March constructsteel newsletter

France and China team up to build seven infrastructure projects around the world with a combined value of more than $1.7bn. This deal is a part of the two countries’ Third-Party Market Cooperation agreement. Seven projects would be constructed in Africa, Southeast Asia and Central and Eastern Europe and would cover infrastructure, environmental protection and energy

Construction sector in USA needs more than half a million workers above its current pace of hiring in order to meet demand in 2022, according to an analysis released by Associated Builders and Contractors. Predictive models from ABC indicate the industry needs 650,000 additional workers. With many industries outside of construction also competing for increasingly scarce labor, the industry must take drastic steps to ensure future workforce demands are met.

The European construction sector is expected to grow by 2.5% in 2022, as a result of “fresh investment from the EU recovery fund, according to global economic analysis specialist ING. In its latest EU Construction Outlook report, the company said that despite price pressures, business confidence at the beginning of 2022 was positive among most contractors in the European Union, and back to pre-covid levels.

A new study has concluded that widespread adoption of cutting-edge technology has the potential to significantly aid the construction industry’s efforts to cut carbon emissions, as well as increasing productivity and reducing project costs. The study concluded that an increase of around 20%, across all categories, was likely in the next five years. At the forefront of technologies for the industry, the study highlighted the Internet of Things, through its ability to track and monitor equipment and materials.

The construction of the GCC railway network connecting Qatar to neighbouring Saudi Arabia will begin soon. The 2,177km long Gulf Railway is a proposed railway system that will connect all six of the GCC countries in Eastern Arabia. The project is expected to cost $250 billion, which will be shared by the six countries, in accordance with the length of the rail network in their territories.

Construction materials costs in the US are up 17.5 percent year-over-year from 2020 to 2021. The US Census Bureau says that’s the largest year-over-year increase in material costs since 1970. The increase is affecting everything from lumber, to concrete, to metal and hundreds of materials in between. The construction materials shortage in the UK has been easing since the end of 2021, but the soaring cost of electricity and gas could lead to reduced sales and rising materials costs.

Shaken by a liquidity crunch among developers, China’s property market is expected to stay soft in the first half of 2022 before rebounding later in the year as policies aimed at encouraging buyers helps sentiment recover. Average home prices are estimated to fall 1.0% on year in the first half, for the full year, home prices are expected to rise 2.0% according to a Reuters survey of 17 analysts and economists.

Australia aims to cut construction-related greenhouse gas emissions by making $212m available in debt financing to encourage the use of mass timber on big construction projects. The money comes from state investor, the Clean Finance Investment Corporation, which calculated that using engineered wood could cut buildings’ embodied carbon by up to 75% compared to the use of conventional steel and concrete.

The global market for Building Information Modelling (BIM) software will be worth US$21 billion by 2025, according to research data from Cambashi. Remote working trends resulting from the global pandemic, as well as government initiatives and regulations, are driving digital transformation in the construction industry.

The White House announced it will establish a “Buy Clean” task force to focus on the production and purchase of lowcarbon materials made in the U.S. for use in federal construction projects. The move comes after a December executive order meant to make the federal government more sustainable. The administration claims that the new policies will create more jobs and boost the country’s competitiveness in the global market.

Key players in European steel market join SteelZero. B+M Steel, Eiffage Métal France, and Skanska UK will commit to specifying and stocking 100% netzero-carbon steel by 2050 – this includes an interim commitment of using 50% responsibly produced steel by 2030.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)has announced funding for the development of construction technologies to help humans live and work on the Moon. Three US universities will each receive US$2 million for research into the use of lunar resources for construction and advanced electronics that could continue to function in the extreme cold temperatures.

German contractor Hochtief has announced to buy remaining shares in Australia’s largest construction concern Cimic. Currently, Hochtief owns 78.58% of Cimic and has offered A$22 per share for the remaining amount, in a final cash offer. Reuters notes that this amounts.

Ferrovial and Microsoft have agreed on a global alliance to advance digital solutions for the construction, infrastructure and mobility industries. The agreement includes the two companies working on the digitalisation of Ferrovial’s operations, including process automation, frontline worker communications and project collaboration, AI technologies, and the development of zero trust cyber security models.

Strong 2021 sales figures for Fluor – engineering construction company has announced revenue of US$12.4 billion in its financial results for 2021, with full year new awards at US$8.8 billion compared to US$7.5 billion a year ago. Company guidance for 2022 assumes increased opportunities for new awards across all segments and continued progress on its cost optimisation program.

Top 10 contractor Tutor Perini reported profits of $29.3 million, or 57 cents a share, in the fourth quarter, down 17% from the year-ago period reflecting a slowdown in construction. Still, the weaker results beat Wall Street’s average estimate of 51 cents per share, according to Seeking Alpha. Full-year profits totalled $91.9 million versus $108.4 million.

Jacobs Engineering Group profit falls and backlog rises 12%. Company reported that profits in its first fiscal quarter tumbled almost 48% to $134 million, or $1.03 per share, and revenue was flat at $3.38 billion as declines in its U.S. operations outweighed gains overseas, particularly in Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

Lendlease calls 2022 a ‘reset’ year. Company lost $264 million in the first half of its fiscal 2022, ended Dec. 31, compared to a $196 million profit in the year-ago period, as the builder absorbed higher than expected restructuring charges and lingering impacts from COVID-19 on its development business.