AIA: Continued growth expected in nonresidential construction

The American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) semi-annual Consensus Construction Forecast indicates a growth of 8% in construction spending in 2016.

Even better, 2017 could be nearly as strong. AIA is predicting a 6.7% increase next year, as demand for offices, hotels, industrial centers, and amusement and recreational facilities remains high.

“While rising interest rates could pose a challenge to the U.S. economy, lower energy prices, improved employment figures, and an enacted federal budget for 2016 are all factoring into a very favorable outlook for the construction industry,” AIA Chief Economist, Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA, said in a statement. “And after several years of challenging economic circumstances the institutional project sector is finally on very solid footing.”

Going even further than 2017, AIA found some of the top nonresidential design trends for the next 10 years. Technologies like BIM software, motion-sensing lighting, new glass and glazing products, and solar and wind generation are all expected to become more sophisticated over time.

The Architectural Billings Index measures the general sentiment of U.S. architecture firms about the health of the construction market by measuring 1) design billings and 2) design contracts. Any score above 50 means that, among the architecture firms surveyed, more firms than not reported seeing increases in design work vs. the previous month.