Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

sponsored by Greater San Antonio Builders Association

2020 Spring Tour of Homes

Burdick Custom Homes at Huntington of Shavano Park215 Wellesley Loop, SA 78231

2020 Spring Tour of Homes

Burdick Custom Homes at Huntington of Shavano Park215 Wellesley Loop, SA 78231

Photo: Burdick Custom Homes

2020 Spring Tour of Homes

Burdick Custom Homes at Huntington of Shavano Park215 Wellesley Loop, SA 78231

2020 Spring Tour of Homes

Burdick Custom Homes at Huntington of Shavano Park215 Wellesley Loop, SA 78231

Texas Contemporary by Burdick Custom Homes in the heart of Huntington Community

Texas Contemporary on a beautiful 1 acre, green belt lot in the heart of Shavano Park. 4 Bedrooms, 4.5 Baths, 3-Car Split Garage. Study could be 5th bedroom with optional bath, Game Room with wet bar, 17'x12' Flex Space/Workshop. Large Covered Patio with outdoor kitchen and electric retractable bug screens is perfect for a relaxing evening or entertaining friends. Backyard oasis is nestled among mature trees and offers privacy for a dip in the Keith Zars designed pool. Est Completion: Aug 2020 Approx. 4,904 sq ft.

For more information contactTracy Harris | 210-497-2200

For nearly four decades Burdick has established a history of building timeless and stunning luxury custom homes in the finest communities in San Antonio, Texas. Marrying the natural attributes of each home site with your personal vision and budgetary goals, we consider all aspects of not only of your custom home, but of your entire site plan, short term and long term goals and objectives. As an award winning San Antonio custom home builder we believe in limiting our build area and how far away we will build a custom home. This proximity guarantees our promise of more personalized attention to you, more time and supervision dedicated to your custom home, and to the subcontractors building your home that help us make your dream a reality. Just an overall better way of building! For more info: Burdick Custom Homes

Related:Burdick Custom Homes in Smithson Ridge with STUNNING Hill Country Views

Spring Tour of Homes hosted by the Greater San Antonio Builders Associationand presented in partnership withCPS EnergyandKeith Zars Pools. The Spring Tour of Homes features approximately 60 homes, 26 builders and 11 beautiful communities. Explore participating communities in San Antonio, Boerne, New Braunfels, and south of downtown.

The Spring Tour of Homes kicks off May 18 and runs through May 31. Enter for a chance to win a custom pool package from Keith Zars Pools valued at $50,000 (restrictions apply) during the Spring Tour of Homes. Visit a home on the tour to enter orsabuilders.comfor more details.

2020 Spring Tour Of Homes:

Open House Hours:

Saturday, May 23rd 10am to 5pm

Sunday, May 24th 12:00 Noon to 5:00pm

Monday, May 25th 12:00 Noon to 5:00pm (Memorial Day)

Saturday, May 30th 10am to 5pm

Sunday, May 31st 12:00 Noon to 5pm

Editors Note: This content is made possible by Greater San Antonio Builders Association and Burdick Custom Homes . It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of The San Antonio Express-News' or mySanAntonio.com's editorial staff. Learn more about our advertising products at http://www.hearstmediasanantonio.com.

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Texas Contemporary by Burdick Custom Homes in the heart of Huntington Community - mySA

TribLIVE's Daily and Weekly email newsletters deliver the news you want and information you need, right to your inbox.

About an hour ago

Bridgeville

Housing & Urban Development sold property at 811 Bower Hill Road to MPNDP Investments LLC for $82,000.

Thomas Leadbitter sold property at 676 Elizabeth St. to Alexandra Long for $167,500.

Daniel McIlvaine sold property at 625 Elm St. to Clay William and Allison Elizabeth Owings for $270,000.

Estate of Elio Dreon sold property at Lucy St. to Guy and Elizabeth Chenoweth Bellaver for $22,000.

Brian Vukotich sold property at 1262 Union St. to K & L Estates LLC for $65,001.

Carnegie

William Blankenship trustee sold property at 7 Charter Oak Drive to Mark McCall for $278,180.

Erin DeLuco sold property at 999 Forsythe Road to Kevin Petrella for $176,000.

Lucia Tavoletti sold property at 434 Justus St. to Marlex Properties LLC for $40,976.

Alex Rosenblatt sold property at 153 Mountain Drive to Bryan Boyle and Hunter Semple for $199,000.

Kenneth Bush sold property at 61 Swallow Hill Road to Sam Elison and Maha Alahmad for $247,000.

Crafton

Kevin Emehizer sold property at 17 Bradford Ave. to Charles Joseph and Amanda Louise Leonard for $242,000.

Housing & Urban Development sold property at 12 Johnston St. to Lydia Ann Williams for $76,612.

Janet Walther sold property at 3 Stanwood St. to Stanwood Trust for $37,000.

Green Tree

James Giacomini sold property at 1041 Greenlawn Drive to Lisa Hadar for $171,000.

Duane Zaborowski sold property at 1330 Spreading Oak Drive to Leah Koval for $279,000.

Pennsbury Village

Carol Lynn Caliendo sold property at 1336 Pennsbury Blvd. to Tam Tran for $135,000.

Robinson

Charles Fleck sold property at 4214 Campbells Run Road to Suehr Real Estate Inc. for $665,000.

Estate Home Builders Inc. sold property at 47 Forest Grove Road to Alyssa Sinicrope for $81,000.

Edmund Berckmiller sold property at 30 Francis Drive to Joseph Bickus III and Melissa Bickus for $258,500.

Thomas Gettemy sold property at 1411 Iroquois Drive to Kevin and Emily Cowey for $172,000.

Sharon Ganaway sold property at N Petrie Road to Chris Tuszynski for $7,000.

Estate of William Presutti sold property at 16 Phillips Ln to Randall and Laurie Priddy for $155,000.

Estate of Dorothy Leone sold property at 1310 Silver Ln to Benjamin Grilli for $210,000.

Mark Hilty sold property at 674 Woodcrest Drive to Kayla Gioia for $185,000.

Rosslyn Farms

Brandon Bergstedt sold property at 107 Edgecliff Road to Jason Todd and Kelly Patricia Lewis for $470,000.

Scott

Sadie L Nickolas Pizzuto sold property at 1500 Cochran Road Apt 702 to George and F Louise Pitcher for $205,000.

William Souders sold property at 2106 Meadow Ln to Taylor Infante for $178,000.

Joseph Healy estate trustee sold property at 1528 Orchardview Drive to Matthew and Thomas Gillespie for $136,500.

Estate of Leslie Grand Jr. sold property at 329 Rockhill Road to Shane and Sarah Wigton for $159,900.

Jenna Ann Hoover sold property at 144 Ryan Drive to Ralph McConnell and Diane Berkebile for $164,900.

South Fayette

Infinity Custom Homes L.P. sold property at 1571 Celebration Cir to Martin C McElroy Jr. and Haylee McElroy for $105,000.

George Goff III sold property at 1054 Ryeland Ct to Chandrajitsinh Parmar for $162,000.

Upper St. Clair

Michael Barbarita sold property at 120 Brookside Blvd. to Barbara Andrews for $220,000.

Lauren Wylie sold property at 533 Clair Drive to Blake Miller and Holly Lyons for $278,000.

Timothy Joyce sold property at 2345 Harrow Road to Zachary and Jessica Fass for $320,000.

James Balsarini sold property at 1370 Langport Drive to Mingming Shi and Yuting Xue for $312,000.

Gunther Mark trustee sold property at 21 Locust Ln to Dyonisius Dedi Utomo for $188,000.

Angelo John Greco sold property at 421 Manordale Road to Timothy John and Heather Leister for $345,000.

Paul Burke sold property at 246 Orr Road to Ryan Matthew and Rochelle Wynne for $525,000.

J. William Richardson sold property at 3323 Ponoka Road to Brett and Megan Pitcairn for $1,100,000.

Ardell Eiman sold property at 1687 Scarlett Drive to Amit and Sheena Bhargava for $885,000.

