Technoforum Mindanao 2011 good turnout

PHILIPPINE CONSTRUCTION HIGHLIGHTS TODAY

Philippine Constructors Association, Inc. July 2011 Volume II, Issue 4

Davao City—Technoforum Mindanao 2011 was held coinciding with the 2nd Philcon-

struct Mindanao held at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in Davao City from July 7-9,

2011.

A 3-day series of technical seminars, indus-try forums and presentations, topics covered

by this year’s Technoforum were Alternative

Dispute Resolution, R.A. 9184 and its New Implementing Rules and Regulations, Bridg-

ing of Industry and Academe thru Technol-ogy, Green Building, and Cost Effective Tire

Management.

Philconstruct Mindanao 2011 swamps Bangko Sentral Davao

Davao City— The atrium of Bangko Sentral

ng Pilipinas Davao City was jam-packed with guests and exhibitors from July 7-9 as

the Philippine Constructors Association

(PCA), Inc. and Davao Contractors Associa-tion Center, Inc. (DCACI) held this year’s

Philconstruct Mindanao, the first leg of the 2011 Philconstruct series.

“This is just a sample of what we shall see in

Manila,” said DCACI President Manuel

Gonzalez.

Several industry representatives and key industry players from the Metro flew all the

way to Davao City to grace the event, includ-ing PCAB Chairman Ramon Allado, Con-

struction Industry Authority of the Philip-pines (CIAP) Executive Director Jesus Mo-

showcased their cutting-edge building, con-struction, heating, ventilating, air-

conditioning and refrigerating (HVAC/R) technologies and green building innova-

tions. The event did not only serve as a site of

lavish discounts but cool entertainment as

well, as most of the booths took up their

own publicity stunts and gave away freebies

to become crowd-pullers.

“While last year was a make or break at-tempt, I think this time we have already

crossed the bridge of no return. So expect that every July, we will have Philconstruct

Mindanao,” said Engr. Wilfredo Guerzon, Philconstruct Mindanao 2011 Chairman.

As it catered to the same target market, special seminars on Occupational Safety

and Health Certification as well as the 2nd AMO Course were also incorporated in the

Technoforum.

“Basically, Philconstruct is for the eyes. Exhibits and all that. On the other hand,

Technoforum is for the mind. To give these

people knowledge about the relevant issues concerning the industry where they are in,”

said Technoforum Mindanao 2011 Chair-man Lorenzo Cristobal.

toomull and Philippine Contractors Accredi-tation Board (PCAB) OIC Rene Fajardo .

Prior to the ribbon-cutting ceremony led by

Davao City Councilor Hon. Rachel Zozo-brado, messages were heard from DCACI

President Manuel Gonzalez, DCACI Imme-diate Past President and Philconstruct Min-

danao 2011 Chairman Engr. Wilfredo Guer-

zon, Jr., PCA 1st Vice President Ronaldo Elepaño, Jr., and Philippine Society of Venti-

lating, Airconditioning and Refrigerating Engineers (PSVARE) President Engr. Danilo

DG. Duya.

The city councilor delivered her keynote speech on behalf of Davao City Mayor Zara

Duterte who was unavailable that day. The

closing address was delivered by PCA Presi-dent Levy Espiritu, followed by the ribbon

cutting which officially signalled the kickoff.

A motorcade around the vicinity was also held in the morning of July 7 to herald the

official opening of Philcon Mindanao 2011.

The 2nd Mindanao International Equipment,

Building Materials, Interior & Exterior Prod-ucts Exhibition and Technology Forum was

successfully able to draw hundreds of engi-neers, contractors, architects, developers and

other industry players. More than a hundred booths of the biggest brands in the industry

Davao City Councilor Zozobrado leads the Philcon Mindanao 2011 ribbon cutting cere-

mony with the biggest names in the industry

Hon. Zozobrado, PCA Executive Director Madrasto, and other PCA directors play for

laughs in a major sponsor’s exhibit stunt

Industry players flooded the Technoforum

Mindanao 2011 at the Convention Hall of BSP

PHILIPPINE CONSTRUCTION HIGHLIGHTS TODAY

PCA-DCACI Joint GMM: Mindanao Dev’t Authority Secretary Luwalhati Antonino on

Bringing Industry and Technology towards Sustainable Construction

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Davao City

– Mindanao Development Authority Secre-tary Luwalhati Antonino spoke in the Joint

General Membership Meeting of the mem-bers of the Philippine Constructors Asso-

ciation (PCA), Inc. and the Davao Contrac-tors Association Center, Inc. (DCACI) last

July 8, 2011 at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in Davao City.

