Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/40026
BEDFORD, Mass. — New con- struction starts in June climbed 15% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $436.8 billion, according to McGraw- Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. The gain followed particularly 28 • SEPTEMBER 2011 • WORLD FENCE NEWS The Dodge Report Weakness in single family housing slows momentum for construction industry weak activity in May, and helped the pace of contracting during this year's second quarter stay close to its first quarter level. June featured a substantial in- crease for the non-building construc- tion sector, led by the start of several large electric utility projects. Non-res- idential building also registered im- provement in June, while housing edged up slightly. During the first six months of 2011, total construction starts on an unadjusted basis came in at $198.2 billion, down 7% from the same period a year ago. The June data lifted the Dodge Index to 92 (2000=100), which is the highest reading so far in 2011. During the first five months of 2011, the Dodge Index had trended downward, moving from 91 in January to 80 in May. "The pattern of construction starts during the early months of 2011 showed a loss of momentum, due largely to renewed weakness for sin- gle family housing combined with a pullback for public works and institu- tional building," stated Robert A. Mur- ray, vice-president of economic affairs for McGraw-Hill Construction. "June's gain enables the average for this year's second quarter to be down a modest 2% from the first quar- ter, a milder slowdown than what was being suggested by the data through May. The overall level of construction continues to be weak, but June's gain is consistent with the sense that con- struction activity is hovering at a low level, rather than seeing further sus- tained declines," he said. Non-building construction in June soared 34% to $163.2 billion (annual rate). The lift came from the electric utility category, which advanced 103% in June as it continued to see a robust volume of projects reach the construc- tion start stage. June included the start of a massive $1.3 billion transmission line project in Maine, as well as a $710 million transmission line project in New Jersey. Other large electric utility projects reported as June starts included two gas-fired power plants, located in North Carolina ($900 million) and California ($440 million), as well as two large wind power facilities, lo- cated in Kansas ($350 million) and Texas ($338 million). The public works sector in June registered a smaller 2% gain, reflect- ing a mixed pattern by project type. Highways and bridges climbed 9% in June, making a partial rebound after May's depressed amount, al- though remaining below the elevated pace witnessed during 2010 and early 2011. Sewer construction in June grew 4%, helped by the start of a $94 mil- lion waste water treatment plant in New Rochelle, N.Y. The miscella- neous public works category increased 14%, boosted by the start of airport runway work in Chicago and Boston. Decreased activity in June was re- ported for water supply systems, down 8%; and river/harbor development, down 34%. For the first six months of 2011, non-building construction slipped 1% from last year, due to divergent behav- ior for electric utilities and public works. The electric utility category jumped 164% year-to-date, and is on track to set a new high for construction starts in current dollar terms. In con- trast, public works construction is down 25% year-to-date, as the result of decreased federal and state spend- ing, as well as the comparison to the first half of 2010 that saw substantial federal stimulus support for public works projects. Non-residential building, at $153.6 billion (annual rate), climbed 11% in June. The commercial