The 2016 Paris Agreement called for its nearly 200 signatories to join in limiting global warming to an increase of 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. This would require carbon emissions to be reduced by about half by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050. To reach this goal, the rate of retrofits in the Global North will need to triple from barely 1 percent to at least 3 percent of stock each year, according to Retrofitting Buildings to be Future-Fit, a November 2022 report by commercial real estate services firm Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL).
Lighting The Manufacturing Boom
The United States is currently enjoying a dramatic surge in construction in manufacturing infrastructure. This suggests fresh demand for lighting and controls and the expertise to properly apply them to industrial spaces.
2023 Nonresidential Construction Forecast: “Moderate”
A major contributor to the economy is construction, which overall exhibited very strong growth in 2022. Despite a strong finish to the year, however, nonresidential construction spending is expected to moderate in 2023 and slow significantly in 2024, according to the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Construction Consensus Forecast Panel made up of leading economic forecasters. The Panel forecasted that nonresidential construction spending will moderate to grow a healthy 5.8% in 2023 but then slow to less than 1% in 2024.
Electroindustry Business Confidence Index Remains in Negative Territory in June 2022
Current electroindustry business conditions edged lower in June 2022, with the National Electrical Manufacturers Association’s (NEMA) Electroindustry Business Confidence Index (EBCI) score staying below the no-change threshold level of 50 for the second consecutive month with a score of 40.6.
2022 Nonresidential Construction Forecast: “Promising”
According to the AIA Construction Consensus Forecast Panel of leading economic forecasters, nonresidential building construction spending is expected to expand 5.4% in 2022 and strengthen to a 6.1% expansion in 2023.
Electroindustry Business Conditions Improve in June
A slight improvement in confidence boosted the National Electrical Manufacturers Association’s (NEMA) Electroindustry Business Confidence Index’s current conditions from a reading of 65.4 last month to 70 points in June.
Current and Future Electroindustry Business Conditions Pull Back But Remain at Expansionary Levels
The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) recently reported its Electroindustry Business Confidence Index (EBCI) dipped 24 points from a high-water mark in April to 65.4 in May 2021, a significant decline but still solidly in expansionary territory.
NEMA: Current and Future Conditions Remain Positive for Electrical Industry
For the tenth consecutive month, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) Electroindustry Business Conditions Index (EBCI) topped 50 points, indicating conditions conducive to growth. March’s reading of 80 built on an already robust 64.3 in February and was driven by two-thirds of survey respondents’ indicating better conditions.
2021 Nonresidential Construction Forecast: Decline but Rebound Next Year
In January 2021, the American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) semi-annual Consensus Construction Forecast, a survey of the nation’s leading construction forecasters, projected a 5.7% decline in nonresidential construction spending in 2021. Construction spending is then projected to grow 3.1% in 2022 as the renewal of economic activity unleashes pent-up demand for nonresidential space.
2020 Nonresidential Construction Forecast: Slowdown But No Downturn
The U.S. economy grew by 2.2% in 2019 and is expected to slow to 2% in 2020, according to the most recent forecast released by the Federal Open Market Committee Meeting on December 11, 2019. The slowdown in 2019-20 is considered a byproduct of the trade war. A major contributor to the economy is construction, and the outlook for construction spending in 2020-21 is positive but lower than 2019. The AIA’s semi-annual Consensus Construction Forecast, a survey of the nation’s leading construction forecasters, is projecting 1.5% growth in nonresidential construction spending in 2020 and 1% in 2021.