2023-0309 Meeting

Meeting Summary
Date:	Thursday, March 9th, 2023
Time:	6:30 p.m. Networking   6:45 p.m. Business Mtg/Announcements  7:00 p.m. Technical Presentation
	Please Note:  This is a Live Webinar Technical Presentation
Meeting Location:	MS Teams Virtual Meeting
Program:	Inflation Revisited: Understanding Material and Labor Costs in a Time of Possible Recession.
Speaker:	Alex Carrick, Chief Economist / ConstructConnect
RSVP/Questions:	[Click here] to e-mail.

Technical Program:

Price inflation, labor shortages, and recession fears continue to be key issues for the construction industry as we move into 2023.  We have already observed negative outcomes such as owners rebidding projects when numbers don’t match the budget, broken contracts, and even price gouging. During this presentation, we will explore several methods which firms are using to successfully deal with the economic challenges of 2023.

Speaker:                            Alex Carrick, Chief Economist

Alex Carrick is the Chief Economist at ConstructConnect, a provider of construction project information, data analytics, and preconstruction software for the commercial construction industry.  Alex obtained his undergraduate degree at the University of Western Ontario, his M.A. in Economics from the University of Toronto, and completed coursework for a doctorate at U of T’s Massey College.  Mr. Carrick left the academic world and joined the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction (CISC), a trade association representing steel fabricators, spending 13 years there and eventually becoming their Secretary-Treasurer.  In 1985 an opportunity opened with the company that became ConstructConnect, and he remains there in his current position.

Alex has written thousands of articles and delivered numerous presentations on the world, U.S., and Canadian economic and construction outlooks.  His role as a thought-leader in the construction industry is seen in his thrice-weekly columns: Economy at a Glance, and Economic Nuggets, which appear in the newspapers and on-line platforms of Daily Commercial News and Journal of Commerce.  Mr. Carrick also coordinates with Oxford Economics (London, U.K.) in the preparation of a quarterly econometric “construction starts” forecast.  His capital spending projections form part of the consensus outlook piece showcased by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) twice each year.

 For more than three decades Mr. Carrick has chosen the presenters for CanaData’s Annual Construction Industry Forecasts Conference in Toronto, providing the overview and summary speeches each year for that event.

 Alex has a sideline business, Carrick Publications (found easily on the Web), managed jointly with his wife Donna, which has published nearly 100 anthologies, fiction and non-fiction works by a variety of talented authors.  At various times, Donna and Alex’s three children – Tom, Ted, and Tammy-Li − have all pitched in to help with this family business.

RSVPs must be received on or before 5pm on Wednesday, 08-March-2023.  Your friends and colleagues are always welcome; membership in AACE is not required. If you must cancel your reservation, please inform us at least 24 hours before the meeting.

Click here to RSVP before end of business day Wednesday, 03/08/2023.

Please register by Wednesday 03/08/2023, and an invitation including the Webinar link will be e-mailed to you.  For AACE members who hold professional certifications, Webinar attendance counts toward renewal points as long as online attendance for the entire presentation is verified.