Jeffrey Miller sold property at 2652 Thorntree Drive to Mary Louise Marinelli for $239,424.

Real estate transactions provided by RealSTATs. Contact RealSTATs at 412-381-3880 or visit http://www.RealSTATs.net.

Categories:Carnegie Signal Item | Local

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The rest is here:
Signal Item area real estate for the week of May 10 - TribLIVE

Sponsored by Greater San Antonio Builders Association

2020 Spring Tour of Homes

Casadomaine Custom Homes at Vintage Oaks1194 Powder Ridge, New Braunfels, TX 78132

2020 Spring Tour of Homes

Casadomaine Custom Homes at Vintage Oaks1194 Powder Ridge, New Braunfels, TX 78132

Photo: Casadomaine Custom Homes

2020 Spring Tour of Homes

Casadomaine Custom Homes at Vintage Oaks1194 Powder Ridge, New Braunfels, TX 78132

2020 Spring Tour of Homes

Casadomaine Custom Homes at Vintage Oaks1194 Powder Ridge, New Braunfels, TX 78132

Casadomaine Custom Homes located in the brand new section of Vintage Oaks!

Brand new, Open & Current Floorplan with all of the extras you would expect to find in a Casadomaine Home. This home is located in the brand new section of the highly sought after community of Vintage Oaks! Feast your eyes on the majestic, Hill Country wooded 1-acre lot with it's own dry creek as you sit around the amazing Firepit making s'mores with your family! 11'-15' ceilings are throughout this 1-story w/gorgeous details in every corner. Imagine relaxing in the private Master Retreat complete w/soaking tub and multi-head shower. Also, don't miss the opportunity to see one of our most favorite features; The Dog Shower in the Utility Room! Contact Stephanie Murphy at 210-665-3777

Casadomaine Custom Homes is a full service design/build custom home building company. Each person at Casadomaine Custom Homes, including the owner, is personally involved in helping you realize your dream of custom home ownership. Our goal is that you have the best and most rewarding home building experience possible. We achieve these results by, first, listening to our clients needs, second, taking the time to work through the details of the plans, specifications and decorative selects with our clients while maintaining a focus on the budget, third, by effectively communicating with our clients and our trades during the construction period, and finally, responding to any needs a client may have after their home is complete. Click here for more info: Casadomaine Custom Homes

Related:Casadomaine Custom Homes is truley one of a kind!

Spring Tour of Homes hosted by the Greater San Antonio Builders Associationand presented in partnership withCPS EnergyandKeith Zars Pools. The Spring Tour of Homes features approximately 60 homes, 26 builders and 11 beautiful communities. Explore participating communities in San Antonio, Boerne, New Braunfels, and south of downtown.

The Spring Tour of Homes kicks off May 18 and runs through May 31. Enter for a chance to win a custom pool package from Keith Zars Pools valued at $50,000 (restrictions apply) during the Spring Tour of Homes. Visit a home on the tour to enter orsabuilders.comfor more details.

2020 Spring Tour Of Homes:

Open House Hours:

Saturday, May 23rd 10am to 5pm

Sunday, May 24th 12:00 Noon to 5:00pm

Monday, May 25th 12:00 Noon to 5:00pm (Memorial Day)

Saturday, May 30th 10am to 5pm

Sunday, May 31st 12:00 Noon to 5pm

Editors Note: This content is made possible by Greater San Antonio Builders Association and Casadomaine Custom Homes. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of The San Antonio Express-News' or mySanAntonio.com's editorial staff. Learn more about our advertising products at http://www.hearstmediasanantonio.com.

Read more from the original source:
Casadomaine Custom Homes located in the brand new section of Vintage Oaks! - mySanAntonio.com

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Greg Griffin is likely the only race car driver whose heritage features an Italian grandfather who owned 18 Ferraris including one used as a farm tractor by famed artist Andrew Wyatt.

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The owner and president of Griffin Builders in Naples, Florida, Griffin has been a custom home builder for nearly 20 years. But hes been around the supercars for as long as he can remember.

Co-hosts Bruce Aldrich and James Raia interview Griffin in Episode #131 of The Weekly Driver Podcast.

After a two-week hiatus during the early stages of the coronavirus, Bruce and I resumed our weekly podcast with practicing social distancing from the backyard of the home Bruce share with his wife and Doberman Pinscher , Indy.

Griffin discusses growing up Ferraris and he discusses how his passion for the vehicles began. He also talks about the intricacies of driving, his dislike of iRacing and several other topics.

Ferraris in the 1970s werent nice cars, they were like little Fiats, recalls Griffin, 51. My grandfather thought they were nice cars but they werent as expensive as they are today. He bought one from Wyatt. He was using it on his farm because of its powerful engine.

Griffin grew up cleaning the family collection and helping with maintenance. He remembers people saying how fast Ferraris were but he wondered why no one was taking them on tracks. Eventually, Griffin did. Its his passion and a metaphor for his life.

Enzo Ferrari (the founder of Ferrari) always said, The cars are better than the drivers. The drivers need to learn to drive these cars, Griffin says. So I became fascinated with improving myself as a driver and trying to live up to the performance of the car.

When you take a Ferrari on a track, its just a different animal. Its just a different experience. You have no idea a car you go stoplight to spotlight to pick up groceries with is such as capable machine on the track. I need to improve my driving skills and that what I set put to do.

Griffin has been tracking since the mid-1990s and started competitive racing 15 years ago. He owns a Ferrari 458 Challenge. Like others, his interest piqued in the mid-1980s when the television show Miami Vice debuted. The co-lead detective played by Don Johnson drove a black 1972 Ferrari 365 GTS/4 Daytona.

I am a pretty hardcore amateur, Griffin says. We do really good amateur racing but on a budget.

Although motorsports schedules have changed with the coronavirus pandemic, Griffin has several competitions planned later this year, including the Classic 24-Hour at Daytona International Speedway in November and 12-Hour Classic at Sebring International Raceway in December.

One thing they quickly teach you is to look where you are going, not where you dont want to go. If you are going around a corner and youre looking at the wall, you are going to hit the wall. You always look where you want to go.

I know its a silly thing, but a lot of racing analogies go hand-in-hand with life. Its a little sentimental, but its true. Life is racing. It really is. Its the same thing. I like the challenge.

The Weekly Driver Podcast encourages and appreciates feedback from our listeners. Please forward episode links to family, friends and colleagues. And you are welcome to repost links from the podcast to your social media accounts.

Support our podcast by shopping on Amazon.com.

Please send comments and suggestions for new episodes to James Raia via email: james@jamesraia.com.

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#131, Greg Griffin races a Ferrari, builds Florida homes - The Weekly Driver

NuVista Homes earned an Avid Gold Award for Production Builder, for the first time.Supplied / Postmedia

The winners in the 17th Annual Avid Awards were recently announced by Avid Ratings Canada with nine Alberta home builders scoring in the top 25 per cent of customer service satisfaction surveys.

The winners were based on customer feedback surveys conducted from January 2019 to December 2019. Customers were asked to evaluate their home buying experience from first contact with the builder to 90 days post-possession.

TheAvid Awards are regarded as a trusted benchmark of customer service performance in the industry.

The Avid Diamond Awardisa national awardpresented to builders with thehighestranking and this year,went tobuildersin Ontario and British Columbia.

The Avid Gold Awards is a provincial award for builders who score in the top 10 per cent of customer surveys. Alberta winners are NuVista Homes for the Production Builder category, Calgarys Crystal Creek Homes for Small Volume Builder and Edmontons Five Star Homes for Custom Builder.

Its the first Gold award for NuVista.

NuVista has a 20-plus year history of taking customer satisfaction seriously, says vice-president Mike Plumton. We learn a lot from surveying our homeowners, and we are always improving from listening to their feedback.

This is the second Avid Gold award for Crystal Creek. Lindsay McGregor, sales manager and vice-president of business development, says the award is a result of making customer service a top priority.

