After months of recession, it’s survival of the fittest among manufacturing and telecommunications contractors as they fight this summer over a few hot spots of demand in the consumer markets on which they rely. “We’ve been in the doldrums, but owners expect that we’ve used the recession to sharpen our pencils,” says Bart Eberwein, vice president at Portland, Ore.-based Hoffman Construction Co. Looking for value in an acute buyers’ market, owners are demanding contractors be sharper, faster and more flexible. While there are fresh rounds of investment in sustainable energy products, auto plants and data centers, only the top dogs
There are signs of recovery this spring as designers in sectors for manufacturing and telecommunications see renewed, although cautious, activity in markets. SSOE completed preliminary design for a $100-million solar-panel factory expansion. Related Links: View More on Top 500 Sourcebook 2010 View Complete Top 500 Sourcebook 2010 with Data and Analysis “There is more tire-kicking going on, more proposals are going out, and there is generally more activity in the markets this year,” says Mike Yungerman, vice president of real estate development at Chicago-based Opus North Corp. “There are the first signs of a recovery and a lot of optimism
All eyes are on asphalt prices this summer as highway and paving contractors vie for dwindling opportunities amid rising materials costs. Indexes for May, which show an overall upward trend for paving asphalt, diesel fuel and paint for highway striping, are a cause for concern for contractors who fear a repeat of the price-hike wallop of 2008. “Prices look relatively stable now, but it was the same in 2008 before they skyrocketed—and we never saw it coming,” says Richard E. Dinkela, owner of St. Louis-based Creve Coeur Paving LLC. “We’re trying to be more careful, to be educated on jobs
If there is any good news this quarter for the glass curtain-wall and window-wall sector, it is only that things probably can’t get much worse. That’s what glazing contractors, owners and architects are saying this spring as prices for glass-wall systems continue to tank. Source: Bureau Of Labor Statistics. Producer price index. Related Links: Economics: Despite Upturn in Steel, Lumber and Energy Prices Deflation Sweeps Cost Index Board Markets: Survey Shows Contractor Confidence Slowly Rising Homebuilding: Lumber, Wallboard Prices Perk up With Modest Rebound Executive Pay: Key Players Dodge Salary and Bonus Squeeze Methodolgy: What is Driving Costs ENR's Complete
In the void left by collapsed construction markets around the world, transportation projects are not only a holdout of relatively robust activity but are embraced globally as a vital step on the road to recovery. Firms in the transportation sector are crisscrossing the globe as developing nations race to build new roads, railways and airports, while in America, Europe and the Middle East new technologies and growing populations are pushing projects forward. In the sector currently are some of the largest projects in the world, such as the $10-billion Al Maktoum International Airport being built in Jebel Ali, United Arab
Acautious optimism prevails as the year ends in Thailand, with materials indexes in flux. As in the U.S., local construction industry analysts believe the Thai recession has reached bottom and that small price increases now surfacing are a positive sign. + Image Source: FAITHFUL + GOULD Thailand Price-Change Movement Related Links: Forecast: Inflation Stalls As Recession Undercuts Nonresidential Building Markets Markets: Major Firms Are Pessimistic About A Fast Industry Recovery International: Global Recession Pushes Down Inflation China: The New Driver Of International Costs Has Troubles Of Its Own Canada: Cool Forecast Keeps Costs In The Deep Freeze Complete 4th Quarterly
How low can it go? That is the question being asked this fall by developers as the economic recession rips through commercial markets with a vengeance, knocking out many projects and lenders and casting uncertainty on the future. Photo: Woodbine Development Corp. Opus North has several major projects under development, including the Shoppes at Fox River, a $40-million mall in Waukesha, Wis. Related Links: The Top Owners Sourcebook Complete Report Story Overview: The Top Owners Health Care: Owners Start To Resume Work On Projects That Were on Hold Education: School Districts Still Reeling From Crash of Housing Market Water/Wastewater: Economic
Over the last six months, the deepening recession its accompanying credit crisis have dramatically changed the construction industry’s cost picture. Construction inflation has gone from the double-digit realm just last summer to between 2% and 6% this quarter. Ten of the 14 major industry cost indexes collected by ENR for this report posted declines during the first quarter, ranging from 0.5% to 8.4%. Slide Show Photo: Michael Moore Related Links: Renegotiations Make Bad Times Worse Labor Deals with Uncertainties Finding Cost Data on the Internet What Drives ENR’s Cost Indexes How To Use ENR’s Cost Indexes View Complete Report with
Uncertainty prevails in Asian construction markets this quarter as the global financial scare causes materials price indexes to go awry. A drop in building demand across China and Southeast Asia in the past two months has sparked a broad-based deflation of materials prices following record-high levels for steel, scrap, rebar, copper, and others, which peaked just months ago. (Click to Enlarge Image) Source: Davis langdon & seah. Asian Construction Inflation Related Links: Credit Cancer Kills Prospects for Recession-Proof Global Economy Global Financial Crisis and Recession Is Knocking Down Inflation Worldwide Even Overheated Gulf Market Moves Into a Slump in a
As the U.S. credit crisis dampens the market for domestic general building projects, contractors and designers with the ability to work globally are eyeing foreign prospects more than ever. While North American and European markets are freezing up, causing projects to be delayed, scaled back or canceled, design and construction markets in Asia and the Middle East are still being propelled by the momentum of a spate of major development and infrastructure projects. In Asia and especially the Middle East, massive-scale projects to build and design self-contained cities and huge residential, office and entertainment complexes are drawing designers, project managers
