November constructsteel newsletter

UK construction companies saw a modest increase in business activity during September, representing a return to growth after two months of falling output. But optimism for future prospects dropped to its lowest level for two years as the prospects of higher interest rates and a downturn in the wider UK economy cast a cloud on construction. The S&P Global/CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index hit 52.3 in September from 49.2 in August – above the crucial 50 no-change mark for the first time since June.

Spanish plans to renew infrastructure hamstrung by 33% surge in construction costs. Spanish contractors have failed to make any bids in some 1,455 tenders for public-sector building schemes this year. In 2021, the number of no-bids was around 500. Companies had turned their back on building work worth €653m after deciding that they would not be able to make a profit from their involvement.

As the Biden administration continues to release more funds from the $1.2-trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), top officials also are putting a spotlight on finding ways to step up the pace for IIJA projects’ delivery, from planning and permitting through engineering and construction. The White House held an Accelerating Infrastructure Summit, bringing together state, local and federal officials, along with representatives from industry groups and organised labour to delve into strategies for shaving project-delivery times.

Florida will need at least $33 billion in federal support to recover from Hurricane Ian. Under the plan, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would gain more than one-third of the funding, with $12 billion allocated for storm-related damage repair and rehabilitation work, as well as the construction of authorised coastal storm risk management and shoreline protection, flood control and ecosystem restoration projects. Nearly $400 million would augment existing programs to reduce flood risks; improve water management flexibility to increase coastal resilience; and operations and maintenance for dredging and navigation projects affected by Hurricane Ian, as well as storm-related operating expenses.

US rail freight company BNSF is set to invest over $1.5bn in the construction of a rail hub in southern California’s Mojave Desert. The Barstow International Gateway will be located on a 1,800ha site to the west of the town of the same name in San Bernardino County. It will contain a rail yard, an intermodal facility and warehouses for moving freight from international to domestic containers.

A total of 299 new projects of expressways and national and provincial highways were kicked off in China in the first nine months of the year, with a length of 9,645 km. The total investment of these projects hit 882.6 billion yuan (about 123 billion U.S. dollars). In September alone, 34 new major road projects were initiated, adding that their total investment reached 385.3 billion yuan, skyrocketing about 277% from a month ago.

The Middle East and Africa was the only region in the world to record an increase in hotel pipeline activity at the end of the third quarter. The region’s total hotel rooms under contract rose about 2% in September compared with the same month last year, to 243,613. Saudi Arabia and the UAE led the region’s construction activity with 39,070 and 32,373 hotel rooms, respectively.

Prices in 100 cities in China dropped for the fourth straight month in October, falling 0.01% month-on-month after a decline of 0.02% in September. Property sales by floor area in 100 cities fell about 20% year-on-year in October.

In the wake of deteriorating air quality, the Indian capital Delhi has prohibited construction and demolition activities. Air quality index (AQI) was 415 in Delhi– more than eight times the “good” level, according to the Central Pollution Control Board.

Saudi Arabia’s mega projects helped fuel SR94.5 billion ($25.15 billion) in contracts being awarded in the first half of 2022. This represented an 88% year-on-year rise. The total value of projects awarded during the second quarter reached SR48.6 billion, while in the first quarter it stood at SR46 billion. The awarding of contracts by Saudi Aramco as part of its oil field developments in the Eastern Province, and the Neom Green Hydrogen Company’s construction of facilities at Neom accounted for all the contracts during the second quarter.

Bauer AG is reported to have acquired all of the shares in the construction data management platform, fielddata. io GmbH. A cooperation agreement is said to have existed between fielddata.io and Bauer since 2019 in order to jointly develop digital foundation engineering solutions with the combined know-how of their employees.

Holcim has invested in COBOD International, a global leader in 3D construction printing, to advance world-class 3D printing materials, robotics, and automation together. Building on its collaboration with COBOD since 2019, this investment will further leverage Holcim’s innovative range of proprietary ink TectorPrint, tailored for 3D printing.

DroneDeploy, a cloud platform that allows contractors and other customers to manage the data generated by their drones and other reality-capture tools will acquire StructionSite, a major provider of ground-based reality capture. DroneDeploy has customers in 190 countries that have captured more than 300 million acres and 1.7 million sites mapped to date from a total of 7.9 million drones, small planes and other types of aerial vehicles.

In USA construction wages rose 5.5% over 12 months as of September, the fastest growth in about 40 years. Material prices also remained elevated, with inputs to construction up 16.3% year over-year in September.

Five EU countries – Denmark, Finland, France, the Netherlands and Sweden – have passed laws to regulate whole-life carbon emissions from buildings, but the EU is hesitant to follow suit, instead proposing measuring emissions associated with building materials. As part of the updated directive, the European Commission proposed keeping track of emissions in the sector, calculating the lifecycle global warming potential of new buildings via Energy Performance Certificates. For new buildings larger than 2,000 square meters, the obligation would apply as of 1 January 2027, with other facilities following on 1 January 2030.

Dutch consultancy group Arcadis has completed an acquisition of Toronto-based IBI Group. IBI is a technology-driven design firm with global architecture, engineering, planning, and technology expertise spanning more than 60 offices and over 3,500 employees around the world. Arcadis and IBI agreed on the allcash offer of C$19.50 per share back in July; the proposal valued IBI at C$873 million.

Third-quarter order bookings in Swedish Skanska’s construction arm rose by 50% from a year earlier and by 17.4% versus the second quarter to 43.8 Bn Swedish crowns adjusted for currency effects. Skanska said the building segment outlook is slightly more cautious due to cost inflation and higher interest rates as these factors have also weakened consumer confidence, hurting the housing market.

French construction firm VINCI saw revenue up 26% (up 12% like-for-like) for the first nine months – international revenue up almost 50%. The concessions segment continued recovery in passenger numbers at VINCI Airports. VINCI Autoroutes traffic above prepandemic levels. VINCI Energies, Cobra IS and VINCI Construction all reported firm business and order intake momentum.

Mexico’s CEMEX third quarter net sales grew 13%. Pricing was the main driver with cement, ready-mix and aggregates increasing double digits. US and EMEA regions with double-digit and high single-digit EBITDA growth, respectively. Year-to-date pricing more than covering input-cost inflation in dollar terms but is not yet sufficient for margin recovery.