Construction is 14.7% of the global GDP
Construction is one of the world’s largest industries and is estimated to represent 14.7 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the world’s leading economies, including the United States, Canada, Japan, Germany and the UK.
The United States has achieved great advances in the advancement of construction technology and available construction materials. As a result, the US has a huge potential for expansion in the construction industry.
The US construction industry promotes the notion of individualism. For this reason, many people consider becoming a construction worker, architect, engineer, planner, or similar professional. If you want to be a part of the American culture, take advantage of the experience these people have gained and continue the advancement in the construction industry.
Although the construction industry is in a very good position, it could be doing much better with the development of new technology and materials. Having a firm foundation, construction contractors and construction companies can now focus on other aspects such as marketing materials and technology advancements.
Here’s something about that. The design of your construction project can be very essential considering that it has a direct impact on the budget of the construction project and the lifetime of the construction project. It is this design that can increase the value of the property, improve the efficiency of the construction project, and keep the project working for a longer period without repairs.
Construction spending in the U.S. reached $1.23 trillion in 2017
A 4.6% increase over the previous year.
Over the last decade, construction spending – both residential and nonresidential – has grown at an average annual rate of 4.5%. However, the industry doesn’t rank among the top four U.S. industries for 2018 forecasts, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In 2017, nonresidential construction spending hit its second highest level since 2008, behind 2004. Spending on residential construction reached its highest level since 2007.
Nonresidential construction spending in 2017 reached its highest level since the Great Recession in 2008 (just before the housing bubble burst). Residential construction spending also hit a high in 2017.
Despite the boost in spending in 2016 and 2017, construction spending still ranks below earlier years, such as 2005, 2002 and 1998.
Together with educational services, federal and state government, health care and social assistance and professional and business services, construction was the only four-horse race among the top 10 contributors to employment in 2017.
The BLS reported that construction employment has fallen since the Great Recession, and the percentage of construction jobs in the U.S. remains below its 5.1% level from early 2008 to November 2008.
New York City has set aside around $70 billion to spend in construction in 2019
Representing a crucial sector of the US economy.
Construction will account for 2 million of the 7 million construction jobs in the US in 2018, projecting the annual median income by state by state.
In 2018, the construction companies in the US employed 982,000 people.
As per a report by the US Department of Labor, the construction industry is expected to employ one million employees by 2022.
The value of the construction project across the US in 2018 was more than 14.5 billion dollars.
The residential real estate market is also showing positive signs across the US, according to the Housing and Home Price Indices (data from Zillow).
There are more than 70,000 commercial construction businesses in the U.S.
The International Confederation of Healthcare Councils estimates the construction industry accounts for 13 percent of the U.S. GDP, and they’re projecting this figure will climb to 17 percent by the year 2015.
The need for skilled construction laborers continues to rise, as does the demand for skilled laborers in general. Hiring construction managers is one way to address these two issues. Manufacturing is another industry that employers are finding more difficult to fill positions for.
One of the biggest challenges facing construction employers is keeping qualified employees in their workforce. Among such industries as health care and education, construction isn’t considered the highest paying industry. But, qualified employees in education may transfer to a construction employer, and while construction isn’t the highest paying industry, it can be the highest paying position.
Labor positions in construction have become difficult to fill
And as a result, contractors and developers have to hire lower quality employees … sometimes those who may be inexperienced.
Contractor account managers and staff in the offices of project developers are the key positions in the construction industry that are being held for the longest periods of time. We recently surveyed 600 construction and building industry professionals and contractors to help determine just how bad the industry’s talent shortage really was and the effect it was having on the construction industry.
Our research found that labor positions in construction have become difficult to fill and as a result, contractors and developers have to hire lower quality employees … sometimes those who may be inexperienced. The shortage is also having a big impact on contractors’ ability to complete projects on time and on budget.
How is the Building Industry Currently Handling the Talent Shortage?
Our research shows that although the number of vacant projects is decreasing, it’s still more than it was just a couple of years ago. Project developers are struggling to find skilled workers to fill vacant positions.
