Policy & Finance

    To Foretell the Future of Design, Look to Policy—and This Website

    Infrastructure has been on a lot of minds lately, though nobody seems to agree what it means. A progressive may consider infrastructure spending as a way to expand the social safety net and tackle climate change. A conservative might say it’s a publicly funded inducement for private enterprise and the nation’s overall economic competitiveness. Both would probably think it’s good for creating jobs. I believe it could have a net positive effect on our buildings, neighborhoods, towns, and cities. Lately,… Read More »To Foretell the Future of Design, Look to Policy—and This Website

      Railroads and Recessions

      Is the economy bound for a recession? That’s arguably the biggest question in business right now. Experts are divided, with Goldman Sachs and Moody’s sounding cautiously optimistic, and billionaires Elon Musk and Leon Cooperman fearing the worst. The White House, for its part, is focused intently averting a rail strike, fearing it could tip the scales. A forced agreement is making its way through Congress. On Nov. 28, President Joe Biden releasing a statement in support of legislative action. Let… Read More »Railroads and Recessions

        Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Report Card: Needs Improvement

        There’s been a great deal of attention paid lately to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the building industry. The Associated General Contractors of America has its Culture of Care initiative, for instance, and the American Institute of Architects its monumental Guides for Equitable Practice. But for all the position statements and policy-setting, just how robust is DEI in actual industry practice? A new study, commissioned by the U.S. General Services Administration from the Dodge Construction Network, examines architecture firms… Read More »Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Report Card: Needs Improvement

          Public, Private Programs Target the Infrastructure Labor Shortage

          There’s good news and there’s bad news. First, the good: The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, aka the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, is estimated to create hundreds of thousands of jobs. Now, the bad: The construction industry is facing a massive labor shortage, in part due to record-low levels of immigration. According to McKinsey, “In April, the U.S. construction industry had roughly 440,000 job openings, and the U.S. manufacturing industry had more than one million—the highest levels recorded since industry-level jobs… Read More »Public, Private Programs Target the Infrastructure Labor Shortage

            The Civil Quarterly 2022 Issue 4

            The Civil Quarterly (TCQ) features original research collected quarterly from civil contractors, engineers and owners. The research provides a snapshot of the current business health of contractors operating in the dynamic civil sector, and each issue also offers insights into some of the many trends that are transforming the sector through research, interviews and feature articles. This quarter’s issue features: The latest on civil contractors’ business conditions, including their confidence in the market, expected revenue and profitability, and supply chain… Read More »The Civil Quarterly 2022 Issue 4

              Post-COVID, Not All Downtowns Are Bouncing Back

              Downtowns across the country are struggling to recover from COVID-19, Bloomberg columnist Justin Fox reports. A recent study from the University of California, Berkeley used cell phone data from cities across the country to compare business district activity in the spring of this year with activity prior to the outbreak. The slowdown is worse in San Francisco than any other city, with only activity at only 31% of pre-pandemic levels. Since the onset of the pandemic, San Francisco has been the… Read More »Post-COVID, Not All Downtowns Are Bouncing Back

                The Dodge Momentum Index Improves in September

                The Dodge Momentum Index, issued by Dodge Construction Network, improved 5.7% (2000=100) in September to 183.2 from the revised August reading of 173.4. The DMI is a monthly measure of the initial report for nonresidential building projects in planning, shown to lead construction spending for nonresidential buildings by a full year. In September, the commercial component of the Momentum Index rose 2.9%, while the institutional component also increased, seeing a double-digit gain of 11.7%. After a solid performance in September, the DMI… Read More »The Dodge Momentum Index Improves in September

                  Coastal Reconstruction After Hurricane Ian

                  The damage wrought by Hurricane Ian has already prompted conversations about a rebuilding boom in Florida as well as concerns about construction labor shortages in the state. The recovery effort certainly will be colossal: The storm took more than 100 lives and left behind private-market insured losses of between $53 billion and $74 billion, according to risk modeling company RMS. Sarasota County has already announced its intention to expedite all storm-related permits. What’s less clear is precisely how Florida will… Read More »Coastal Reconstruction After Hurricane Ian

                    The State of the Built Environment, Climate-Wise

                    The last word on the climate crisis goes to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Every six to seven years, the group releases an Assessment Report coalescing the latest research. Its findings, the IPCC explains, “provide a comprehensive summary of what is known about the drivers of climate change, its impacts and future risks, and how adaptation and mitigation can reduce those risks.” The IPCC released its Sixth Assessment Report earlier this year, and the findings were alarming to say… Read More »The State of the Built Environment, Climate-Wise

                      The Civil Quarterly 2022 Issue 3

                      The Civil Quarterly (TCQ) features original research collected quarterly from civil contractors, engineers and owners. The research provides a snapshot of the current business health of contractors operating in the dynamic civil sector, and each issue also offers insights into some of the many trends that are transforming the sector through research, interviews and feature articles. This quarter’s issue features: The latest on civil contractors’ business conditions, including their confidence in the market, their high levels of backlog and the… Read More »The Civil Quarterly 2022 Issue 3

                        Study Highlights Civil Engineer and Contractor Concerns About U.S. Infrastructure Resiliency

                        HAMILTON, NJ – July 21, 2022 — The latest edition of The Civil Quarterly (TCQ) from Dodge Construction Network reveals that increasing resilience of U.S. infrastructure is a priority across the industry. The findings show 82% of civil contractors and 92% of civil engineers affirmed that they have worked on projects that prioritize resilience. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) includes significant funding for bolstering the resilience of infrastructure in the US, but funding just lays the groundwork. The success of these efforts… Read More »Study Highlights Civil Engineer and Contractor Concerns About U.S. Infrastructure Resiliency