Focusing on the theme “Bringing Industry and Technology towards Sustainable Con-

struction,” Sec. Antonino opened her talk with a discussion of the vital role of the

construction industry in boosting both the local and national economy.

From relating the global financial crisis

that hit major developed economies in the world in 2008, Sec. Antonino addressed

the precariousness of the construction sec-tor, it being a component of the develop-

ment equation of the nation.

The mayhem, she said, has left some of the most important national growth indicators

such as tourism and construction drifting off, where from the 112,102 number of

private constructions back in 2009, it flunked by 6.11% to 105,230 in 2010.

Same was said to have happened in Min-danao, which experienced a 2.4 % fall in

private constructions in the same stretch of time.

Sec. Antonino stated that the correspond-

ing value of the said decline in number has escalated by up to 32.7%, in which from

143.53 billion pesos in 2009, the value

shoot up to 190.7 billion in 2010. Accord-ing to her, 80% of all private constructions

made in the said time period was in Luzon, while 12.7% was in Mindanao.

She also made mention of the construction-

related developments that are expected to materialize now that the present admini-

stration is picking up its pace in delivering the services presently needed by the Fili-

pino community. These developments include the improvement in foreign direct

investments and the acceleration of gov-ernment spending to give a lift to the econ-

omy.

“I must note that the administration of President Aquino fully supports our over-

all agenda for Mindanao because this gov-ernment takes great interest in achieving

just and lasting peace,” said Sec. Anton-ino.

She said that while they also subscribe to

the notion of Pres. Aquino that the dy-namic growth and sustainable peace in

Mindanao can be best pursued by the Min-danaoans themselves, the Mindanao De-

velopment Authority which she helms is

resolved to push all medium and long term peace and development programs in Min-

danao stipulated in the Mindanao 2020 Peace and Development Framework Plan.

The major strategies of the framework, as

she said, include the pursuit of economic integration and wealth creation supported

by conducive policy conditions and infra-structure and ICT-enabled developments.

According to her, the long-lived insurrec-

tions happening in the island of Mindanao and the disregard it gets from the central

government are the two main reasons for its perennial downward slope.

Considered a depressed Philippine region,

she said that the investments in infrastruc-ture and human capital earmarked for Min-

danao in the past decades were insufficient to alleviate its ill condition at acceptable

levels. From this, she said that the vicious cycle of poverty that has been besetting the

region for a sustained time period is now in grave demand of a more considerable

budget allocation for development pro-jects.

“With 7 out of 10 provinces having the low-est standard of living in the country found in

Mindanao, increased public spending for health, education and poverty alleviation for

the island is not only logical but morally compelling,” she eloquently said.

As the speaker neared the end of her speech,

she revealed how the long term strategic di-rection that the Authority has set for Min-

danao within the next 20 years keeps abreast of the theme for that particular joint member-

ship meeting, which was Bridging Industry and Technology towards Sustainable Con-

struction. Part of the calculated strategies is to produce graduates in fields that are of

great interest to the demands of the region. As a maiden move, the Authority plans to

promote the construction industry as an im-mense showground for opportunities both

here and abroad.

Towards the end of her speech, she urged all PCA members to continue working hand in

hand to achieve their goals through creating a promising and sound construction sector for

the Philippines.

“There is no doubt that with your determina-tion and commitment, the country‟s construc-

tion industry is ready to...indicate a vibrant economic base dominated by...the related

escalation in...infrastructure construc-tion...May we all be united by our common

aspirations, with determination to forge ahead a strong alliance, so we can advance

the common good of all Mindanawons,” she closed.

Mindanao Development Authority Secretary Luwalhati Antonino at the

PCA-DCACI Joint GMM in Davao City

Speaker Sec. Antonino receives her plaque of appreciation from

PCA Pres. Levy Espiritu

For a complete copy of Sec. Luwalhati

Antonino’s speech, please visit the PCA

website at www.philconstruct.com.