Consistent and transparent weekly communication with our customers keeps them part of the process. We pride ourselves on having an exemplary team and winning this award is a reflection of their dedication, she says.

TheAvid Benchmark Award,for builders with scores in the top 25 per cent of surveys, went toAugusta Fine Homes Calgary, Brookfield Residential Calgary, Bucci DevelopmentsAlberta, JaymanBuilt in Calgary and Edmonton, Mattamy Homes Alberta and Prominent Homes in Calgary.

Brookfield got the nod for both single and multi-family homes. Chris Richer, vice-president of Calgary homes, says the award speaks to Brookfields customer experience initiatives.

Our goal is to create customers for life, he says.Its an incredible feeling to be recognized for our hard work and dedication.

Bucci Developments was the other multi-family builder to receive a Benchmark award.

In a time when peoples homes are more relevant and important to them than ever, knowing that our customers are happy with their spaces and with the experiences they have really means a lot to the whole company, says Bucci vice-president Mike Bucci.

Its the fourth consecutiveBenchmark Award for Mattamy, something that Christine Turner, vice-president of customer engagement, attributes to high calibre staff who care about their work and homeowners.

This year, three of our team members in Calgary also received well-deserved service awards. Its nice to know that year after year, our homeowners are happy with the level of service we are providing.

Its the first Avid Award forProminent Homes,a recognition that general managerPal Shergillsays the company is excited about, especially right now.

This award is reflective of the hard work of our staff, our team and trade suppliers. Its positive not only for our staff internally, but also to give some assurance to our customers, he says.

Read more from the original source:
Avid Awards recognize customers' satisfaction with the work of their new home builders - The Crag and Canyon

This Content is made possible by our Sponsor; it is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff.

Operating a business and managing staff while adhering to COVID-19 restrictions has presented many unexpected challenges for business owners. That is especially true in the construction industry, where newly-implemented site procedures have less to do with construction practices and more to do with meeting pandemic compliance regulations.

Its taking a lot more of the site time to simply manage the health protocols, said David Brix, president of Terra View Homes in Guelph. For example, we had to replace all the porta-potties with units that had running water in them. Were also sterilizing them four times a day. Weve got wash stations in garages hooked up from inside the house. Weve been wiping down all the potentially touched surfaces like doorknobs in the home and spacing out time between viewings of our model homeso we can adequately sanitize. Clearly, we have to maintain personal distancing as best we can which has limited the number of trades that can be in a house at any one time. Its compromising our schedules and pushing closings off.

Terra View Custom Homes was quick to implement the suggested safety measures to protect a workforce tasked with meeting construction schedules for new homebuyers. That meant adhering to personal distancing on the job and reducing crew, distributing sanitizer and gloves, regularly checking the mental and physical health of workers and requiring all tradespeople to check in upon entry to monitor potential exposure.

As a result, Terra View has received glowing reviews from the Ministry of Labour and Safety Services in Ontario for exceeding minimum standards. Even with those measures in place, however, Brix says Terra View Homes is running into the same labour force problems encountered by other industries.

Thankfully were still able to work, said Brix. But we also have less of a labour force then weve had before. Some are in self-quarantine. There are also government incentives for people to stay safe at home and receive assistance.

Buyers are looking for confirmation from us as to when we can complete their homes. Its become a moving target. We dont know what next week will be like let alone three months from now. The best I can tell people is where we are in our schedule right now and what the projected closing date will be.

Despite the pandemic, Brix says hes yet to see any real downward pressure on the market, suggesting it hasnt been long enough for people to drift into panic mode. As a result, Terra View Homes continues to offer prospective homeowners the opportunity to book individual showings that adhere to company guidelines. That means Terra View will arrange for a safe, contactless and private self-guided tour of their model homes, each of which is thoroughly sanitized before and after a showing.

To arrange a showing, call Shelley at 519-249-9356 or email shelley@terra-view.com.

This Content is made possible by our Sponsor; it is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff.

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Homebuilders and COVID:19 - How this local builder is addressing construction and public safety - GuelphToday

SAN FRANCISCO, May 7, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The global architectural lighting marketsize is expected to reach USD 12.2 billion by 2027, expanding at a CAGR of 6.1% over the forecast period, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to witness significant growth owing to rising demand for aesthetic lights for decorating homes and commercial spaces such as offices, malls, shops, restaurants, and hotels. Furthermore, the transition of lighting bulbs from fluorescent to LEDs provides flexibility to a lighting designer in creating a variety of lighting fixtures for commercial and residential building. This, in turn, is accelerating the adoption of architectural lights among interior designers. The architectural lights also help to highlight each corner and space of a large room, such as museum, movie theater, restaurant, and office by accentuating the aesthetics of interior and exterior of the building. This, in turn, is driving the market over the forecast period.

Key suggestions from the report:

Read 140 page research report with ToC on "Architectural Lighting Market Size, Share and Trends Analysis Report By Light Type (LED, HID), By Application Area, By End User (Residential, Commercial), By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2020 - 2027" at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/architectural-lighting-market

The rapidly growing construction of the commercial building and residential building owing to urbanization and globalization across developing countries such as Brazil, India, China, and South Africa, is one of the major contributing factors boosting the demand for architectural lighting. Growing investment in construction projects at smart cities and Special Economic Zone (SEZ), Free Trade Zone (FTZ), and Export Processing Zone (EPZ) are further expected to increase demand for outdoor as well as an indoor lights. Moreover, smart city projects are providing an impetus to the growing demand for technology-enabled architectural lighting solutions, thereby driving the growth of the market.

The lighting industry has evolved, which has shaped the customer perception of using light for decorative purposes. Moreover, a well-lit environment contributes significantly towards improving the safety and security of the environment. The introduction of LEDs further strengthened the designing technique of lighting fixtures and lamps, helping interior designers to provide an array of lighting solutions for commercial and residential spaces. In addition, the introduction of OLED lights has further augmented the market potential owing to benefits such as a lesser number of components as compared to LED fixtures, lightweight, and thin structure. However, the high cost of OLED lights coupled with issues regarding efficacy and life expectancy at higher luminance levels is anticipated to hamper the market.

Grand View Research has segmented the global architectural lighting market on the basis of light type, application area, end user, and region.

Find more research reports on Electronic Devices Industry, by Grand View Research:

Gain access to Grand View Compass,our BI enabled intuitive market research database of 10,000+ reports

About Grand View Research

Grand View Research, U.S.-based market research and consulting company, provides syndicated as well as customized research reports and consulting services. Registered in California and headquartered in San Francisco, the company comprises over 425 analysts and consultants, adding more than 1200 market research reports to its vast database each year. These reports offer in-depth analysis on 46 industries across 25 major countries worldwide. With the help of an interactive market intelligence platform, Grand View Research helps Fortune 500 companies and renowned academic institutes understand the global and regional business environment and gauge the opportunities that lie ahead.

Contact:Sherry JamesCorporate Sales Specialist, USAGrand View Research, Inc.Phone: +1-415-349-0058Toll Free: 1-888-202-9519Email: sales@grandviewresearch.comWeb: https://www.grandviewresearch.comFollow Us: LinkedIn | Twitter

View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/architectural-lighting-market-size-worth-12-2-billion-by-2027--cagr-6-1-grand-view-research-inc-301054602.html

SOURCE Grand View Research, Inc.

See more here:
Architectural Lighting Market Size Worth $12.2 Billion by 2027 | CAGR: 6.1%: Grand View Research, Inc. - Benzinga

This is a current status report on a number of key items, including several changes since our April 30, 2020 update. We will continue to update this list, which may change as new information becomes available.

State and City Government General

With limited exceptions, all Philadelphia government buildings are closed to the public, and all non-essential government operations are suspended.

Pursuant to a March 19 order, updated on March 24, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf ordered all non-life sustaining businesses in Pennsylvania to close their physical locations and to remain closed until further notice. The list of life sustaining and non-life sustaining businesses is available here. These non-life sustaining businesses will be allowed to open on a phased, regional basis beginning May 8. Certain construction related businesses, however, were permitted to reopen beginning May 1, as described in the Governors guidance. More information about the Governors phased approach can be found here.

