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Despite a lack of communication from Intel, local whitebox builders are generally excited by a $1 million bounty the chipmaker has put on the design of a small and stylish media centre PC. Announced at this week's Intel Developer Forum in the US, the worldwide competition is looking for somebody to build a model that looks at home in the lounge. It must be based on Intel's Viiv technology and Core 2 Duo processor. "We talk to Intel every couple of days but haven't heard anything yet," Plus Corporation managing director, Nigel Fernandes, said. "We'd be keen to give it a go if we're included." Fernandes said Viiv had been a quiet technology to date but predicted the competition might enliven the market. Westan executive director, Kamil Aghtan, and Altech national sales manager, Kevin Hartin, told similar stories.
The Master Builders Association has recently implemented its Green Living training plan and accreditation to provide better access to tools and information for a more effective approach to sustainability in construction practices. Builders who complete the training and adopt sustainable innovations in their operations will be able to identify themselves as Master Builders Green Living builders. The brand will enable builders to market their services as businesses that are skilled in the design, construction and maintenance of high quality structures that adopt industry best practice for sustainability in the built environment.To qualify for the accreditation, you must be a member of the Master Builders Association and attend the two day Green Living course. The new training will provide competencies in designing, building, installing and maintaining environmental innovations.
There's new information about an Acadiana contractor charged with taking ten of thousands of dollars from a Lafayette homeowner. Last month, TV 10 reported that Lafayette Parish sheriff's deputies arrested 39-year-old Scott Fontenot for theft. Investigators say Fontenot agreed to construct an addition to a family's home and then took off with $43,000. Wednesday, the state licensing board gave Fontenot a $1,000 fine and ordered him to cease and desist work on any other projects. Contractor issues like this are a growing concern during hurricane recovery. There continues to be an increase in new home construction in Lafayette more than a year after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. In August of '05, there were 64 permits issued to build new homes.
More than 400 construction industry and architecture professionals gathered at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel last week for the 71st annual Construction Industry Awards, hosted by the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce. The Oct. 5 event honored UCLA, USC and the Getty Center for "thinking ahead and planning for growth." Harold M. Williams, president emeritus of the J. Paul Getty Trust and counsel at the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, received the Ira Yellin Distinguished Achievement Award for his work on establishing the Westside venue. Peter W. Blackman, administrative vice chancellor at UCLA, was given a lifetime achievement honor for overseeing the retrofitting of the UCLA campus, and Curtis Williams, vice president of facilities management at USC, received a lifetime achievement award for the capital construction campaign on the university's two campuses.
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