July 2011 Volume II, Issue 4

Chiang Mai, Thailand—Hosted by the Thailand Contractors Association (TCA), the

32nd ASEAN Constructors Federation (ACF) Council Meeting was successfully held last

June 28-30 at the Le Meridien Hotel in Chiang Mai, Thailand with representatives

from ACF-member countries. Associations in attendance presented their individual country

reports which covered their respective econo-mies and current industry situations. Cambo-

dia sent representatives on an Observer status.

The Philippine Constructors Association

(PCA), Inc. delegation was headed by PCA President Levy Espiritu together with ACF

Chairman and PCA Past President Jorge Consunji, ACF Vice Chairman and PCA Past

President Anthony Fernandez, ACF Secre-tary-General and PCA 1st Vice President

Ronaldo Elepaño, Jr., and former ACF Secre-tary-General and incumbent PCA Executive

Director Manolito Madrasto.

The 1st Construction Standard Trade Skills Training (CSTST) Technical Working Group

Meeting held last June 27 was well-attended by representatives from six (6) ACF-member

associations from Indonesia, Malaysia, Phil-

ippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. In the said meeting, the group has agreed to

forge ahead to secure possible funding of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)

and the International Labour Organization (ILO) for the review of the proposed man-

power skills harmonization for the entire ASEAN.

After the council meeting was the Singapore

Contractors Association Limited (SCAL)-China Contractors Association (CHINCA)

Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Signing. Meanwhile, all ACF Council mem-

bers were invited to attend the 8th China-ASEAN Expo and Relevant Forum on Octo-

ber 21-26 in Guangxi, China.

The ceremony was then followed with an executive session on the next steps to be

taken by the ACF after the MOUs signed by different ACF-member associations with

CHINCA.

The 33rd ACF Council Meeting is scheduled to be hosted by the PCA at the Shangri-la

Resort Boracay tentatively this coming De-cember 2011.

PCA attends 32nd ACF

Council Meeting in Thailand

PCA Marivalley, Team Champion of the Davao

PCA Inter-Chapter and Affiliates Golf Tournament

Davao City— There was no stopping the Philippine Constructors Association (PCA), Inc. and its chapters when they all jockeyed for the ultimate golf champ’s position during the PCA Inter-Chapter Golf Tournament last July 6, 2011 at the APO Golf and Country Club—even on a rainy Wednesday. Having teed off in the teeth of the fine-to-drizzly weather were PCA National, PCA MariValley and PCA Davao. For the team play results, PCA MariVal-ley composed of Lito Asturias, Noel Flo-res and Lito Pascual emerged champion with 217 points. Coming in as the 1st runner-up with 221 points was PCA National, with represen-tatives Levy Espiritu, Jun Bonifacio and Tito Manalo, while PCA Davao repre-sented by Ronnel Paclibar, Bong Guerzon and Ludwig Van Ledesma secured the 2nd runner-up position with 229 points. Special Prizes were also awarded to PJ San Pedro for the Longest Drive Hole # 1 and Nearest the Pin Hole # 11 Awards, Bong Guerzon for the Accurate Drive Hole # 1 Award, and to Warrel Demaisip for the Most Exercised Player Award. Ludwig Ledesma emerged as the Overall Gross Champion with 87 points, while Lito Asturias was hailed as the Overall Net Champion with 72 points.

PCA Davao Chapter inducts 22 new members

Davao City—The Davao Contractors Association Center, Inc. (DCACI) took

everyone aback during the PCA-DCACI Joint General Membership Meeting last

July 7, 2011 when DCACI President Manuel Gonzalez inducted a sum of 22

new members all at once.

20 of the newly-inducted members are pigeonholed as regular members, namely:

Javcon Builders, Inc., JLA Construction & Supplies, Joseph & Noah Construction,

Mindanao Construction Services, Renol

Division A Net Champion was Noel Flores with 72 points and the Net R-Up was Lito Pascual with 73. PCA President Levy Espiritu was hailed as the net champion of Division B with 72 points, while Ronnel Paclibar bagged the Net R-Up with 75. For Division C, Dondon Crisologo emerged net champion with 77 points while Jun Sebastian came in as Net R-Up with 83 points. Guest Division Net Champion was Bobby Rasuman with 72 points. Net R-Up was roger Lim with 74 points. The next PCA Inter-Chapter and Affiliates Golf Tournament will come in September, in time with Philconstruct Visayas.

