Vol. IV, No. 3, April/May 2005
- Early Childhood Facilities Design Institute
- Formaldehyde issues in wood composites and children's furniture
- Noise in daycare centers interferes with infants' language acquisition
- New NAEYC Standards require safety inspection
- Construction costs escalate
- Worldwide universality of play
- Upcoming presentations
- Recent projects
Construction costs escalate
New construction costs are continuing to increase. From January 2004 to February 2005, new construction costs have increased 10.6%, mainly due to material price increases. Whereas materials used to account for 50% of construction costs, materials now represent 55% of total costs.
The largest price increase has been with steel products. Since January 2004, steel mill products have increased in price by 46.2%. Other cost increases in the past 13 months include:
| Gypsum (includes wallboard) | 20.9% |
|---|---|
| Lumber & wood products | 11.4% |
| Millwork | 6.0% |
| Cement | 11.2% |
Generally, new construction costs were increasing less than inflation or more or less in step with it until 2004, when prices starting shooting skyward.
These price increases are sure to have a significant impact on the feasibility
of many new child care and early education projects.
Vol. IV, No. 3, April/May 2005
- Early Childhood Facilities Design Institute
- Formaldehyde issues in wood composites and children's furniture
- Noise in daycare centers interferes with infants' language acquisition
- New NAEYC Standards require safety inspection
- Construction costs escalate
- Worldwide universality of play
- Upcoming presentations
- Recent projects