Construction employment increased in 152 out of 339 metropolitan areas between March 2012 and March 2013, declined in 126 and was stagnant in 61, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released today by ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½app of America.
Today, ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½app celebrates green construction efforts on Earth Day, along with its chapters and members. While ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½app debuts a new online toolkit for building energy code information, ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½app chapters and members celebrate Earth Day through building green, recycling, carpooling, planting trees, cleaning up rivers and sponsoring awareness events.
With increasing demand for design services, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) is continuing to strengthen. The ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the February ABI score was 54.9, up slightly from a mark of 54.2 in January.
Due to the continual decline of construction employment over the past five years, many contractors are concerned about the availability of skilled workers now that hiring in the industry has resumed. Many former construction workers have left for other industries or retired.
The Real Estate Roundtable recently released their Q1-2013 Sentiment Survey. The survey is the commercial real estate industry’s most comprehensive measure of senior executives’ confidence in the industry. The survey receives the opinions of CEOs, presidents and other top executives on the following topics: overall real estate conditions, access to capital markets and real estate asset pricing.
The Architecture Billings Index (ABI), a leading indicator of the U.S. construction activity nine to 12 months into the future, had a score 52.0 in the month of December. Any reading above 50 is said to indicate expansion, while any reading below 50 is said to indicate a decline in the demand for design services.
The construction industry is facing a shortage of employable workers in several states including Florida, Texas, Iowa and Arizona and is expected to impact other states as the construction industry continues to strengthen.
The Architecture Billing index, a leading indicator of the U.S. construction activity nine to 12 months into the future, demonstrated its strongest growth pace since December 2010. In the month of October the ABI score was 52.8, up from the mark of 51.6 in September. Any reading above 50 is said to indicate expansion, while any reading below 50 is said to indicate a decline in the demand for design services.Â
The newly revised ConsensusDocs standard subcontract (ConsensusDocs 752 for Federal Work) will make it easier for general contractors and subcontractors to perform federal work. The updated ConsensusDocs 752 Federal Subcontract Agreement is designed to address recent changes in federal contracting such as requirements for certifying small business entities and new reporting of executive compensation requirements.
According to a report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in construction will be one of the best-paying jobs through 2020, along with health care and social assistance, scientific and technical services, waste management, and transportation. The report projects that approximately 1.8 million jobs will be created by a construction boom across the country.