Civil contractors remain doggedly optimistic about profit margins for the coming year, taking advantage of data analysis to improve safety standards across sites
Civil contractors remain optimistic about the year ahead despite supply chain struggles and skill shortages, according to the latest edition of The Civil Quarterly (TCQ) from Dodge Construction Network.
Feedback indicated that business conditions are still very strong for American civil contractors, with 77% optimistic about the US market continuing to be robust for the remainder of 2023, and 46% expecting to see their profit margins increase in the next six months.
Civil contractors highlighted four issues in particular:
The shortage of skilled workers (selected by 72%)
Higher prices for products and materials (55%)
Shortages of products and materials (47%)
Concerns about an economic recession (39%)
Fears about a possible recession and general supply chain issues are softened by the large number of civil projects currently in the market, according to the civil contractors surveyed.
The vast majority (83%) will raise prices in their bids on projects to cover the risks of supply chain issues, while most (63%) also intend to be more selective about the projects they choose to bid on to focus on profitability to help them weather the possibility of a recession.
Recruitment was also identified as the key strategy for tackling the skills shortages, but respondees were unsure of the exact tactic for doing so, as no single option for managing it was selected by more than half.
Data analysis is being implemented to improve safety on projects
Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed considered communication technologies and data sharing as ‘moderately useful’ to reduce risk. However the number of contractors using these technologies on more than half of their projects is only around 56%, indicating uptake still has room to increase.
Contractors are also beginning to make use of data analysis to improve safety, with 63% using data to assess existing incidents and avoid future hazards. Those not using these technologies are now in the minority.
Civil contractors who use data analysis reported benefits such as:
74% are able to better prepare workers to deal with jobsite hazards
67% reported lower recordable injury rates
60% have increased their ability to reduce the number of hazardous conditions onsite
57% fewer near-misses due to using analysis insights
Most of the contractors also expect the industry to use more sophisticated tools involving predictive analytics and artificial intelligence to improve safety in the next three years, although the level of use they expect in the industry far outstrips the use predicted by their own companies. Still, with 47% expecting a moderate to major impact on safety from deploying these tools, it is not surprising that this is the direction that they expect the industry to head in.
The report is free to download
The report, produced in partnership with Infotech and Hexagon, is based on a quarterly survey of civil contractors and engineers that examines the business conditions that they face and explores key trends in this sector. You can download a copy here.
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