PCA golf enthusiasts line up their clubs at the APO Golf and Country Club during the Inter-

Chapter Golf Tournament in Davao

Engineering Services, LGSJ Construction & Supply, Siljure Construction, Great

Street Construction, RF Camangeg Con-struction, TKS Builders & Supplies, TCH

Builders & Supply, JACJ Construction & Supply, New Design Construction, JKing

Construction, One Engineering Services, Maria Zorina Gamutin Construction, E.

Bien Construction, H.R. Construction, Honexon Builders and Golden Vido Build-

ers.

Two new associate members, the Inden-trade System Corp. and Pacific Paint

(Boysen) Phils. Inc., also took their oaths together with the 20 during the PCA-

DCACI joint GMM.

The growing number of PCA members is held to signal the bolstering alliance of

ethical contractors in the Philippines.

PHILIPPINE CONSTRUCTION HIGHLIGHTS TODAY

The production of the first-ever coffee table book of the Philippine Construction Indus-

try is now on stream by the Philippine Con-structors Association (PCA), Inc. in partner-

ship with the Philippine Overseas Construc-tion Board (POCB).

The novel project estimated to cost P6.1M

was launched during the Industry Night of PHILCONSTRUCT 2010 last November at

the SMX, co-funded by a P2.8M grant from the Export Development Council (EDC) and

a P3.3M grant from the PCA.

The services of premier professional pho-tographers, creative directors and writers

were secured to ensure the production of a world-class coffee table book.

Contemporary artists Philip and Suzanne Es-

cudero have shortlisted a great number of con-struction projects completed by Filipino con-

tractors from around the world. Photo-shoots are currently ongoing while the layout is being

finalized to blend in on the approved story-board.

The Coffee Table Books are expected for issu-

ance at the next Industry Night of the PHIL-CONSTRUCT 2011 at the SMX this coming

November 2011.

DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS

IS AND WHERE?

TIP: It’s a transportation hub way back in 1901. It’s in the middle of the City of

Manila.

PRIZE: Send your answer to the PCA Secretariat and the first correct gets a

nice prize.

PCA, Inc. inducts QBE Insurance as new associate member

Pasig City—Philippine Constructors Association (PCA), Inc. President Levy

Espiritu inducted the QBE Insurance Philippines, Inc. as a new associate

member of the Association last May 31, 2011 at the Joy Nostalg Center

Manila in Pasig City.

The induction of the new member was held in time with the May General

Membership Meeting (GMM) of the Association.

QBE Insurance Philippines, Inc. is an

Australian multinational insurance company and is a key provider of spe-

cialist insurance solutions in the Philip-

pine market, serving both business and professional clients through selected bro-

kers. It was established in the Philippines in 1999 and has been in service to builders and

contractors since then.

Represented by Mr. Allan Quing and Ms. Leilani Trinidad, the company has been

catering to the insurance needs of the con-struction industry. As a newly-inducted

associate member of the PCA, it looks for-ward to offering valuable insights about

insurance and risk management as well as services to the organization’s membership.

Two new members, Wilcon Depot and A.

Rivera Construction, will be inducted dur-ing the July GMM at the Joy Nostalg Center

in Pasig.

REMINDER

MAKE SURE ALL YOUR

SUBCONTRACTORS

ARE DULY LICENSED

BY THE PCAB

PER RA 4566

AND

DULY REGISTERED

WITH THE NEAREST

DOLE OFFICE

PER DOLE D.O. # 18

Construction Industry Coffee Table Book on stream

PCA website goes live

The PCA website (http:// www. philcon-struct. com/) went live and was launched

last July 7, 2011 in Davao City, on the oc-casion of Philconstruct Mindanao 2011 held

at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Davao.

From the previous HTML format, the web-site has been upgraded to CMS format to

facilitate controlled access to all available website materials, better storage and re-

trieval of data, and a much improved com-munication among users.

All PCA members are encouraged to visit

the website from time to time to be brought up-to-date with the latest news about the

industry and the Association, announce-

ments and upcoming events. The website also provides downloadable forms and docu-

ments from different government agencies pertinent to the construction industry.

