The Building Information Modeling Report
Sponsored by ITT Bell & Gossett
Study finds that more construction firms plan to hire in 2011 despite stagnant demand; BIM use to rise
WAShIngton — More construction firms are planning to hire workers this year than are planning to make layoffs, according to the results of an industry-wide survey released today by the Associated general Contractors of America and navigant. the survey, conducted as part of the Construction Industry Hiring and Business Outlook, shows the industry may finally be emerging from a severe down- turn that has left millions of skilled workers unemployed. “this won’t be an easy year for most firms, but it will
be better than last year,” said Stephen e. Sandherr, the association’s chief executive officer. “If current trends continue, this industry will be in a much better position 12 months from now than it is today.” Sandherr noted that while 55 percent of firms laid off
staff and only 20 percent of firms added employees in 2010, the outlook is more positive for 2011. he said that 27 percent of construction firms report they plan to add staff in 2011 while only 20 percent report plan layoffs. even more positive, expanding firms plan to hire an aver- age of 23 employees, while contracting firms plan to lay off an average of 16 employees. Despite the improving employment outlook, more con-
tractors expect the construction market to shrink in 2011 than expect it to grow. Contractors are most pessimistic about the private office market, where 56 percent expect activity to decline, followed by the retail, warehouse and lodging market, where 52 percent expect less activity. Contractors are most optimistic about the hospital & higher education market, where 32 percent expect growth and the power market, where 29 percent expect growth. however, even for those markets, 36 percent of contrac- tors expect the hospital & higher education market to shrink and 32 percent expect the power market to con- tract. Contractors’ low expectations may be driven by the fact
most firms expect stimulus-funded construction activity will decline this year. Clear majorities of firms (ranging
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from 56 percent to 66 percent) expect stimulus spending in every market segment to decline in 2011. Meanwhile, only 30 percent of firms report they plan to perform stim- ulus-funded work this year, down from the 45 percent that reported performing stimulus-funded work in 2009 or 2010.
“the stimulus propped up many construction jobs dur-
ing the past two years,” said Ken Simonson, the associa- tion's chief economist, noting that firms reported one-in- five employees were involved in stimulus-funded projects during the past 12 months. “the stimulus is already becoming a thing of the past in most contractors’ minds.” Bid levels will remain very competitive this year. According to the survey results, 29 percent of firms report they plan to lower bid levels in 2011. that follows a year when 74 percent of firms reported lowering bid levels, including seven percent who reported lowering bid levels to the point they lost money performing the work. growing numbers of firms plan to embrace new con-
struction modeling technology known as Building Information Modeling (BIM) this year, Feigin noted. While only eight percent of firms currently use the technology, 55 percent expect that number to increase in 2011. Demand for green construction also continues to grow, with 15 percent of firms reporting working on leadership in energy and environmental Design (leeD) registered projects in 2010 and 53 percent expecting that number to grow this year.
Jay R. Smith Mfg. Co.® now has more than 150 new BIM family model objects
MontgoMery, AlA. — Jay r. Smith’s BIM objects, in concert with Autodesk’s revit® MeP, will allow users to integrate Smith’s wide array of products into their virtual 3D project spaces. through the advent of BIM technolo- gy, designers can work in a collaborative environment making use of 3D models embedded with relevant and reliable design information. the Jay r. Smith Mfg. Co.’s 3D BIM models can be
easily accessed at
www.jrsmith.com,
www.smartbim.com and
www.seek.autodesk.com.
March 2011
Image courtesy of Autodesk
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