New Industry Survey Shows Construction Activity Returning to Pre-Pandemic Levels
(UC) — A new survey by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) and data from construction technology firm Procore show that construction activity is returning to pre-coronavirus levels in many parts of the country and some firms are adding workers.
The new economic data, however, also shows some future projects are being canceled and many others are being delayed by supply chain issues and labor shortages, underscoring the need for additional federal recovery measures, association officials noted.
“Many of the immediate economic impacts of the coronavirus have passed and, as a result, activity and hiring are up, a bit,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “But while the immediate crisis appears to have passed, we are just now beginning to appreciate some of the longer-term impacts of the pandemic on the industry.”
Construction activity has returned to pre-coronavirus levels in 34 states, based on data on workers’ hours analyzed by Procore.
Construction has returned to pre-coronavirus levels in Dallas and Miami, according to Procore’s data on 8 large metro areas.
AGC’s survey found that only 8% of construction firms were forced to furlough or lay off workers in June while 21% report adding employees, compared to one-in-four firms letting workers go between March and May.
“But it is important to remember that construction activity typically increases quite a bit between March 1 and the end of May as the weather improves and more work gets underway,” Simonson commented. “Getting to March 1 levels is a sign of progress, but it doesn’t mean things are back to normal.”
Simonson added that the AGC survey and Procore’s data show the severe toll the pandemic took on the construction industry.
61% of firms report having had at least one project halted or canceled because of the pandemic.
One in four firms report that construction materials shortages, caused by lock downs and trade disruptions, are causing delays on current projects.
Procore data found that smaller firms experienced more severe declines in construction activity during the pandemic than larger firms.
"To date, a majority of states are experiencing levels of construction activity equal to, or in some cases, much higher than they reported prior to COVID-19,” said Kristopher Lengieza, Procore’s Senior Director of Business Development.
Simonson added that moving forward, only 12% of firms report they plan to furlough or lay off staff over the next four weeks while 17% anticipate adding to their headcount during that time span.
42% do not expect demand will recover to normal levels for at least four months, and most of those firms expect recovery will take longer than six months.
The association’s new survey is based on responses from over 630 firms collected between June 9 and 17.
Procore’s data is based on the transactions logged via the company’s software by tens of thousands of construction firms across the country.
Click here for the association’s survey results and here for a video summary of the survey responses. Click here for Procore’s new construction data.
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