out the top five, South Carolina ranked third, Georgia ranked fourth and Wisconsin ranked fifth. Other states to receive an A ranking in 2021 include Arkansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, Indiana, Iowa, and West Virginia. “The resiliency of our outstanding industry has been on full display throughout the year,” said Ben Brubeck, ABC’s vice president of regulatory, labor and state affairs. “From economic and regulatory headwinds to talent shortages, supply chain bottlenecks, high inflation rates and a lingering pandemic, ABC member companies continue to invest in their people and deliver work safely, ethically and profitably. The top states in this year&rsq ... Read the rest of entry »

ABC Greater Tennessee 2021 Year in Review

We are so excited to share the accomplishments of our chapter this year in our annual Year in Review. You can view the 2021 Year in Review at this link. 

ABC Greater Tennessee and Knox County announce Construction Trades Academy

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.— Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs is one step closer to finalizing a major initiative – creating the Skilled Trades Academy and Regional Training Center (START), a training school designed to attract, train, and retain a quality workforce in the construction industry. The Knox County Commission will vote next week on a 5-year lease agreement with John H. Daniel to secure the company’s 16,200-square foot warehouse at 1801 N. Central Ave. Associated Builders and Contractors – Greater Tennessee (ABC – Greater Tennessee), which has a similar and successful academy in Nashville, will run the school. The association, founded in 1971, is a part of 69 state chapters across the country representing 21,000 merit shop construction and construction-related firms. “Knox County is committed to creating opportunities for everyone to thrive,” Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs said. “This academy does that by adva ... Read the rest of entry »

ABC Greater Tennessee announces 2022 Board of Directors

The ABC- Greater Tennessee Chapter is pleased to announce the addition of three new members to the Board of Directors for 2022: Brandt Fye (Hensel Phelps), Brian Hay (SKANSKA), and Jamie Holmes (T.W. Frierson Contractors). In the truest sense of the word, ABC - Greater Tennessee Chapter is a member-run association. Members identify issues critical to merit shop construction and work together to find solutions using the resources of one of the largest construction-related groups in the world.  Eric Pyle (Bell Construction) will serve as Chairman of the 2022 Board of Directors. A full list of 2022 board members can be found here. 

 

Associated Builders & Contractors Announces Excellence in Construction Award Winners

Nashville, Tennessee -  Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Greater Tennessee Chapter yesterday announced the winners of 37 Excellence in Construction Awards during the annual Excellence in Construction Awards celebration held on November 4 in Nashville, TN. Governor Bill Lee, former 1999 ABC Chairman of the Board, was the keynote speaker for the event, and congratulated the hard work of merit shop contractors in Tennessee while emphasizing his dedication towards workforce development in the state. Hensel Phelps received the grand prize of General Contractor Award, Pavement Restorations recieved Subcontractor of the Year, with ECS Limited recieving the Associate Member of the Year Award. John Stallworth, former Chairman, recieved the coveted Rodgers-Bell award for this lifetime of service to the chapter. Hensel Phelps' Brandt Frye took home the 2021 Volunteer of the Year award for his commitment to the chapter in 2021 of growing the Emerging Leaders group, devotion to our Politi ... Read the rest of entry »

ABC Greater Tennessee Announces 2021 Excellence in Construction Awards

Associated Builders and Contractors Greater Tennessee Chapter is pleased to announce our 2021 Excellence in Construction® Awards Winners. 37 projects were awarded, as well as 5 individual awards. 

Annually, the Excellence in Construction® award program honors innovative, top quality construction projects and safety programs. Entries are judged by an independent panel of industry experts who score each project in areas such as complexity, attractiveness, unique challenges overcome, completion time, workmanship, innovation, and safety. Excellence in Construction® awards recognize project contractors, primary architects and engineers, and owners.

We are proud to continue the ABC legacy of leadership, professionalism, safety, and excellence through this competition and beyond. Congratulations to this year’s award recipients!

Project Winners

2021 ABC Greater TN EIC Award Winners

Pictures of the Night

2021 EIC Awards

Individual Awards

   

 

ABC Greater Tennessee announces its 2021 Safety Leaders

On September 23, 2021 the Associated Builders and Contractors of Greater Tennessee recognized ABC members for their best safety practices and participation in our world-class safety management system. Participating ABC member companies measured their safety processes and policies on 24 key components through a detailed questionnaire with the goal of implementing or enhancing safety programs that reduce jobsite incidents. 

See all leaders on our Flickr page at the link below

 

2021 Safety Leaders

ABC Responds to Senate Passage of Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill

WASHINGTON, Aug. 10—Associated Builders and Contractors today released the following statement on the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which passed the U.S. Senate today by a vote of 69 to 30. The bill would provide $550 billion in new infrastructure investments. “This infrastructure package contains the most significant investment in our nation’s infrastructure in a generation and could yield crucial wins for the American people and construction industry,” said Michael Bellaman, ABC president and CEO. “It is promising to see progress made toward modernizing our nation’s roads, bridges, water infrastructure, transit, railways, ports and other critical infrastructure This bipartisan accomplishment is something that has eluded Congress for decades and is proof of the possibilities when lawmakers choose compromise over conflict. “Commonsense provisions in this bill will cut down on unnecessary delays in federal construction projects and help addres ... Read the rest of entry »

Applications for the 21/22 Apprenticeship School Year are open

Applications for the 21/22 School year are now open. If you have interest in applying, please visit http://www.abctennessee.com/Workforce-Development/Apprenticeship-Training-Program for more details. 