The PCA Secretariat shall provide a user-

name and password to every PCA member in good standing as there are certain sections in

the website that are accessible to PCA mem-bers but not the general public. As it is 80%

done to date, the website can be fully utilized by the PCA membership by next month.

Members are also encouraged to place adver-

tisements in the website for a minimal fee. For more details on the website, feel free to

contact the PCA secretariat.

QBE Insurance representative takes his oath as a new PCA member with PCA President

Levy Espiritu during the induction

July 2011 Volume II, Issue 4 July 2011 Volume II, Issue 4

PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP

Banco De Oro (BDO) Capital and Invest-ment Corporation President Eduardo

Francisco said in his presentation during the Economic Journalists Association of

the Philippines’ (EJAP) forum held last July 12 that the country’s banking sector

has sufficient resources to finance the Aquino administration’s public-private

partnership (PPP) program.

He said that as of April this year, the col-lective assets of the entire banking system

of the Philippines stand at P7.06 trillion, of which a big chunk are deposits and the

rest are loans.

Over P2 trillion funds that are invested in government securities, he said, can read-

ily be brought into play once an opportu-nity calls for it.

He added, “Assuming all banks lend at

their SBL, Philippine banks could lend a

total of P131 billion to a new group or pro-ject.”

Even if the government triples the amount

to P360 billion, he stressed, the banks can still manage to fund the PPP as this would

only take 20% of the special deposit ac-counts and 13% of the normal deposits.

He also said that on top of the existing 25

percent single borrowers limit (SBL) given to banks, another 25% SBL of their net

worth has been approved by the Central Bank’s policy-making Monetary Board

(MB) for PPP projects.

Under this regulation, the separate SBL approved last November 2010 for PPP pro-

jects has a three-year window.

Calculations tote up the total worth of the 25 proposed infrastructure projects under

the PPP program to reach P520 billion.

According to Francisco, 70% of this aggre-

gate project cost can be funded by the local banks while the remaining 30% can be

accounted as equity from the pockets of the PPP proponents themselves.

If the regulation will be adopted, the P360

billion worth of potential loans from banks can be easily delivered as this amount is

well within the capacity of their combined assets.

“The banks have more than enough liquid-

ity to finance the projects proposed under the PPP,” he added.

The aim of the forum was to discuss how

the growing liquidity of the Philippines’ banking system could help the country

achieve its growth targets for the medium term.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) and the European Cham-

ber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) both expressed their acquiescence

to the deferment of the bidding for the operations and maintenance (O&M) con-

tract of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) 1 and Metro Rail Transit (MRT) 3.

Initially scheduled last July 11, the bidding

was shelved by the Department of Trans-portation and Communications (DOTC) to

give way to the new leadership of the de-partment.

DOTC technical working group on rail-

ways chairman Atty. Hernando Cabrera said that the DOTC was urged by the Con-

gress to allow the new DOTC Chairman Manuel “Mar” Roxas to re-evaluate the

contracts of the two projects.

Roxas was appointed by Pres. Aquino after the resignation of the former DOTC chief.

PCCI President Francis Chua said, “It‟s a

good thing that he will review it. It will be a

good decision to repackage the whole thing

if it will benefit the investor and the con-

sumer.”

ECCP Executive Vice President Henry J.

Schumacher echoed the same stance when

he said in a separate interview, “It is under-

standable to review it. He needs to see that

the PPP will be successful. The last thing

we want is for the first PPP project to fail.”

Both officials said that the deferment of the

contract bidding has not switched off the

interest of any of the initial PPP investors.

Published by the Philippine Constructors Association, Inc. 3rd Floor, Padilla Building

Francisco Ortigas Jr. Road, Ortigas Center, Pasig City 1605

Tel (632) 6312778/6313135 Fax (632)6312788

Email: email@philconstruct.com URL www.philconstruct.com

BDO official: The banking sector has sufficient resources to fund PPP

PCCI and ECCP okay LRT-MRT project review Israelis eye PPP projects

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) is sending a business

delegation to Israel later this year to intro-duce the public-private partnership (PPP)

projects lined up in the Philippines to interested Israeli investors.

This was according to Zvi A. Vapni, out-

going Israeli ambassador in the Philip-pines, who also said that Israel has big

investments in Asia but very few here in the Philippines.