Until businesses are allowed to reopen, state agencies and local officials have been instructed to take enforcement actions against all non-life sustaining businesses that are not compliant. These enforcement actions include citations, fines, license suspensions, or criminal charges, along with the forfeiture of any applicable disaster relief, and the termination of State or grant funding, including Redevelopment Assistance Capital Project funding.

In response to the Governors order, the Mayor of Philadelphia issued a City order, available here. The City order prohibits the operation of non-essential businesses and defines the terms essential and non-essential. The order also states that businesses performing Essential Governmental Functions need not obtain an exemption from the State to continue work. On April 29, the Mayor issued a subsequent Executive Order allowing for the resumption of construction throughout Philadelphia for projects with a building permit issued on or before March 20. Construction sites permitted to resume construction must practice social distancing and prioritize the health and safety of their workers, as described in the Mayors April 29, 2020 Executive Order. Construction requirements are discussed in greater detail below.

Public Meetings

Although some previously scheduled Philadelphia public hearings remain postponed, including meetings of the Zoning Board of Adjustment and Civic Design Review Committee, several agencies have begun to resume meetings virtually, such as the Art Commission, Planning Commission, and Historical Commission. On April 20 Governor Wolf signed into law Act 15, which allows public meetings and hearings to take place virtually.

Under Act 15, local agencies may conduct public meetings or hearings through an authorized telecommunications device that allows, at a minimum, audio communication between individuals. The local agency must notify the public of the proceeding and allow for public participation to the extent practicable, with questions or comments submitted via e-mail or postal mail.

Notably, Act 15 does not require local agencies to conduct virtual meetings, and municipalities retain their discretion to proceed with such meetings. If an applicant submits a request for a meeting and an agency does proceed, the applicant and parties receiving notice of the proceeding are deemed to have waived any challenge to the proceeding under laws governing notice or participation in the meeting. In Philadelphia, it is not clear if Act 15 covers meetings convened by Registered Community Organizations (RCOs), which are required under the Philadelphia Code to hold public meetings as part of the Civic Design Review and Zoning Board of Adjustment processes. The current RCO meeting requirement is holding up many midsize to large projects in Philadelphia, even those that are as-of-right under the Philadelphia Zoning Code.

Tolling of Deadlines

Act 15 also hits the pause button on municipal approvals, tollingfor a 30 day periodthe number of days otherwise provided by law to satisfy statutory time limits. Specifically, time limits for reviews, hearings and decisions are suspended as of the date of the COVID-19 emergency declaration, or as of the date an application is received during the emergency. Time limits will resume 30 days after the effective date of Act 15. This suspension of deadlines applies to the expirations of zoning and building permits, as well as the deadlines for municipal agencies to act on applications before they are automatically deemed to have been approved.

Lastly, due to the COVID-19 emergency, the City has also suspended the deadlines for all pending and incoming Right-To-Know requests until normal operations resume. Urgent Right-To-Know inquiries may be directed to Feige Grundman at feige.grundman@phila.gov. The inquiry should include an explanation detailing the urgent need for the information and a request that the relevant department, agency or office continue to review the inquiry during the period of official emergency declaration.

Construction

Pursuant to the Governors order, all construction and construction-related businesses in Pennsylvania were required to shut down their physical locations until further notice. Starting May 1, construction-related businesses were allowed to reopen in accordance with Governor Wolfs orders. Upon restarting, businesses must adhere to safety guidelines issued by Pennsylvanias Secretary of Health and the Centers for Disease Control. Construction in Philadelphia must adhere to the additional guidance issued by the Mayor on April 29 which is briefly summarized below. More information about the restart of construction can be found here, and the Mayors Executive Order regarding construction can be found here.

Notably, the Mayors Executive Order establishes more stringent controls on the Governors statewide guidance. Unlike the Governors guidance, the Executive Order only authorizes construction for projects with a building or demolition permit issued on or before March 20, 2020. This authorization includes projects that had a foundation permit issued on or before March 20. If a project fits into this category, all subsequent and tangential permits related to the project can be issued and contractors may thereafter proceed with work. Construction may not, however, commence where a project had neither a foundation permit nor a building permit on or before March 20.

The Executive Order also prohibits certain types of construction. For example, no work is permitted on the interior of occupied residential structures, including work within any occupied dwelling unit or within any shared common area in multi-family buildings, except for certain emergency repairs. Also, no underpinning work, demolition of attached structures, or projects that require the support of an existing party wall is permitted, unless authorized by the L&I Commissioner.

If a construction project is allowed to commence under the Executive Order, work may only occur between the hours of 7:00 AM and 5:00 PM on Mondays through Fridays. Work at other times is prohibited, except in emergency situations. No weekend work is permitted under the Order. However, the City is expected to issue guidance that construction involving healthcare facilities, critical infrastructure, or emergencies will not be subject to the restricted periods of authorized work. More detailed information from L&I is available here and here.

All authorized work must conform to the requirements of the Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Health issued on April 15, 2020 (regarding business safety measures for in-person operations) and April 5, 2020 (regarding building safety measures), all applicable guidance of the Centers for Disease Control (including the April 8, 2020 guidance regarding critical infrastructure workers who may have been exposed to COVID-19), and the Governors April 23, 2020 guidance (regarding construction industry operations). Also, Philadelphias Water Department must be notified of the project at pwd.planreview@phila.gov.

L&I is tracking all stop work orders issued for non-compliant work sites and will pursue action against non-compliant license holders. Failure to comply with the Citys order will result in the issuance of violations and corresponding fines of up to $3,000 per day of violation, the suspension or revocation of the contractors license, a referral to Commonwealth authorities, and any other remedies available under law.

Emergency repairs to ensure the safety of a building and habitability of an occupied residence may continue as long as permission is obtained from the Department of Licenses and Inspections. The permission request must include the project address, permit number, the nature of the work, the time required, and the proposed safety provisions. Requests to perform structural work or weatherproofing should include site pictures and engineering reports about the needed construction. Contractors must also obtain a permit within three days of commencing any emergency repairs and replacements. Additional guidance can be found here.

Furthermore, if a project is not authorized under the Mayors Executive Order, but a waiver or exemption was issued for the project, then construction may continue. However, construction must be limited to the scope of the waiver/exemption and L&I must be notified by e-mail, along with the Water Department.

Also, the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry is suspending certain regulations related to building construction (where permitted), including but not limited to the expiration of asbestos professional licenses and lead professional certifications.

Licenses and Inspections

L&I employees working on zoning and building permits are generally telecommuting. L&Is online eCLIPSE permitting and licensing system has been live since mid-March. In general, all electronic applications are being processed under standard review times. Since the majority of applications are being processed in under 10 days, L&I has suspended accelerated review. Currently, L&I is in the final stages of processing all paper applications received before the shutdown. L&I guidance on obtaining permits for pre-eCLIPSE applications is available here. We have successfully obtained permits based on pre-eCLIPSE applications. If you have not received any information regarding your paper application, you should contact L&I at codeissues@phila.gov. All physical copies of issued permits will be held at the Municipal Services Building at 1401 JFK Boulevard until the City shutdown ends, but electronic copies will be made available, along with electronic billing statements. The Municipal Services Building also has a small security staff on site that is receiving mail deliveries to L&I during normal business hours, but visitation by the public is prohibited.

L&I maintains a crew of inspectors who prioritize inspections based on the severity of building and safety issues. Crew members will also conduct inspections for compliance with violation orders. The Department requests that all inspections be scheduled through its Interactive Voice Recognition system (IVR). Instructions for IVR are available here. If a contractor needs to meet a critical deadline, he/she should e-mail L&I at codeissues@phila.gov.

Notably, contractors will not be able to schedule inspections if their licenses are not up to date. To schedule an inspection, the contractor must update his/her insurance and tax clearance documents in eCLIPSE. To obtain a make safe permit for a dangerous building, an appointment must be scheduled with L&I. Instructions for requesting a make safe permit are available here.