ABC Greater Tennessee Names Legislators of the Year

We had a very successful legislative year in 2020’s session. We hired Nathan Ridley to our lobbying team and continued our history of protecting and enhancing the industry. That success is largely due to the relationships with our advocates and legislators.  This year, two members of our legislature stood out in protecting and helping our industry thrive in this state. As a result, we wanted to honor their work and dedication for defending the free enterprise principles of hard work and open competition that we believe in at ABC. The “Legislator of the Year” award is given by ABC of Tennessee to those legislators who go above and beyond on behalf of the Association and the industry at-large.  More than simply getting our bills across the finish line, these individuals have demonstrated their shared belief in our policy initiatives, our core values, and in the important role that the Commercial Construction Industry plays in Tennessee.  They have done an outstanding job ... Read the rest of entry »

Tickets now on sale for 2021 Contractors Showcase

DESCRIPTION

Each Summer, the commercial construction industry gathers together for ABC's Contractor's Showcase. This tradeshow offers ABC contractors and members across the industry a chance to showcase their business and network with a variety of industry representatives. 

Admission:

ABC Member: $50

Guests: $60

$10 More at the Door

Nashville Fairgrounds - Shed 1 
401 Wingrove St 
Nashville, TN 37203 United States

Purchase tickets

Nashville ranks tenth best city for construction workers, more skilled laborers needed

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Despite an improving economy, a new analysis shows construction employment declined in more than 200 metropolitan areas across the country.

But not in Nashville-Davidson County, where the number of jobs is growing. In fact, a new report from IPP Magazine places Nashville in the top ten cities with the highest demand for construction workers.

Recently, the National Association of Realtors said they believe Nashville will become a top 10 market for commercial construction in 2021.

But, this demand for development comes with consequences. Experts say we need to train more people if we want to keep this construction going.

Nashville building permits continue piling in, proof building here is robust.

Read more...

Tennessee construction industry celebrates passage of construction industry worker protections

NASHVILLE, TENN., April 8th. – The state’s construction industry today celebrated the passage of HB 1112/SB 1150 (Rep. Kevin Vaughan/Sen. Jack Johnson), which would protect local workers from overreaches by local governments in drastically changing construction industry standards.  “Too often, local governments get it wrong when it comes to modernizing construction industry standards,” said Associated Builders and Contractors Greater Tennessee President/CEO, Clay Crownover. “This legislation will ultimately protect local workers and businesses by preventing local governments from overreaching beyond state and federal law when it comes to construction industry standards.” This legislation would protect worker’s privacy by making it illegal for local governments to ask for the personnel information of employees, bars the requirement of contractors to abide by safety laws in excess of what is required under federal occup ... Read the rest of entry »

Tennessee construction industry expresses opposition to changes in Metro Construction Industry Standards

NASHVILLE, TENN., March 17th. – The state’s construction industry today expressed opposition to Metro legislation, 2021-676, that would radically change Metro Nashville’s procurement code and construction industry standards, saying the measure is based on non-objective and unsubstantiated data that do not accurately reflect the state of the industry or its record in Nashville and could tilt the balance of the Procurement Board, which plays a major role in awarding Metro contracts, against merit shop contractors and workers.  “This legislation hurts the very people it is intended to help, the workers of Nashville. The legislation invades the privacy of local workers and requires compliance with extreme safety standards that are undefined, do not currently exist, and for which Metro is without authority to promulgate. It will increase construction costs for the city and kill local construction jobs. Safety and fairness in contracts are our members’ numbe ... Read the rest of entry »

Legislative Update: Associated Builders and Contractors of Greater Tennessee Adds to Legislative Advocacy Team

March 4, 2021 - The Associated Builders and Contractors of Greater Tennessee is proud to announce the hiring of Nathan Ridley to assist and eventually lead our Tennessee General Assembly and local government advocacy team. "We are excited to announce the addition of Nathan to our already exceptional state and local lobbying team," said Clay Crownover, ABC Greater Tennessee President/CEO. "Nathan has the necessary experience and contacts to continue to assist us in protecting the rights and interests of merit shop contractors from Middle to East Tennessee for years to come." Nathan serves as Counsel for several trade associations and utility service and financial service providers before the Tennessee General Assembly and Executive Branch and various regulatory boards.  He practices law in the Nashville office of the firm Bradley Arant Boult Cummings, LLP.  He also serves as Secretary for the law firm’s Tennessee political fund.  Before joining the la ... Read the rest of entry »