The construction industry employed 10.7 million people in 2017
The U.S. construction industry is measured by building products, services and geographic areas. There are more than one hundred products and services that can be included in the construction industry.
A total of 10.7 million people in the US were employed in the construction industry in 2017. The US construction industry includes contractors, construction managers, trade contractors, subcontractors, and manufacturers. While construction job growth has slowed, construction jobs have increased by nearly 5 percent since 2010.
The construction industry can be broken down into these main categories:
Residential Construction
Residential construction includes new homes, single-family homes, apartment buildings, and condominiums. The historic low point for U.S. housing starts occurred during the 1973-74 recession, when 786,000 housing units were started. Between 2009 and 2017, the number of housing starts ranged from a high of 1,009,000 in 2009 to 662,000 in 2017.
Civil Construction
Civil construction is defined as all construction and environmental work inside public works projects, manufacturing plants, and offices buildings. Civil construction includes work on highways, bridges, and airports. Civil construction can also include maintenance on existing facilities and roads, and the building of schools and hospitals. During the 1973-74 recession, civil construction employment fell by 11 percent from its high in the previous cycle. Since then, civil construction employment has steadily climbed, reaching 1.6 million in 2017.
Less than 10% of workers in the construction industry are female
The construction industry has a long way to go when it comes to gender equality. And in this case, not all construction tasks are equal … The area that construction companies need to focus on has to do with the percentage of female workers. As of 2011, 12% of construction industry workers were female. That’s less than 10% and shows no sign of improvement.
There are various theories as to why this disparity exists. One (and certainly the most sexist) explanation is that women smell bad. It was believed in the 1950s that women were unprofessional and untrustworthy … this was due to the wrong choice of work dress code. Today’s technological advances mean that workers can be identified by fingerprint scanners.
One other theory (and a lot more sensible explanation) is that women just don’t see construction jobs as attractive. However, a survey showed that 40% of women did want a career in construction. It’s difficult to say whether women have any more difficulties obtaining jobs in construction than their male counterparts.
In general, women find themselves becoming disillusioned with the career path and lack of recognition compared to the men in the field. This status-quo discourages women from entering into the industry and pursuing a career within it.
General contractors and construction managers make an average of about $91,370 per year
The average age of homeowners in the United States is 45years, and that will jump to 52 years by the year 2014.
The project manager is responsible for the overall work on the project. The person in this position is typically responsible for the following.
Keep up with the progress of the project.
Communicate with the contractor; reporting to them any work that might affect the project.
Call the appropriate construction inspector for the project and make sure they meet their deadlines as well.
Manage the project’s final accounts.
Handle the contracts and other related activities for the project.
The median age of construction workers is 42 years old
It’s no secret that the average age of construction workers is on the rise, but how quickly are some industries aging?
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median age of construction workers in 2004 was 42, up 7 years from 1970 when it was 29. The data also shows that construction workers over the age of 40 make up the majority (55 percent) of the construction workforce.
Millennials (defined in this instance as those born between 1980 and 2000) and Generation X (those born between 1965 and 1979) saw a decline in the employment of construction workers between 2004 and 2014 but an increase in 2014.
Over the next decade, the BLS projects a rise in the number of construction workers needed to about 1.3 million,compared to 1.1 million in 2014. This means that employers are going to have to be more flexible with ways to attract and retain construction workers. To combat this, the Department of Labor now allows home builders to hire workers without the need to verify liability insurance. Workers over 18 might want to consider this option if they are seeking entry to the construction industry.
Almost 30% of construction workers are Latino or Hispanic
With the rapid growth of the construction industry, this information is crucial to keeping up with current industry trends.
According to the US Census Bureau, in 2014, there were 2.1 million Latinos and Hispanics employed as construction workers. While this number is only slightly greater than the population of that demographic (which in 2011 was 37 million), Latinos and Hispanics make up about 30.2 percent of construction workers in