Toronto, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Denver top the list of U.S/Canadian cities with the greatest number of fixed construction cranes on construction sites, according to Rider Levett Bucknall's RLB Crane Index for North America for Q1 2023.
Toronto had a whopping 238 cranes in place in the first quarter. Seattle had 51 cranes to lead all U.S. cities, followed by Los Angeles (47), Denver (36), and Washington, D.C. (26).
The RLB survey reports a nominal increase of 7.04% (34 cranes) from the Q3 2022 edition of the RLB Crane Index. Of the 14 cities surveyed, eight experienced
an increase in cranes, two decreased, and four held steady.
The three top sectors across all cities are residential (51%), mixed use (22%), and commercial (12%).
"Despite continued workforce challenges and economic uncertainties are still concerns for the coming year, we are continuing to see new projects break ground within our 14-key markets. This indicates that investments are continuing to be made into our cities," said the report's authors.
"Notwithstanding concerns for the housing market, residential and mixed-use projects make up 73% of the overall count. We anticipate the number of cranes to remain high into 2023. Despite uncertain market conditions, construction projects will continue to break ground, albeit at a cost," the added.
About the RLB Crane Index
Rider Levett Bucknall’s Crane Index for North America is published biannually. It tracks the number of operating tower cranes in 14 major cities across the U.S. and Canada. The index was the first of its kind, and unlike other industry barometers that track cost and other financial data, the Crane Index tracks the number of fixed cranes on construction sites and gives a simplified measure of the current state of the construction industry’s workload in each location.
Related Stories
Codes and Standards | Feb 24, 2022
Most owners adapting digital workflows on projects
Owners are more deeply engaged with digital workflows than other project team members, according to a new report released by Trimble and Dodge Data & Analytics.
Market Data | Feb 23, 2022
2022 Architecture Billings Index indicates growth
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.
Market Data | Feb 15, 2022
Materials prices soar 20% between January 2021 and January 2022
Contractors' bid prices accelerate but continue to lag cost increases.
Market Data | Feb 4, 2022
Construction employment dips in January despite record rise in wages, falling unemployment
The quest for workers intensifies among industries.
Market Data | Feb 2, 2022
Majority of metro areas added construction jobs in 2021
Soaring job openings indicate that labor shortages are only getting worse.
Market Data | Feb 2, 2022
Construction spending increased in December for the month and the year
Nonresidential and public construction lagged residential sector.
Market Data | Jan 31, 2022
Canada's hotel construction pipeline ends 2021 with 262 projects and 35,325 rooms
At the close of 2021, projects under construction stand at 62 projects/8,100 rooms.
Market Data | Jan 27, 2022
Record high counts for franchise companies in the early planning stage at the end of Q4'21
Through year-end 2021, Marriott, Hilton, and IHG branded hotels represented 585 new hotel openings with 73,415 rooms.
Market Data | Jan 27, 2022
Dallas leads as the top market by project count in the U.S. hotel construction pipeline at year-end 2021
The market with the greatest number of projects already in the ground, at the end of the fourth quarter, is New York with 90 projects/14,513 rooms.
Market Data | Jan 26, 2022
2022 construction forecast: Healthcare, retail, industrial sectors to lead ‘healthy rebound’ for nonresidential construction
A panel of construction industry economists forecasts 5.4 percent growth for the nonresidential building sector in 2022, and a 6.1 percent bump in 2023.