Despite lingering concerns about an ill-defined recession, the nation’s construction industry may well see new growth in 2024 due primarily to projects funded via the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
So concludes the authors of a comprehensive new report issued by the Deloitte accounting firm called 2024 Engineering and Construction Industry Outlook and predicting that contractors may experience increased work in the manufacturing, transportation infrastructure, and clean energy infrastructure sectors.
But such projects, says the report, will come with their own complexities. Engineering and construction firms “face a multidimensional challenge on this front as they adapt to evolving market trends and environmental regulations and meet customer demands for greener buildings, while also preventing construction costs from accelerating too quickly.”
In so doing, the combined construction and engineering industries may well find themselves embracing such measures as the reduction of carbon in construction materials, passive design principles, and a greater utilization of energy-efficient equipment.
In this arena, Washington is serving as a catalyst for new work and methods in providing nearly $2 billion in tax credits for energy improvements in insulation, lighting, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems.
On the matter of passive design, continues the report, builders and engineers can orient buildings to “avoid or capture solar heat,” while also incorporating more green roofs, daylight response lighting controls, and “designing building envelopes for effective insulation and moisture control to stabilize indoor temperatures.”
The advent of what are popularly referenced as “severe weather events” are also increasingly bringing to the fore “self-healing or high-performance eco-friendly concrete, electrical steel, graphene and carbon fiber composites.”
Throw into the mix treated wood, low-carbon bricks, and silica fumes, contractors in 2024 are expected to increasingly be ready to take on new work in a new way of doing things.
Whatever the exact methods to be implemented, contends the Deloitte report, building and engineering companies will be increasingly slated to “begin prioritizing sustainable design tactics and structural performance during the design phase.”
Such methods, representing a new world for some companies, may very well offer new opportunities, suggests the report, because improving efficiency and increasing delivery confidence will also lead to “lowering project expenses and risks.”
Founded in London in 1845, Deloitte is commonly regarded as one of the top accounting firms in the world, providing auditing, consulting, and tax advice, among other services.
By Garry Boulard
