Peering into the crystal ball

The daily newspapers in our region do a great job of covering business news. So what’s left for Prairie Business, which is published once a month?

The answer is trends. Every month, we try to spot not just what’s happening in local industries, but what’s on the horizon. What are executives talking about? What’s being looked at as a possible Next Big Thing?

This issue is full of such information. Start with the two columns that follow this Editor’s Note – one on augmented reality, one on unmanned aerial systems. As the columns suggest, we’re likely just at the start of the growth curves for those industries, and the prospects for both seem bright.

Yelp’s Monocle app already lets you point your smartphone at a business and see reviews. Soon to come: glasses that’ll show the same info in a heads-up display.

My guess is, the AR elevator’s going straight to the top. And the UAS elevator won’t be far behind, with many of the riders hailing from North Dakota.

Then there’s modular construction, the trend described in the Construction story that begins on Page 22. “In Japan, more than 15 percent of houses are built in factories,” Forbes magazine reported in February.

The U.S. has a lot of catching up to do, but I suspect we’re going to do just that.

Then there’s sustainable architecture, which has graduated from “trend” to “established practice” in a very short time. Which begs the question, what infant architectural practice of today is likely to be all grown up by 2029? Send me your thoughts, and I’ll try to incorporate them into our next Architecture & Engineering feature later this year.

Good reading, Tom Dennis

I welcome your feedback and story ideas. Call me at 701-780-1276 or email me at tdennis@prairiebusinessmagazine.com.

PUBLISHER KORRIE WENZEL

AD DIRECTOR STACI LORD

EDITOR

TOM DENNIS

CIRCULATION MANAGER BETH BOHLMAN

LAYOUT DESIGN ANNA HINSVERK

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Prairie Business magazine is published monthly by the Grand Forks Herald and Forum Communications Company with offices at 375 2nd Avenue North, Grand Forks, ND 58203. Subscriptions are available free of charge. Back issue quantities are limited and subject to availability ($2/copy prepaid). The opinions of writers featured in Prairie Business are their own. Unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, artwork are encouraged but will not be returned without a self-addressed, stamped envelope.

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