L&I has suspended the expiration of previously issued permits during the shutdown; applicants should disregard any automated notifications received in the meantime. Formal guidance will be issued in the coming days. L&I has also suspended all deadlines for filing appeals otherwise due after March 13. The time for filing appeals will likely be extended for two weeks in every instance where the original filing deadline would have fallen after March 13. The suspension of the appeal filing deadlines may be extended further at the discretion of the Chair of the License and Inspection Review Board. All appeals currently before the Board will be stayed until further notice unless the Board determines an emergency warrants immediate consideration. An emergency is defined as anything that immediately concerns public health, safety, and welfare.

Anyone requesting an emergency hearing must complete an Emergency Hearing Appeal Form and submit it to michelle.rand@phila.gov, suletazba@gmail.com, kristin.bray@phila.gov, Joanna.klein@phila.gov, and lawcodeenforce@phila.gov. Upon receipt of the form, the Board will either deny the request or schedule an emergency hearing that will take place telephonically.

Permit denials and the ability to appeal are currently available through eCLIPSE if the denial was issued after March 15. In addition, the Board of Building Standards and the Plumbing Advisory Board will begin holding hearings virtually starting in May. Participation in the hearings will be optional.

Zoning Board of Adjustment

All ZBA hearings through the end of May have been cancelled and will be rescheduled once the Board reopens, which will likely occur a few weeks after the City reopens. When the Board reopens, additional hearings will be scheduled to account for the backlog. In addition, the ZBA is suspending indefinitely all deadlines for filing appeals otherwise due after March 13.

Some Registered Community Organizations are meeting remotely. Other Registered Community Organizations do not appear to be holding meetings. RCOs will not be penalized for postponing community meetings after March 13. The RCOs are encouraged to work with developers to figure out an alternative to public meetings. At this time, the City will not be changing the statutory timelines for when a case must be heard by the ZBA. The Zoning Board will not, however, hear a variance or special exception case when an RCO meeting was not held due to the COVID-19 shutdown period. However, if an RCO meeting is held, it is still uncertain when the subsequent ZBA hearing will take place. Furthermore, at this time, it is not clear when the statutory 45-day RCO consultation period commences. We are hopeful that the City will provide guidance on this issue in the coming days.

Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection/U.S. Environmental Protection Agency/U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

By order of Gov. Tom Wolf, Pennsylvania DEP offices throughout the Commonwealth remain closed. However, much of the regional staff is telecommuting and reachable in connection with inquiries on the status of pending environmental approvals/applications. The U.S. EPA remains open via telecommuting options, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also is reachable.

Developers may have some flexibility in their efforts to comply with environmental laws, at least as far as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is concerned. Provided that good faith efforts are made to comply, and incidents of non-compliance are remedied and documented, EPAs latest enforcement guidelines offer some understandable relief as Companies struggle to comply with Covid-19 requirements. The policy should apply to enforcement of nearly all federal environmental laws, including the Clean Water Act and its NPDES Storm Water pre- and post-construction permit control requirements. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has chosen to handle such matters on a case by case basis, requiring those who have failed to comply as a result of the Covid-19 crisis to submit an application for an enforcement waiver. Here is a link to our Environmental Groups e-alert on that topic. Here is a link to the previous Ballard Spahr e-alert discussing the EPA policy.

On April 7, the PADEP announced guidance regarding Chapter 102 Earth Disturbance Permits. Only those permittees that are engaged in life sustaining businesses may continue to do move earth. Non-life sustaining business are directed to cease further site work, stabilize the site, and wait for contrary determinations. Ballard Spahrs Environmental Group has prepared an alert on that and other guidance announced by PADEP in response to the COVID-19 crisis.

Linear Infrastructure Permitting

A Federal District Court in Montana has invalidated US Army Corps of Engineers Nationwide Permit 12 because the Court found that the Corps did not, while reauthorizing the general permit in 2017, take into proper account the impact of use of the permit on certain endangered species. As a result, work on the Keystone XL Pipeline through areas of Montana has been impacted. The permit has been relied upon by developers of linear infrastructure projects, as it authorizes the filling of jurisdictional wetlands along the route of such developments as electric transmission projects, gas pipeline projects, rail projects, etc. The decision in Northern Plains Resource Council v. United States Army Corps of Engineers can be reviewed here, and has left developers of such projects scrambling to identify other Nationwide Permits that may be utilized to keep projects moving forward and avoid the need to seek individual wetland fill permits for work along the entire route.

Permit Postings

Zoning and building permits should still be posted on properties in the normal course, to the extent possible. Please contact our Zoning and Land Use Team for any assistance.

Streets Department

The Philadelphia Streets Department is focusing its essential personnel on emergency repairs, so inspections of existing projects may be delayed. At least some employees involved in plan approval currently are telecommuting and are actively monitoring projects. The Streets Department is actively working on preparing surveyors to review subdivision and lot line relocation plans remotely, although plans are not currently being reviewed. Plan Review Counter Submissions (Checklist #1) may be submitted online only through the L&I eCLIPSE system. All Plan Review Intake Submissions (Checklist #2/3/4) must be submitted electronically to StreetsROW.PlanReview@phila.gov. Developer Services Meetings deemed necessary by staff may be held remotely.

Water Department

The Water Departments offices are closed to the public; however, Private Development Services staff members are working remotely. Staff members are conducting stormwater plan reviews, utility plan reviews, water and sewer sign-offs, along with other reviews. Delays should be expected for all reviews. All general questions and meeting requests should be sent to pwd.planreview@phila.gov. Additional information can be found here.

The Water Department is also granting time extensions to expiration dates for project permits and approvals impacted by the shutdown. Time extensions only apply to PWD-issued permits and approvals.

Regular billing will continue, but PWD has waived late payment fees and suspended non-payment terminations for all customers. The termination freeze will remain in place until June 1.

The Stormwater Incentives Team has extended the Stormwater Grant application deadline to July 1. The pre-application meeting deadline has been extended as well. The team encourages individuals to email all questions to PWDStormwaterCredits@phila.gov. The account is being monitored periodically, but delays are expected.

Department of Records

The Philadelphia Department of Records remains closed, but e-recording via third party vendors is still operating. Delays of five to seven business days may be expected.

Department of Planning and Development

The Department of Planning and Development has issued emergency regulations governing deemed approvals by the Philadelphia City Planning Commission, the Philadelphia Historical Commission, the Philadelphia Art Commission, and their various committees, including the Civic Design Review Committee and the Sign Committee of the Art Commission. From March 18, through 60 days after the termination of the Mayors Emergency Order, the non-performance of review by these agencies, their respective Committees or staff, in connection with any applications, plans, materials or other documents will not constitute a deemed approval or a deemed denial of any such applications, plans, materials or documents subject to review.

Philadelphia Historical Commission

While the offices of the Philadelphia Historical Commission are closed, staff members are still working remotely. General inquiries, approvals, complaints, and nominations can be emailed to preservation@phila.gov. Staff members will review nominations for correctness and completeness and prepare them for processing for when the Commission is back in session. The staff can also review and approve most applications without referral to the Commission itself. Additional information can be found here.

Requests for guidance on proposed construction projects should be emailed to preservation@phila.gov. The e-mail should include: the street address of the property, contact information for the person responsible for the project, the name of the property owner, a description of the proposal, photographs, architectural plans, and copies of any historic documentation.

The Historical Commission is now meeting remotely. The Commissions monthly meeting will be held on May 8 at 9:00 AM. The Committee on Historic Designation will meet on May 20. The Architectural Committee will meet on May 26. Members of the public can watch or listen to the May 8 meeting via WebEx. During the meeting, there will be a public comment period. The public may submit comments either through WebEx or via email at preservation@phila.gov. More information about the meeting and the WebEx link can be found here.

