A Mixed Recovery for Contractors: 2nd Quarter Construction Outlook
Published on by Erik Wurtenberger in Construction
Recovery from Q1 2021 is expected across most of the construction industry, according to the Fails Management Institute (FMI) Construction Industry Round Table (CIRT). Contributing factors for this improved industry confidence noted by the CIRT members include increased vaccine distribution programs, ongoing government stimulus, and increased customer spending.
The CIRT is composed of approximately 115-120 CEOs from architectural, engineering, and construction firms across the United States.
For Q2 2021, members were asked to reflect on any external or internal impacts seen through 2020 and looking forward related to the market disruptions experienced. External positive long-lasting impacts were noted in the warehouse and distribution industries. Some industries were noted as positive trends, but to a lesser extent; these included K-12 education, hospitals, railways, and heavy industrial and other heavy civil. External significant negative impacts were noted to demands surrounding retail, corporate office, lodging, amusement, and convention center industries.
Internal impacts were noted to the increased flexibility related to working from home, additional technology needs, and additional safety and staff health needs. These were determined as having long-lasting effects on their organizations. Areas such as real estate and office needs decreased due to this as well.
The CIRT report went on to detail predictions for Q2 2021 showing that the economy where they do business, the overall US economy, non-residential construction, and residential construction were expected to moderately improve or significantly improve by a majority of the CIRT.
Construction inputs for Q2 2021 which included backlog, cost of labor, cost of materials, and productivity were expected to be moderately higher or significantly higher by the CIRT as well.
Additional Resources
For more information on the Q2 2021 FMI CIRT, see the full report.
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