He said that Israel has very limited

knowledge about the scores of business opportunities in the Philippines but he

believes that the PPP could be his na-tion’s gateway in exploring the Philip-

pines.

“Israeli businessmen are closely looking at the PPP projects...The interests would

be in the areas of railways, water, bridges and roads,” said Vapni.

Presently, Israel is also organizing an

official business delegation to be sent here in the Philippines to look for possi-

ble areas of investments.

PHILIPPINE CONSTRUCTION HIGHLIGHTS TODAY

CIAP launches pilot window in Davao

“We started with the PCAB windows be-cause PCAB basically caters to the needs

of contractors. It has many clients. Later on, we said, „why not offer the rest of the

CIAP services too?,” said Rene Fajardo,

PCAB OIC.

With the new service window, the Author-ity commits to cut the normal 90 days

processing time for applications to 10 days, where the regional and the central

offices are given five days each to process

applications.

Motoomull said that the first CIAP win-dow was launched in Davao because of all

the regions in Mindanao, Davao comprises the most number of contractors, which

pegs at 57% of the total pie.

“Whatever we will learn from the opera-tion of this pilot window, we will imple-

ment in our future service windows,” he

said.

The Davao CIAP window is the first of the two that will be opened this year. The next

will be launched in time with Philconstruct

Visayas 2011 in Cebu in September.

“We have plans of instituting CIAP win-dows in all DTI regional offices just like

the PCAB windows, but for now that seems to be a long way away. We‟ll first have it

here in Davao and in Cebu this year, then probably another three or four in Luzon

next year,” said Motoomull.

PCAB conducts 2nd AMO

Orientation Course in Davao Davao City— In time with the Philcon-struct 2011 opening last July 7, 2011 at the

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the announce-ment to decentralize the Construction In-

dustry Authority of the Philippines’ (CIAP) services to its new satellite office

in Davao was officially made by CIAP

Director Jose P. Motoomull.

The pilot service window can now be ac-cessed at the Department of Trade and

Industry (DTI) regional office in Davao and is expected to bring all CIAP services

closer to all contractors based in the South-ern Philippine region, including contrac-

tors licensing and registration, overseas construction registration (OCR), contract

dispute resolutions (CDR), and contractors

performance evaluation system (CPES).

An attached organization of the DTI, CIAP is an umbrella organization that governs

the Philippine Domestic Construction Board (PDCB), Philippine Overseas Con-

struction Board (POCB) and PCAB.

Davao City— Following the first Author-ized Managing Officers (AMO) Seminar held at the PCA Escobar Training Center last June 29, the second AMO seminar was held last July 7, 2011 at the Conference Hall of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Davao City.

Spearheaded by the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB), the seminar was successfully attended by an estimated 135 AMOs from different construction firms in the Southern Philippine region.

In an interview, PCAB Chairman Ramon Allado said that the AMO Orientation Course is intended to let the AMOs know how important their positions are in the industry. This, according to him, is a reac-tion to the series of construction-related accidents especially in Manila of late.

“The basic concept is to make sure that the information that all the AMOs must have is properly disseminated to them, especially concerns on labor standards, safety, how licensing and accreditation work, how pro-curement is done by the government, how disputes are arbitrated, and project man-agement. It‟s basically the intention of the present board to help professionalize the contracting industry,” said the chairman.

The certificate of attendance in the two-day AMO Orientation Course is now a require-ment in the renewal of licenses for the next fiscal year, 2012-2013.

Meanwhile, Chairman Allado warned AMOs who are in the practice of slacking off at some point in the seminar that their certificates will not be released unless they attend 75% of the 16-hour course.

“There were two ways which we devised to make sure that slacking off would be pre-vented. The first one is the roll call, and the other one is the requirement of a picture... Attendance is taken once in the morning and once in the afternoon for both days. The secretariat looks over the attendance sheets to see if the compliance of at least 75-80% attendance is met.”

The next AMO Seminar will be held in Sep-tember, in time with Philconstruct Visayas in Cebu.

INDUSTRY UPDATES

CIAP Director Motoomull announces the de-

centralization of CIAP functions in Davao

DPWH Blue Book under revision Davao City—DPWH Bureau of Research and Standards (BRS) Secretary Judy F.

