Associated Builders and Contractors reported today that its Construction Backlog Indicator increased to 9.3 months in July, according to an ABC member survey conducted July 20 to Aug. 4. The reading is up by 0.6 months since July 2022.
The South remains the region with the highest level of backlog, despite being the only region with lower backlog on a year-ago basis. Backlog gains in July were concentrated in the commercial and institutional category.
“Nonresidential construction backlog continues to expand, which is precisely what contractors had predicted six months ago," said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. "For many months, contractors have been signaling an expectation that demand for their services would continue to expand despite high and rising interest rates and a spate of regional bank failures.
“That said, there are some surprises in the data,” said Basu. “Backlog declined in both the infrastructure and heavy industry categories, possibly because the current administration is striving to reserve many large-scale projects for unionized firms. ABC members are largely nonunion, and therefore may be locked out of a meaningful proportion of significant opportunities. Diminished competition for such projects would tend to drive up construction service delivery charges, much of which are financed by American taxpayers."
ABC’s Construction Confidence Index reading for profit margins and staffing levels moved higher in July, while the reading for sales fell slightly. All three readings remain above the threshold of 50, indicating expectations of growth over the next six months.
Related Stories
| Jan 4, 2011
An official bargain, White House loses $79 million in property value
One of the most famous office buildings in the world—and the official the residence of the President of the United States—is now worth only $251.6 million. At the top of the housing boom, the 132-room complex was valued at $331.5 million (still sounds like a bargain), according to Zillow, the online real estate marketplace. That reflects a decline in property value of about 24%.
| Jan 4, 2011
Grubb & Ellis predicts commercial real estate recovery
Grubb & Ellis Company, a leading real estate services and investment firm, released its 2011 Real Estate Forecast, which foresees the start of a slow recovery in the leasing market for all property types in the coming year.
| Jan 4, 2011
Furniture Sustainability Standard - Approved by ANSI and Released for Distribution
BIFMA International recently announced formal American National Standards Institute (ANSI) approval and release of the ANSI/BIFMA e3-2010 Furniture Sustainability Standard. The e3 standard represents a structured methodology to evaluate the "sustainable" attributes of furniture products and constitutes the technical criteria of the level product certification program.
| Dec 28, 2010
Project of the Week: Community college for next-gen Homeland Security personnel
The College of DuPage, Glen Ellyn, Ill., began work on the Homeland Security Education Center, which will prepare future emergency personnel to tackle terrorist attacks and disasters. The $25 million, 61,100-sf building’s centerpiece will be an immersive interior street lab for urban response simulations.
| Dec 20, 2010
Architect Adrian D. Smith on zero-energy cities, new technologies, and high density.
Adrian D. Smith, FAIA, RIBA, is co-founder (with Gordon Gill) of Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, Chicago. Previously, he was a design partner in the Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (1980-2003) and a consulting design partner from 2004 to 2006. His landmark structures include the Jin Mao Tower (Shanghai), Rowes Wharf (Boston), and Burj Khalifa (Dubai, U.A.E.), the world’s tallest structure. He recently collaborated with Gordon Gill to design the world’s first net-zero-energy skyscraper, Pearl River Tower, now nearing completion in Guangzhou, China. This account is based on his recent remarks at the Illinois Institute of Technology.
| Dec 17, 2010
BIM Tools Enhance Project Value
The Building Team for a renovation project at Georgia Tech uses BIM and 3D design tools to solve a complex millwork problem.
| Dec 17, 2010
Historic Rhode Island hotel reborn with modern amenities
The iconic Ocean House resort in Watch Hill, R.I., had to be torn down in 2005 when systemic deficiencies made restoration unfeasible. Centerbrook Architects and Planners, Centerbrook, Conn., designed a new version of the hotel, working with preservation societies to save or recreate favorite elements of the original building, and incorporating them into the contemporary structure. The new resort has 49 guest rooms and 23 residences, plus banquet halls, a corporate boardroom, a private clubroom, a spa and fitness center, an indoor lap pool, a bar, and the obligatory international croquet court. Dimeo Construction, Providence, R.I., was the construction manager.
| Dec 17, 2010
Gemstone-inspired design earns India’s first LEED Gold for a hotel
The Park Hotel Hyderabad in Hyderabad, India, was designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill to combine inspirations from the region’s jewelry-making traditions with sustainable elements.
| Dec 17, 2010
Condominium and retail building offers luxury and elegance
The 58-story Austonian in Austin, Texas, is the tallest residential building in the western U.S. Benchmark Development, along with Ziegler Cooper Architects and Balfour Beatty (GC), created the 850,000-sf tower with 178 residences, retail space, a 6,000-sf fitness center, and a 10th-floor outdoor area with a 75-foot saltwater lap pool and spa, private cabanas, outdoor kitchens, and pet exercise and grooming areas.