Philadelphia Art Commission

Art Commission staff members are working remotely. Today, the Art Commission is scheduled to hold its first public meeting since the shutdown. Details about todays meeting and upcoming meetings can be found here.

Philadelphia City Planning Commission (PCPC)

Staff members at the Planning Commission are working remotely, although, delays should be expected. Staff members are reviewing plans submitted on eCLIPSE and amendments to master plans. PCPC is working with L&I to develop a plan for requests for modifications to previous approvals. PCPC staff will provide comments on any proposed legislation, a draft of which should be sent to staff members; requesting parties should keep in mind that all legislation is subject to the discretion of City Council. Reviews of applications related to steep slopes, frontages, and landscapes are being completed in a timely manner. Reviews of applications related to watersheds or lot lines are delayed due to the inaccessibility of maps located in PCPCs offices. Staff members are also conducting Urban Design reviews through eCLIPSE. Loading waivers are being processed through e-mail, and staff members are available to provide preliminary Civic Design Review comments by email at CDR@phila.gov.

The Planning Commission held a public, virtual meeting on April 30. Details about upcoming meetings can be found here. PCPC is still evaluating their plans for Civic Design Review Committee meetings because PCPC cannot compel Registered Community Organizations to hold community meetings during the current stay-at-home order. Although, PCPC is surveying RCOs to understand their current capacity.

Courts

On April 1, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ordered that, except for certain essential functions, court facilities in all judicial districts in Pennsylvania shall be closed to the public through at least April 30 due to a statewide judicial emergency. The Supreme Court subsequently amended its order on April 28. The new order extends the statewide judicial emergency to June 1, but mandates that beginning May 4, unless otherwise provided by a local emergency order, Pennsylvania courts shall be open to conduct all court business, with certain caveats. Philadelphia county courts, however, are still under a local emergency order, and the First Judicial District will remain closed until May 29. As a result, in Philadelphia, all time calculations and deadlines are suspended through May 29. All evictions and ejectments are stayed, and PA Rules of Criminal Procedure 600(c), with respect to time calculations, is suspended. Commercial landlords may theoretically file ejectment actions but it is very unlikely that they would be able to secure a judgement prior to May 29.

In addition, all Philadelphia Sheriffs Tax Sales and Mortgage Foreclosure Sales scheduled for May have been postponed to July. More information can be found here.

See more here:
Philadelphia Zoning, Land Use, and Construction COVID-19 Update - JD Supra

Bogota May 9, 2020 (Thomson StreetEvents) -- Edited Transcript of Tecnoglass Inc earnings conference call or presentation Friday, May 8, 2020 at 1:00:00pm GMT

* Christian T. Daes

Tecnoglass Inc. - COO & Director

Tecnoglass Inc. - CEO & Director

Tecnoglass Inc. - CFO & Head of IR

B. Riley FBR, Inc., Research Division - Analyst

Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated, Research Division - Senior Research Analyst

Greetings, and welcome to the Tecnoglass Inc. First Quarter 2020 Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded.

I would now like to turn the conference over to your host today, Rodny Nacier, Investor Relations. Thank you, sir. You may begin.

Thank you for joining us for Tecnoglass' First Quarter 2020 Conference Call. A copy of the slide presentation to accompany this call may be obtained on the Investors section of the Tecnoglass website. Our speakers for today's call are Chief Executive Officer, Jos Manuel Daes; Chief Operating Officer, Chris Daes; and Chief Financial Officer, Santiago Giraldo.

I'd like to remind everyone that matters discussed in this call, except for historical information, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including regarding future financial performance, future growth and future acquisitions. These statements are based on Tecnoglass' current expectations or beliefs and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Actual results may vary in a material nature from those expressed or implied by the statements herein due to changes in economic, business, competitive and/or regulatory factors and other risks and uncertainties affecting the operations of Tecnoglass' business. These risks, uncertainties and contingencies are indicated from time to time in Tecnoglass filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The information discussing -- discussed during the call is presented in light of such risks. Further, investors should keep in mind that Tecnoglass' financial results in any particular period may not be indicative of future results. Tecnoglass is under no obligation to and expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter its forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions or otherwise.

I will now turn the call over to Jos Manuel, beginning on Slide #4.

Jos Manuel Daes, Tecnoglass Inc. - CEO & Director [3]

Thank you, Rodny, and thank you, everyone, for participating on today's call. To start, I would like to say that I'm incredibly proud of all of our team members who have shown such incredible strength in the face of adversity during the COVID-19 outbreak. Our thoughts are with all those impacted by this unfortunate situation. We are moving through unprecedented times, and our top priority is protecting the health and safety of our employees and others. Fortunately, all of our operations, along with most of our customers' operations in the U.S. and Latin America, have been deemed essential, and we continue to serve customers safely and responsibly.

Looking at our first quarter results. We started the year tracking relatively in line with our plan in January and February. In March, as COVID-19 began to rapidly spread in many of our markets, the majority of national and local governments issued shelter-in-place orders. This impacted our invoicing activity into the end of the quarter with visibility on demand trends quickly becoming lessened. Our year-over-year sales performance also reflected an exceptionally strong prior year March, which Santiago will discuss in more detail.

On the operational side, our teams delivered solid results. We produced our highest first quarter gross margin and adjusted EBITDA margin since 2016. Favorable raw material pricing and a higher mix of product revenue were the main reasons for the large improvement. We were also pleased to start realizing the benefits of our high-return automation initiatives. Our selling efforts remain focused on further penetrating key U.S. markets and gaining footholds in additional cities. In the quarter, 90% of our revenue and 89% of backlog was in the U.S. and our expansion in residential continued, representing 19% of our U.S. business over the past year.

While the world has changed a lot since our last updated call, our diverse geographic footprint, lean cost structure and a strong balance sheet position give us confidence in our ability to continue winning business even in this uncertain environment. Over our 36-year history, we have successfully overcome difficult times. During the Great Recession of 2008, we grew the business and generated profits engineered to emerge as a much stronger company. I have full confidence in our ability to do so again this time.

In our now larger and more vertical integrated platform, we are even better prepared to navigate through the current environment. While we are much bigger today, we still represent only around 1% of the U.S. architectural glass industry. So there remain many opportunities to capture revenue and gain share as demonstrated by our strong backlog. We expect to accelerate our advantages as the markets recover.

We have a strong cash position and capital resources to face the bumpy road ahead. We are taking additional actions to improve our cost structure, cash flow and balance sheet to not only adapt our business to the current environment but also affect any structural changes that will help situate our business for long-term success as we emerge from this volatile period.

I will now turn the call over to Chris to provide additional details on our COVID-19 response and backlog.

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Christian T. Daes, Tecnoglass Inc. - COO & Director [4]

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Thank you, Jos Manuel. Beginning with our COVID-19 response on Slide #5. Over the last couple of months, we have implemented a robust response plan and have also taken many proactive measures to strengthen our business and balance sheet as the global economy experiences the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. Similar to the U.S., in Colombia, there are stay-at-home orders still widely in effect. We are operating under a special inception granted to companies that support the construction and infrastructure sectors.

As we continue to manufacture and install our critical products, in many cases, we have gone beyond guidelines from local governments and CDC to protect the well-being of our employees, customers and partners. We have implemented remote working policies, enhanced sanitation practices and minimized group gatherings, among other measures. We have also taken more in-depth initiatives to protect our employees, such as the temporary suspension of manufacturing operations for 3 weeks in late March and early April. This enabled us to successfully install workplace protections and implement a comprehensive plan to incorporate social distancing and other best practices into our production and logistical processes.

The late March timing allow us to move more scheduled deliveries into April as some customers delay shipments while they assess the varying patchwork of government orders getting introduced around that time. While this did limit our ability to invoice projects during that time, since mid-April, we have quickly ramped it back up and made up for a significant portion of the pause in invoicing activity. We retained the labor force while the plant was shut down by using vacation day slots, where possible, so we were able to resume operations relatively efficiently.