Sese made a presentation about the DPWH Blue Book Revision last July 8, 2011 at the

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in Davao.

The presentation was actively participated in by contractors, representatives of major

industry stakeholders and some directors and officers of the Philippine Constructors

Association (PCA), Inc.

Sec. Sese discussed the new materials, technologies and methodologies that the

DPWH has incorporated in the book, in-

cluding the new specifications for govern-ment projects.

The PCA Blue Book Committee has

worked with the Philippine Institute of Civil Engineers (PICE) to intensify data

gathering for the revision and collate some feedbacks from their membership. The

BRS is now given 2-3 months for the de-liberation.

As it has always been actively involved in

this endeavour, the PCA has committed to DPWH Sec. Rogelio Singson to finish the

Blue Book until the end of this year.

July 2011 Volume II, Issue 4

PROJECTS IN THE PIPELINE

P1.4-B toll road project for SLEX

The P1.4 billion toll road project for the South Luzon Expressway was recently ap-

proved by the ICC of NEDA. This four-kilometre toll road will be the first govern-

ment project under the PPP. It aims to con-struct the toll road from Daang Hari in Ba-

coor, Cavite to the SLEX.

P1-B Angat Dam Improvement

Maynilad Water Services Inc. and Manila Water Co. have allotted P1B for the enhance-

ment of Angat Dam. Maynilad Chief Operat-ing Officer Herbert Consunji said that the

project will take two years to complete and will contribute an additional 200 MLD

(million liters per day) to Angat. Bidding for

the project will be undertaken this year.

Vista Land housing expansion

Vista land and Lifescapes, Inc. will be part-

nering for a major expansion project in 16 new housing areas around the Philippines.

The expansion is geared towards serving families of overseas Filipino workers (OFW)

in the areas of Ilocos Sur, Ilocos Norte, La Union, Nueva Ecija, Bicol, Batangas, Que-

zon, Bataan, and 8 others.

P600-M Ayala hydro power project

Ayala Corporation is going to enter into a joint venture with Sta. Clara Power Corpora-

tion for the development of some run-of-river hydropower facilities throughout the Philip-

pines. It will infuse P600 M for the project, of which Michigan Power will own 70%

stake.

Panay water system projects

The Department of Agriculture (DA) recently announced it will allocate

P160M for the rehabilitation of the irriga-tion facilities of Panay. The budget will

also cover some water system projects in the province, which the agency plans to

kick off the soonest possible time.

P25-M training centers in Davao

Banco de Oro (BDO) has donated a P3.5M-worth of land to a rural commu-

nity in Davao del Norte. With a total land area of 4,000 sq. m., the donated land is

intended for the construction of skills training centers for rural households in

the area. The project will be done in part-nership with the Center for Agriculture

and Rural Development-Mutually Rein-

forcing Institution (CARD-MRI).

P1.6-B sewage treatment plants

Maynilad Water Services, Inc. will spend

P1.6 billion for 11 sewage treatment plants in the areas of Manila and Quezon

City. The projects are projected to have a total treatment capacity of 57,000 cubic

meters per day of wastewater.

P2.3-B Filinvest mass housing

Filinvest will be investing P2.3 B for 1,734 housing units in Makati. Dubbed as

the Makati Linear, these two 24-storey condominium buildings will cover 7,413

sq. m. of lot in the city. Aside from the Makati Linear, Filinvest is also set to

develop another low-cost subdivision

project in Laguna.

P4.5-B SM Mall in Cebu

A new Sy-owned SM Mall will soon rise

in Seaside City, Cebu in the second quarter of 2014. Covering a gross floor area of

241,600 square meters, the new structure will be the largest SM shopping mall in

Cebu and the fourth largest in the SM Malls group, next to SM North EDSA, SM

Mall of Asia and SM Megamall.

P25-B Aboitiz plant in Davao

A 300-megawatt coal-fired power plant

will be set up by Aboitiz Power Corpora-tion in Davao. Considered as “the biggest

single investment” in Mindanao, the planned power facility will be built on a 52

-hectare property at the boundary of Davao

City and Davao del Sur.

