High-end hotels in the U.S. have been having a good 2012 and can expect to do even better next year, with average daily room rates expected to be up 5.3% in 2013 compared to 4.7% this year and the 2.8% long-term average, according to PKF Hospitality Research. That bodes well for firms doing hotel design and construction.
On the retail side, the ULI Center for Capital Markets and Real Estate forecasts vacancy rates to begin to turn around this year, down to 12.5% in 2013. Retail rentals should be up 2.0% next year, says the ULI. +
TOP 10 HOSPITALITY SECTOR ARCHITECTURE FIRMS
| Rank | Company | 2011 Hospitality Revenue ($) |
| 1 | WATG | 54,939,171 |
| 2 | Gensler | 51,750,000 |
| 3 | HKS | 32,336,523 |
| 4 | HOK | 18,287,163 |
| 5 | Hnedak Bobo Group | 14,580,025 |
| 6 | tvsdesign | 14,188,382 |
| 7 | RTKL Associates | 13,970,968 |
| 8 | BLT Architects | 12,200,000 |
| 9 | BBG-BBGM | 12,058,000 |
| 10 | Perkins Eastman | 11,050,000 |
TOP 10 HOSPITALITY SECTOR ENGINEERING FIRMS
| Rank | Company | 2011 Hospitality Revenue ($) |
| 1 | AECOM Technology Corp. | 296,000,000 |
| 2 | Parsons Brinckerhoff | 17,600,000 |
| 3 | Rolf Jensen & Associates | 9,000,000 |
| 4 | Arup | 8,838,492 |
| 5 | Jacobs | 6,310,000 |
| 6 | KPFF Consulting Engineers | 6,000,000 |
| 7 | Thornton Tomasetti | 5,850,000 |
| 8 | WSP USA | 5,300,000 |
| 9 | Michael Baker Jr., Inc. | 4,340,000 |
| 10 | Stantec | 4,230,000 |
TOP 10 HOSPITALITY SECTOR CONSTRUCTION FIRMS
| Rank | Company | 2011 Hospitality Revenue ($) |
| 1 | Tutor Perini Corp. | 839,703,000 |
| 2 | Swinerton | 243,415,560 |
| 3 | Hardin Construction | 239,457,598 |
| 4 | Structure Tone | 223,330,000 |
| 5 | Balfour Beatty US | 170,785,709 |
| 6 | Hunt Construction Group | 164,500,000 |
| 7 | Yates Co., The | 137,600,000 |
| 8 | Weitz Co., The | 118,200,000 |
| 9 | Pepper Construction Group | 89,843,000 |
| 10 | Manhattan Construction Group | 84,325,000 |
TOP 10 RETAIL SECTOR ARCHITECTURE FIRMS
| Rank | Company | 2011 Retail Revenue ($) |
| 1 | Gensler | 84,700,000 |
| 2 | RTKL Associates | 58,957,056 |
| 3 | MulvannyG2 Architecture | 42,033,036 |
| 4 | WD Partners | 35,294,000 |
| 5 | Perkowitz+Ruth Architects | 32,686,910 |
| 6 | MBH Architects | 30,541,000 |
| 7 | RSP Architects | 17,641,000 |
| 8 | FRCH Design Worldwide | 16,630,000 |
| 9 | LawKingdon Architecture | 15,600,000 |
| 10 | CASCO Diversified Corp. | 14,650,000 |
TOP 10 RETAIL SECTOR ENGINEERING FIRMS
| Rank | Company | 2011 Retail Revenue ($) |
| 1 | AECOM Technology Corp. | 136,000,000 |
| 2 | Jacobs | 60,550,000 |
| 3 | Stantec | 59,220,000 |
| 4 | Henderson Engineers | 47,600,000 |
| 5 | URS Corp. | 23,650,000 |
| 6 | Parsons Brinckerhoff | 21,700,000 |
| 7 | Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates | 18,562,000 |
| 8 | Bergmann Associates | 14,200,000 |
| 9 | Science Applications Int’l Corp. | 11,860,000 |
| 10 | Wallace Engineering | 7,210,000 |
TOP 10 RETAIL SECTOR CONSTRUCTION FIRMS
| Rank | Company | 2011 Retail Revenue ($) |
| 1 | Whiting-Turner Contracting Co., The | 396,821,222 |
| 2 | Shawmut Design and Construction | 276,700,000 |
| 3 | PCL Construction Enterprises | 188,344,721 |
| 4 | EMJ Corp. | 164,437,662 |
| 5 | Weitz Co., The | 136,700,000 |
| 6 | Structure Tone | 97,500,000 |
| 7 | O’Neil Industries / W.E. O’Neil | 96,620,000 |
| 8 | Ryan Companies US | 92,895,680 |
| 9 | E.W. Howell | 79,395,000 |
| 10 | KBE Building Corp. | 70,365,040 |
Related Stories
| Feb 15, 2011
Iconic TWA terminal may reopen as a boutique hotel
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey hopes to squeeze a hotel with about 150 rooms in the space between the old TWA terminal and the new JetBlue building. The old TWA terminal would serve as an entry to the hotel and hotel lobby, which would also contain restaurants and shops.
| Feb 15, 2011
New Orleans' rebuilt public housing architecture gets mixed reviews
The architecture of New Orleans’ new public housing is awash with optimism about how urban-design will improve residents' lives—but the changes are based on the idealism of an earlier era that’s being erased and revised.
| Feb 15, 2011
LAUSD commissions innovative prefab prototypes for future building
The LA Unified School District, under the leadership of a new facilities director, reversed course regarding prototypes for its new schools and engaged architects to create compelling kit-of-parts schemes that are largely prefabricated.
| Feb 15, 2011
New 2030 Challenge to include carbon footprint of building materials and products
Architecture 2030 has just broadened the scope of its 2030 Challenge, issuing an additional challenge regarding the climate impact of building products. The 2030 Challenge for Products aims to reduce the embodied carbon (meaning the carbon emissions equivalent) of building products 50% by 2030.
| Feb 15, 2011
New Urbanist Andrés Duany: We need a LEED Brown rating
Andrés Duany advocates a "LEED Brown" rating that would give contractors credit for using traditional but low cost measures that are not easy to quantify or certify. He described these steps as "the original green," and "what we did when we didn't have money." Ostensibly, LEED Brown would be in addition to the current Silver, Gold and Platinum ratings.
| Feb 15, 2011
AIA on President Obama's proposed $1 billion investment in energy conservation
The President’s budget increases the value of investment in energy conservation in commercial buildings by roughly $1 billion, reports AIA 2011 President Clark Manus, FAIA. The significant increase from the current tax deduction of $1.80 per sq. ft. now on the books is an increase for which the AIA has been advocating in order to encourage energy conservation.
| Feb 14, 2011
Sustainable Roofing: A Whole-Building Approach
According to sustainability experts, the first step toward designing an energy-efficient roofing system is to see roof materials and systems as an integral component of the enclosure and the building as a whole. Earn 1.0 AIA/CES learning units by studying this article and successfully completing the online exam.
