January 27, 2024
5 Things to Know: Week Ending January 27
One Acuity Brands exec could have an amazing Wednsesday. Plus, guess where the second tallest U.S. building may be built.
Here's a roundup of some of the week's happenings curated to help lighting people stay informed.
1. Three days to go...
Neil Ashe is poised to have a very memorable four-year anniversary as President and CEO of Acuity Brands on Wednesday, January 31.
Wednesday marks a significant milestone for Ashe, as he may qualify for a portion of his long-term executive compensation based on Acuity Brands' stock performance. When Ashe started as CEO, Acuity's shares were priced around $118. The Board of Directors set ambitious growth targets for Ashe, promising rewards if the stock consistently closed above $225 for ten consecutive trading days.
As of Friday, the stock reached $239.10, achieving its seventh consecutive day above the $225 threshold. If this trend continues through Wednesday, January 31, Ashe could exercise options potentially valued at over $11 million.
Coincidentally, this could all culminate on the exact day Ashe achieves full vesting, marking the completion of the 4-year vesting period for this incentive.
2 . Judges reassigned to align Mlazgar lawsuits
In the Upper Midwest, Mlazgar Associates, a lighting agency, filed a new lawsuit earlier this month against Legrand, alleging issues related to the potential shift of certain Legrand brands to JTH Lighting Alliance, a competitor. This lawsuit marks the seventh filed by Mlazgar in recent years and the second targeting a Legrand company. In 2022, Mlazgar initiated legal action against Focal Point, citing unpaid commissions among other grievances.
Due to some similarities between the two cases involving Mlazgar and Legrand entities, the U.S. District Court decided to assign both lawsuits to Judge Nancy E. Brasel and Magistrate Judge Dulce J. Foster.
Inside Lighting is the only lighting industry media to cover the agency’s most recent case against Legrand.
3. Bridge lighting opportunities?
Lighting professionals are increasingly enthusiastic about new bridge projects within their regions, given the opportunities for both roadway lighting and dynamic RGB bridge lighting. Recently, the U.S. government announced a significant investment in infrastructure, allocating $2 billion towards the construction and renovation of four notable bridges, highlighting the growing opportunities in this sector.
Blatnik Bridge: $1.06 billion
Located between Superior, Wisconsin, and Duluth, Minnesota, this bridge replacement will increase capacity, remove weight restrictions that currently cause detours for heavy trucks, and include a new shared-use path for pedestrians and bicyclists.
I-5 Bridge over the Columbia River: $600 million
This project aims to replace the over 100-year-old bridge that links Oregon and Washington. The new bridge will be earthquake-resilient, include safety shoulders and auxiliary lanes, transit improvements, and shared use paths for safe and accessible pedestrian and bicycle traffic.
Sagamore Bridge: $372 million
As one of the Cape Cod Bridges spanning the Cape Cod Canal, this 80-year-old bridge provides essential vehicle access from Cape Cod to the Massachusetts mainland. The replacement will address its current deficiencies.
Hood River White Salmon Bridge: $200 million
The project will replace the existing bridge between Hood River, Oregon, and White Salmon, Washington. The new structure will offer higher clearance, wider lanes, seismic improvements, and a dedicated bicycle and pedestrian pathway, serving as a vital link for freight and emergency services.
4. OKC may be home to the second-tallest building in the U.S.
The Architect's Newspaper is reporting that developer Scot Matteson has revealed plans to build a whopping 1,750-foot supertall building in the middle of Oklahoma City. If built, Matteson’s ambitious Oklahoma City tower would be second only to the 1,776-foot-tall Freedom Tower in Lower Manhattan as the country’s tallest building.
The skyscraper designed by California office AO is mostly residential, fitted with 1,528 units. The current 134-story iteration also features restaurants, shops, and a 480-room Hyatt Dream Hotel, alongside 85 condos. Siemens and Thornton Tomasetti are the project engineers.
5. AIA: Building construction spending to increase 4%
Spending on nonresidential buildings will see a modest 4% increase in 2024, after increasing by more than 20% last year according to The American Institute of Architects’ latest Consensus Construction Forecast.
The pace will slow to just over 1% growth in 2025, a marked difference from the strong performance in 2023. Spending on commercial facilities will be flat this year and next, manufacturing construction will increase almost 10% this year before stabilizing in 2025, and institutional construction will see mid-single-digit gains this year and next.
The Consensus Construction Forecast panelists, a group comprised of the leading construction forecasters from across the country, found there are many factors fueling the projected slowdown:
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Tighter credit conditions continue to put pressure on many regional banks that account for a sizeable share of construction lending.
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Higher construction input costs due to inflation in materials costs and labor in recent years.
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Declines in commercial property values as weak demand continues in many sectors.
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Structural changes in demand, disrupting notoriously cyclical construction industry.
“There are several economic headwinds behind the projected slowdown,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “We already started to see construction starts either slow dramatically or turn negative in virtually all construction sectors in the latter part of 2023 and the weaker conditions are expected to stay into 2025.”
