Actually, that’s a lie. I very rarely, if ever, get asked that question. I’m not sure why I lied about that, but most likely because that’s how a post like this would typically start.

Nevertheless, I do think about the question a lot – and that is not a lie. I started thinking about it a little bit more when I lost my job during the Great Recession and I will admit that the reasons were very self-interested. The construction industry was railroaded by the financial collapse in this country and I was reviewing every bit of economic news to try to find some glimmer of hope in a world that was crumbling around us. So what did I do then? Well, the same thing anybody would do who has a laptop, a high speed internet connection, and some serious time on their hands. I started writing a blog called Constructonomics.

At the time, I defined Constructonomics as the study of the effect of the overall economy on the construction industry and how the industry reacts to economic stimulus, growth, and decay. And this is truly what it is.  At the time, the US government was pouring money into public construction projects through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, so it was also a bit of an observation at how the economy reacts to increases in construction spending.

So really, it was like economics but for construction – Constructonomics. Got it?  I guess you could have other industry specific economic studies like healthonomics, or autonomics, but those don’t exactly roll of the tongue as well.  There are a few other cool words created by the infusion of economics like Reaganomics, Obamanomics, and how could we forget, Freakonomics.  I guess if the words Bush or Clinton fused better with the word economics there would be at least three more nifty words for us to throw around.

But Constructonomics is also a phenomenon.  So when you invest in construction work, you get a building or piece of infrastructure, but you also put people to work while improving the world in which we live.  So now we have an improved world (either by adding infrastructure or a new/renovated building) and also some improved pocket books of construction trades people, superintendents, and project managers.  Now, when the construction work is sustainable in nature, you’ve now got a building that is using less energy which saves money along with all the environmental benefits.  There is now a ripple effect going on where economic and environmental benefits stretch beyond the product that was produced for the owner that paid for it.  That’s Constructonomics.

So basically, Constructonomics is much more of an area of study and phenomenon than a…..I don’t know, a cool name for a blog or construction services company or something.  Well, it is a cool name.  But really it’s academic – and that’s no lie.

She knew it six months before the housing bubble popped and the industry laid off a couple of million workers, when she sensed builders moving from new projects to remodeling ones — a sign that activity was ebbing.

And she knows the opposite is happening now, she’s sure of it, has known it for a while: Activity is picking up. Folks are building new things — offices and prisons other non-residential things, mostly — and jobs are almost certain to follow. “We’ve spent the last 18 months prepping for significant growth,” she said last week.

Segerberg is the CEO of Mesa Industries Inc., which sells materials and equipment to construction firms across the country and around the world. She gauges the industry’s health through the orders coming in her door in Cincinnati. In that sense, Segerberg is a critical barometer for the U.S. labor market, which rose (such as it was) and fell over the past 15 years with the fortunes of the construction industry.

The Great Recession took a huge bite out of construction employment, but looking ahead, the industry remains critical to the job market, especially for workers without college degrees. For the foreseeable future, one big reason you’d hire an American worker is to build something here.

The 2000s were a terrible decade for job growth, but they were great for builders. Between 2000 and 2006, at the height of the housing bubble, the country added 900,000 construction jobs; that amounted to one-fifth of all the net jobs created in that time across the economy. But those jobs all vanished during the recession, and then some. The construction industry shed 2.1 million jobs from 2007 to 2010, the equivalent of one-fourth of the nation’s net job losses.

Recently the industry has begun to rebound. The economy has added 500,000 construction jobs in the past four years, and construction spending has increased overall. Private residential and nonresidential building is up from 2010, by more than enough to offset a decline in government construction spending.

Here are our top five secrets to paint perfection when decorating your home:

1. Sand away any flaws

To get the best paint finish around your home, you need to ensure you have a smooth and perfect canvas – whether that’s on the walls or the woodwork. While sandpaper is fine for the smaller rough spots and burrs, it’s recommended to invest in (or hire) a sander or sanding pole to make removing all the flaws on your ceiling and walls as easy as possible. Sand woodwork using a sanding sponge to get into any small nooks and crannies.

2. Prime your walls

Sanding helps get rid of any elevated imperfections on your walls, but you may come across holes and nicks that can be just as detrimental to your paint finish. When this is the case, use a primer. To ensure that these patched spots will not be seen under your top coat, choose a tinted primer that matches your choice of wall covering.
Before the primer stage, make sure that your walls are not greasy. Paint won’t bond to grimy kitchen surfaces or grubby hallways. Use a specialist degreasing formula to completely cut through any filth to give your walls the best chance of good paint adhesion.

3. Use a putty knife on your tape

Removing your masking film after painting and finding that your color has still bled through can be extremely infuriating. To avoid this, make sure you are doing a thorough job of affixing your film or masking tape from the start. You can do this by using a simple putty knife and running it over the top of the tape to ensure a firm seal. Use professional masking tape or film as opposed to everyday masking tape, this often leaves a sticky residue behind, which can be hard to clean off.

4. Keep to one wall at a time

You may be tempted to do all the trims and corners of a room first and go back to fill in the larger expanses of wall afterwards. Don’t! Professional painters will always finish one wall at a time so that brushed and rolled paint is easier to blend together. To keep your paint and rollers from drying out whilst switching between the two styles of painting, simply cover your tray or bucket with a damp towel when not being used.

5. Load then go

Professional painters always started with a loaded brush. This means loading the bottom 1.5 inches of their paint brush with paint, tapping each side of the brush on the paint bucket to remove any heavy drips. What other style of loading is there? Well, most amateur painters load their brush and then drag it along the side of the container to wipe the majority of it off again!

Big construction companies see the region’s transportation roads as the key element in allowing the construction market to remain strong despite the economic downturn. Middle Eastern governments remained firm in the decision to enhance their public facilities so even if Dubai declared a budget deficit in the past, construction activity remained in-demand in other areas such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi. In a survey conducted by the Norton Rose FulBright in 2009, it was revealed that some of the key players in Middle East’s construction industry were optimistic in the region’s construction business. Fifty five percent of the participants believed that the effects of the slump will fade over a year and fully recover by 2010. In addition, 81% of them also thought that building infrastructures will contribute greatly to the recovery of Middle East’s economy during the downturn. It is because of these driving beliefs that the construction industry in the region remained alive. According to the survey, the key players who participated in the study had a combined turnover of US$11.7 billion (AED42.9 billion).

Today, the construction industry in the Middle East remains positive as ever.

According to law firm Pinset Masons, those in the construction business have a positive mindset for the year ahead. This was based on a survey made up of construction contractors, consultants, and industry professionals.

Around 90% of the survey’s participants looked forward to the improvement of Gulf’s construction business. Expectations on Gulf’s development were up by 20% compared to its 2012 counterpart when expectations were only at around 70%.

Even firms outside the survey seemed optimistic about the Middle East’s construction business in 2014. Businesses remain strong in Southern Iraq, evidenced by the opening a strategic base for Unaoil, a major oil and gas services company, in the area last month.

Survey participants also predict that project pipelines will increase by 10%. In addition, 65.3% are firm believers that transportation roads are still the key element for the construction sector’s survival this year.