P120-M Meralco plant in Laguna

Meralco president and chief executive

Manuel Pangilinan has recently announced the construction of a 120-150-megawatt

Meralco peaking plant in Laguna. Esti-

mated to cost P120 to P150 million, the construction of the project is to be com-

pleted in the next 8 months. The plant is eyed to be able to manage power rates

downwards.

DMCI Calaca plant expansion

DMCI Power Corporation pushes the first phase of the expansion of its 600-megawatt

coal-fired plant in Batangas. The construc-tion of the first two 150-MW units is al-

ready ongoing and are expected to be inau-gurated sometime this year. The rehabilita-

tion of this US2-2.5-M facility is expected to turn out additional 130MW of electric-

ity.

PHILIPPINE CONSTRUCTION HIGHLIGHTS TODAY

PCA PERSONALITY OF THE

MONTH

While Philconstruct Mindanao 2011

has undeniably turned out to be a roll-

ing success, the Philconstruct Visayas

2011 team headed by Cebu Contractors

Association President Peter Paul Dy now primes itself for the next biggest

expo.

Set to happen on September 1-3, 2011

at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and

Casino, Philconstruct Visayas 2011 is

expected to have in its queue exposi-

tions, activities and seminars that will

benefit all industry players who will

take part in the event. This is where the

next AMO seminar will also be incor-

porated.

“As of now we‟re having meetings and

we‟re gathering heads so we can offer

new Technoforum topics, new technolo-

gies and a better expo for our exhibi-

tors and trade visitors,” said Cebu

Contractors Association President Peter

Paul Dy.

He said that he expects this year to do

better as they are currently pulling out all stops to turn all their preparations

into a much more gainful experience

for all.

Construction safety, according to him,

will be their focus in this year’s

Technoforum.

FILOMENO CASTILLO, JR.

Jun, as he is fondly called, is the current

Treasurer and Membership Committee

head of the Philippine Constructors

Association (PCA), Inc. and has been in

the same committee since 1992.

A BS Civil Engineering graduate of UP

Diliman, he was once a Vice President

to Aegis Construction and is now its

treasurer and one of its directors.

Tall, dark, and sparkling that he is, Jun may superficially seem not to act his

age. But when he talks, that’s the time

he declares his own genius.

Manila— The much-anticipated “Green

Construct 2011: International Sustain-

able Building and Construction Technol-

ogy, Products, Processes, & Services

Exhibition”, to be held coinciding with

the “2nd Sustainable Building Technol-

ogy Conference,” was launched last July

15, 2011 at the SMX Convention Center,

Mall of Asia Complex, Pasay City.

Happening on August 17-19, the expo,

altogether dubbed as “Green Philippines

2011”, is expected to become the biggest

collaboration of the leading trade organi-

zations from four different sectors, in-

cluding the Philippine Constructors Asso-

ciation (PCA), Inc., the Philippine Soci-

ety of Ventilating, Air-Conditioning, and

Refrigerating Engineers Inc. (PSVARE),

the Philippine Center for Environmental

Protection and Sustainable Development

Inc. (PCEPSDI), and the Society of

Manufacturing Engineers (SME)-Manila

Chapter.

Packed with an exhibition of green tech-

nologies, practices and techniques, grac-

ing the second year of the Sustainable

Building Technology Conference will be

a whole bunch of much-celebrated local

and international experts who will tackle

“Sustainable Strategy,” “Solar-Powered Zero Energy Building,” “Life Cycle Cost

Analysis,” “Sustainable Design in the

Philippines,” “Building Information

Modeling,” and “Sustainable Renova-

tions.”

Aimed at spreading the green advocacy

throughout the land, this event will not

only showcase the best sustainable con-

struction products and services but it will

also introduce you to all key organiza-

tions and decision-makers and give you

access to all the major construction pro-

jects in and around the Philippine archi-

pelago.

So prepare as you rub elbows with the

biggest wheels in the industry. Take part

in this green revolution, be educated

and start transforming your business for

the better.

An August must-see: Green Philippines expo

at the SMX

PHILCONSTRUCT

VISAYAS 2011

AUGUST 17-19, 2011 SMX Convention center

ANNOUNCEMENT

The American Concrete Institute

wants to increase PCA members’

productivity and competitiveness and now offers a special member-

ship package to all interested

members. For more details on this matter, visit the PCA website or

contact the PCA secretariat.