We entered this pandemic at the strong point in our company's history with a financial position along with the capital resources to effectively support our global operations. We are focused on maintaining that financial flexibility and generating cash flow. We have implemented strict cost controls, reduced operating expenses and limit all noncritical capital expenditures beyond the completion of initiatives started in 2019.

We have significant contractual flexibility to make quick staffing decisions for the majority of our workforce given that a large part of our operating force is contracted through temp agencies. We are taking a balanced approach to protecting jobs, where possible, while ensuring our cash preservation goals are achieved. We will continue to be prudent with our resources and capital allocation. The actions that we have taken will not only help us mitigate the impacts of any near-term demand challenges related to the pandemic but are also designed to allow for accelerated share gains and deliver more profitable growth as we emerge from this crisis.

Moving to our backlog on Slide #6. A value element of our business is that we have a multiyear view of projects in our pipeline on the commercial portion of our revenues. Our quarter end backlog was $545 million, up 5.8% year-over-year primarily in the U.S., which now represents 89% of our backlog compared to 83% in the first quarter of 2019. As the COVID-19 crisis continue, we are closely monitoring its impact on the broader macro environment and, specifically, how this might influence the timing of projects compared to initial invoicing schedules.

On the bright side, most projects are still proceeding according to plan in markets where construction activity is permitted. However, visibility is much lower than usual as we are reasonably assuming that some projects get delayed or temporarily put on hold. To that point, we have seen delays in some commercial projects in the Northeast U.S., such as in the New York area, where the local authorities have entirely prioritized combating the pandemic.

Overall building activity in the U.S. has remained relatively stable for the first 4 months of 2020 through April, which is encouraging as we read into underlying demand beneath the COVID-19-related market disruptions. Our sales teams are seeing continued quoting activity. And based on conversation with developers, most are looking to get projects off the ground once they are able to get favorable finance in place.

In residential, which is not captured by our backlog, we have been very pleased with our continued penetration into more single-family projects, which we enter that end market in 2017. Recent U.S. housing start data suggest residential projects are feeling the effect of shelter-in-place orders and other economic uncertainties. In our business, we still have a rapidly growing presence with our new product offerings to capture additional share regardless of the demand environment.

Overall, the conversations for most national and local governments are gradually shifting to the timing and pace of lifting shelter in place and restoring battered economies. In this environment, we have to remain flexible to tailor our operation base on how we see demand evolving. For us, we have the benefit of a vertically integrated operation to scale up and down quickly. We will continue to focus on optimizing our liquidity, growing backlog through our focused business development and sales program and delivering quality service to our customers during this volatile period.

I will now turn the call over to Santiago to discuss our financial results and outlook.

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Santiago Giraldo, Tecnoglass Inc. - CFO & Head of IR [5]

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Thank you, Christian. Beginning with our capital resources on Slide #8. In recent years, we have made progress to reduce leverage, enhance cash flow and generally strengthen our balance sheet metrics. During the first quarter, we generated cash flow from operations of approximately $550,000. The first quarter is seasonally a low point of our cash flow given timing of interest and tax payments but improved by $6.3 million compared to the prior year quarter. This partly reflects aggressive actions to preserve cash, including tight cost controls and working capital improvements. Our CapEx increased by approximately $2.5 million, mainly reflecting scheduled annual maintenance at our production facility plus approximately $3 million of final payments for a high-return automation investments completed in 2019. As a result, we expect CapEx to be largely front-loaded in 2020.

Since the end of the first quarter, we have continued to build our liquidity position. Our cash preservation measures are paying off. And at an abundance of caution, we also drew down an additional $10 million on our available lines of credit to begin May with approximately $50 million of cash and total liquidity of approximately $105 million, including available lines of credit. The structure of our long-term capital resources are set up well for the current environment. Our senior notes in the amount of $210 million do not mature until 2022. Beyond that, our credit facilities extend through 2024 in a weighted average maturity on lines of credit of roughly 4.7 years out.

Looking at our net leverage. We ended the quarter at 2.4x, which was down 0.6x compared to the prior year quarter and up slightly from December 31. This sequential increase is partly due to $6.5 million of CapEx during the period to complete our automation initiatives and major maintenance and $4 million FX impact on cash held in local currencies. We believe our balance sheet is properly structured to face the challenges ahead. We have no covenants worth discussing at this time, and we have over $55 million available to us on our lines of credit. We are prepared to draw down additional capital as needed but do not see a reason to do so at this time based on our other cash-building efforts.

From a capital allocation perspective, our primary objective at this time is to preserve cash and return a portion of capital to shareholders through our dividend. Based on our current install capacity as a result of our completed automation investments, we don't foresee material growth CapEx investments in the short term. In our joint venture with Saint-Gobain, we previously communicated the plan to begin construction of the second float glass plant in 2020. The float glass plant calls for funding to be entirely arranged at the JV level with the JV partners providing a backstop on a pro rata basis for any additional funding needs. Given the current market climate, we are reviewing the project time line as we reassess near-term demand and internal return thresholds. The permitting is expected to be completed soon so the project can get off the ground once market conditions are conducive to do so. Overall, we ended the quarter with a strong capital position and have further fortified our balance sheet to effectively navigate the evolving economic environment.

Looking at the drivers of revenue on Slide #9. Based on the timing of invoicing and projects in the prior year, on our last update call, we indicated that we will have a challenging prior year comparison in the first quarter. During January and February of 2020, revenues track relatively in line with our expectations and essentially on par with the prior year quarter. This was good because we had 5 more days of downtime in January for scheduled maintenance at our Colombia manufacturing facility compared to the prior year quarter. That means 5 less days of invoicing due to planned maintenance.

The month of March represented a decline in revenues for the quarter. In the prior year month of March, the level of invoicing was well above trend due to the timing of closing-out projects. However, looking at March of 2020, our revenue were impacted by 9 fewer invoicing days as we temporarily suspended planned operations from March 23 to April 13. As Chris mentioned, we took the downtime to implement processes and protocols at the plants for safer production flows after engaging with customers on delivery schedules given the uncertain outcomes of the rapid U.S. outbreak of COVID-19 in mid-March, causing disruptions to customer construction schedules.

For efficiency, we used the initial phase of the Colombian government stay-at-home orders to prepare the plan to resume full operations under a safe environment to prioritize our employees' health. As previously stated, we have been operating under an essential business exemption as a key supplier to the infrastructure and construction sectors even as the stay home order remains in place as of today. Through the month of April, the U.S. demand environment improved as customers gained confidence in their ability to proceed with projects, most of which are essential work. Since resuming operations on April 14 and, have added shifts to address pent-up demand.

Looking at the drivers of adjusted EBITDA on Slide #10. Despite the unfavorable impact to revenue from the COVID-19-related issues in March, we were pleased to improve adjusted EBITDA as a percent of sales by 350 basis points to 23.3% compared to 19.7% in the prior year quarter. In dollars, adjusted EBITDA was $20.3 million compared to $21.1 million or 19.7% of sales with lower revenues partly offset by a 510 basis points improvement in gross margin to 34.9% for the quarter. The improvement in gross margin primarily reflected lower raw material costs, a higher mix of revenue from manufacturing products versus installation as well as greater operating efficiencies from our implementation of automation initiatives in 2019.

SG&A was lower by $0.3 million as we continue to manage expenses and as we incur in less variable costs given lower revenues. As mentioned, we are trimming costs given the ongoing market volatility. We have made good progress on this front. Our lean, highly efficient and vertically integrated operations, along with our dedicated employee base, leave us confident in our ability to efficiently match our costs with our demand. We will continue to source additional avenues to improve efficiencies and maintain our industry-leading margins.

Looking at our markets on Slide #12. For the most part, we are supporting customers in any market where construction is permitted. While we have made good progress to diversify outside of Florida, that state still represents a significant market for us. In that state, construction is essential and housing is considered critical infrastructure. So that is assuring for a large part of our revenues and customer base. More broadly, approximately 85% of first quarter 2020 backlog is in states or jurisdictions that have designated suppliers of products or services to the construction sector as an essential business. In some markets where we have a notable presence, such as New York and Pennsylvania, we have projects proceeding under certain extensions. But for the most part, construction activity is limited. On an encouraging note, several U.S. states, including Florida and Texas, have begun easing general restrictions. In Colombia, the country is under a nationwide shelter-in-place order through at least May 25, but we expect the general exemption for infrastructure and construction projects to continue.

