Future forward 5 trends to watch for in 2022 • By Will Pender
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or most people working in the construction industry, 2021 was a blur. As pandemic-postponed projects kicked off, ongoing supply chain disruptions and price increases for materials added pressure to an industry already struggling with a tight labor market. Many of the challenges the industry faced in 2021 will continue into 2022, and some new challenges are bubbling to the surface. Below are five trends to watch in the coming year.
Trend No. 1: Smoother Supply Chains
Over the past 18-plus months or so, supply chain disruptions have created a lot of headaches for the construction industry. According to global real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield, capacity utilization plummeted in 2020. Mills, processing plants and manufacturing operations slowed or stopped due to health concerns, supply chain freezes, and lack of demand.
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COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — ISSUE 10, 2021
Due to the lack of production, supply shortages and lengthy delivery times plagued GCs and projects across the country. Everyone in the industry had to fight for materials, pay more for them, and adjust their budgets. But the supply chain should be in much better shape by mid-summer. Everyone is now focused on fixing the supply chain, and US ports are working 24/7 to unload container ships and route them to their final destination. As the supply chain settles, bottlenecks will improve and pricing for construction materials will level out. And construction schedules, particularly the schedule for buying materials, will slowly start to return to pre-pandemic levels. In the future, supply chain disruptions will likely be mitigated by nearshoring efforts—the production of materials and products made in the USA.
