The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced a National Definition of a Zero Emissions Building to advance public and private sector efforts to decarbonize the buildings sector, which is responsible for more than one-third of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.
Build America Buy America
Enacted as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act on November 15, 2021, The Build America Buy America Act, or BABA, established a domestic content procurement preference for all infrastructure projects receiving Federal financial assistance after May 14, 2022.
2024 Nonresidential Construction Forecast: Slower Growth
Construction spending is expected to grow in 2024 but at a significantly slower pace, 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 slow to 4% growth in 2024 and further slow to 1% growth in 2025.
LED Revolution 2.0
Everywhere, we see signs the LED revolution has won. An argument can be made, however, that this mature lighting technology is simply entering its next phase of market opportunity. Call it LED Revolution 2.0.
Decarbonization Requires Faster Pace of Retrofits
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.