Moving to our 2020 outlook on Slide 14. We have withdrawn our previously provided full year 2020 financial outlook for revenue and adjusted EBITDA. Our backlog has historically provided a high degree of visibility for commercial revenues over a 12-month period. Our prior outlook issued before the COVID-19 pandemic represented existing projects in backlog plus anticipated demand from our continued expansion into the single-family residential end market. Our commercial backlog remains firm in the short term, but we do have lower visibility on the timing of project invoicing through the year-end 2020 as deliveries will depend on the ongoing COVID situation in each market that we serve. For single family, housing starts declined in March and are expected to remain depressed in the near term.

In the second half of April, daily revenues were higher than levels seen prior to the temporary suspension of our plant. Given that the plant was being adapted to meet COVID sanitary standards during the first half of April, on a revenue per day basis for the days that we were operational, revenues increased by an encouraging 15% per invoicing day in April compared to March. We attribute the majority of that month-over-month improvement to backfilling of orders and the remainder to relatively stronger underlying demand. While we expect second quarter of 2020 revenues to be lower compared to the prior year quarter, we currently anticipate sequential improvement on a month-to-month basis through June. Given the unprecedented nature of the current economic climate, the remainder of 2020 cannot be estimated with precision at this time.

In summary, we entered the year with a good momentum on solid operating platform supported by a strong capital base. As we move through the uncertain period ahead, we are focused on cash management and taking necessary actions to deliver strong cash flow while safely serving customers. We will continue to monitor and adjust plans for our business that are aligned with our expectation to emerge as a stronger company when global market conditions begin to improve.

With that, we will be happy to answer your questions. Operator, please open the line for questions.

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Questions and Answers

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Operator [1]

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(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from Mike Shlisky with Dougherty & Company.

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Michael Shlisky, Dougherty & Company LLC, Research Division - Senior Research Analyst [2]

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So I wanted to ask about your sort of near-term invoicing schedule and where the real concerns on the backlog are. I mean at this point, when you started the year into the spring time, if a building is halfway finished or even partially finished, they're not going to stop building that building at this point. They're going to see it kind of all the way through the end. So my guess is the current project, the very near-term backlog isn't going to change much other than maybe some timing differences. I guess my question is, is your worry more about the end of year backlog at this point or 2021 projects? Do you feel pretty good about what has to be delivered this year? Quarter-to-quarter, perhaps, there's not that much. There's some question, but sort of end of year is kind of the more concerning to you because of the new projects that might come onboard.

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Jos Manuel Daes, Tecnoglass Inc. - CEO & Director [3]

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Well, this is Jos. We feel very confident about this year. We have a strong backlog, and all the projects are continuing, especially the ones that are even 20%, 30% up. We've seen a couple of delayed projects. But last week, for example, one of them just restarted and said that they already logged the financing. So for this year, we see still a strong demand. And next year, we have a good backlog for next year. And we are starting to see people talking again about closing because they're going to open New York. In Boston, there is a lot of work. In Texas, they haven't closed anything. We're very confident that the world is going to keep going.

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Michael Shlisky, Dougherty & Company LLC, Research Division - Senior Research Analyst [4]

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Okay. And then what's been your ability to kind of do business within the 4 walls in Colombia with other people who are outside those 4 walls, things like getting trucking services, some of your outside contractors, food service and other items that have to be brought in every day? Because you're under an exemption, that might be okay for you. But have your various outside provider has been able to help you out as well since April 14? Or...

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Jos Manuel Daes, Tecnoglass Inc. - CEO & Director [5]

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No. We haven't had any problems, contractors or anything, especially in Colombia. Construction is already back to work. We were sent home for 3 weeks. We try to keep a piece open through those 3 weeks. Unfortunately, obviously, that hit the sales being a little bit lower than expected. But it's all over now. We've been working for the last now 4 weeks, and we're doing record numbers of invoicing every day. So we expect to have a very decent quarter, for example, now in the second quarter, obviously, taking into consideration that the first 13 days of April, we were close. But things look good. Supply looks good. Demand looks good, and we are trying to build 2021, the end of 2021. And that is going to be done also with a lot of retail, which is not in our backlog, but is a residential event. But that is very strong today and is continued to grow in our company.

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Michael Shlisky, Dougherty & Company LLC, Research Division - Senior Research Analyst [6]

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Okay. Maybe just one more for me. Obviously, a very strong job on EBITDA margins in the quarter. I guess do you think you've reached a whole new range or a plateau from margins since you made some of those improvements in the fourth and first quarter here to your automation? Or was there anything kind of cut on a kind of temporary basis to kind of offset some of the volume declines in the quarter?

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Santiago Giraldo, Tecnoglass Inc. - CFO & Head of IR [7]

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Mike, this is Santiago. Basically, some of it was done through raw material efficiency. We're seeing less raw material costs against contracts that were already in place. So we do expect that to continue moving forward. Another piece of that was the mix of business with the installation business closing out some projects. So you basically had some more manufacturing revenues rather than installation. So in large part, it's going to depend on the mix quarter-over-quarter. But on a structural basis, I think that the rest of the year, you can expect efficiencies both from lower raw material and efficiencies related to automation. As we had mentioned earlier in the year and even in previous conversations, we do expect to gain efficiencies on a gross margin basis. So I think it's going to depend more or less on what happens on mix quarter-over-quarter, but there is certainly structural things that would allow us to gain efficiencies from a gross margin perspective.

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Michael Shlisky, Dougherty & Company LLC, Research Division - Senior Research Analyst [8]

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Just to follow up, Santiago. The large amounts of buildings you had here in just in the last few weeks in April, was that heavy on the closeout activity?

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Santiago Giraldo, Tecnoglass Inc. - CFO & Head of IR [9]

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I missed the first part of your question, Mike.

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Michael Shlisky, Dougherty & Company LLC, Research Division - Senior Research Analyst [10]

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Yes. The high level of invoicing that's happened in the last few weeks since you came back to work, the mix there have been high on the closeouts.

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Santiago Giraldo, Tecnoglass Inc. - CFO & Head of IR [11]

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Yes. Yes. It's been constant with what we've seen so far throughout the year. It's been in line.

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Operator [12]

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More here:
Edited Transcript of TGLS earnings conference call or presentation 8-May-20 1:00pm GMT - Yahoo Finance

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The "Countertops" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

This study analyzes US demand for countertops by surface material, area of installation, market, and region. Countertop demand is measured at the fabricator level (the point at which the material is formed into a countertop) for all surface materials. Edging and backsplashes are included in demand figures.

For the purposes of this study, market share is calculated at the countertop material suppliers' level. The market is comprised of demand for materials supplied to countertop fabricators by manufacturers of laminate sheet; slabs of solid surface materials; and engineered stone, tile, and other materials.

The surface materials broken out are:

Countertop products by area of installation include:

The major market segments analyzed are:

Markets are also broken out by application:

In addition, demand for countertops is also segmented by the following US geographic regions subregions:

Companies Mentioned

Key Topics Covered:

1. Executive Summary

2. Overview

3. Laminate Countertops

4. Natural Stone Countertops (Granite, Marble, & Other)

5. Engineered Stone Countertops

6. Solid Surface & Other Cast Polymer Countertops

7. Tile Countertops

8. Other Countertop Surface Materials

9. Residential Building Countertops

10. Commercial Building & Vehicle Countertops

11. Kitchen Countertops

12. Bathroom Countertops

13. Other Countertops

14. Regions

15. Industry Structure

16. Appendix

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/3ua993.

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Countertops Market in the United States: Market Demand by Surface Material, Area of Installation, Market and Region - ResearchAndMarkets.com -...