The Top Trends in the General Contractor Market In 2021
2020 was not a good year for the construction business anywhere in the world, but 2021 is showing good promise already in the US. Although complete recovery will take time, it seems that 2021 will be the first year of making that comeback.
While this effort to rebuild and grow continues, there will be several trends that will gain prominence over the years. As shared by industry leaders and construction market analysts, the following should either remain or pick up later in the year as the top trends in construction and general contracting for the year 2021.
Hike in Price of Business Insurance
A rush for business insurance is inevitable, since that’s precisely what has kept the lights on for several small and large general contractor. However, insurance companies will also need to charge contractors more if they are to provide coverage against natural disasters, suspension of work and general business insurance.
This is a typical scenario where demand may exceed capacity, so the trend of costly business insurance policies is not likely to die out anytime soon. Be that as it may, the scope of risk management with general contractors insurance has never been greater than it is in 2021. Reputed business insurers are also trying to alleviate the situation for the construction industry as best as they can with discounted policies.
Resource Reevaluation and Dynamic Orders
What can any industry do when several aspects of that industry are changing simultaneously? They will need to adapt and change accordingly. A major part of that adaptation process is resource reevaluation. This is already a trend within the construction industry, and general contractors who has not yet picked up on it will need to do so as soon as possible.
For example, the order quantities that a general contractor would have considered standard in 2019 may no longer be a valid standard for their company in 2021. They will have to reevaluate the size of their current standards for each order of raw materials so that those orders reflect the updated market condition more accurately.
Due to the volatility of the market though, standard-sized orders may no longer be valid for builders. It might be a better strategy to customize the standard for each order based on the projects they have undertaken. For some time at least, dynamic order quantity adjustment will make more sense than predictive ordering.
Digitization of All Compatible Aspects
General contracting, construction, renovation, and repairs are not exactly linked to digitization, since the work itself cannot be digitized, unlike in several other fields. However, there are several assistive aspects of the construction business which can be digitized. Large builders already began adopting them in the last few years, but this year, a rise will be seen in the widespread adoption of digital technology among small to medium-sized general contractors. To better explain the digitization aspects, the following examples should help:
- Adoption of a centralized system to streamline the various processes associated with ordering, tracking, and paying for raw materials remotely
- Using drones to map large tracts of land for better, safer construction planning
- Use of 3D visualization tech to take important measurements
- Usage of advanced BIM software to digitally prefabricate projects
Rise of Precast Concrete
It has been reported that precast concrete is trending now more than ever. In fact, it is also predicted that the popularity of precast cement will only grow in the coming years. There are several links between the present market conditions and this trend, which has bolstered the popularity of precast concrete in recent months.
For starters, the same controlled environment inside pre-casting factories which allows for better quality control is also beneficial for maintaining a decontaminated work environment. Every worker can work with proper PPE to keep themselves safe, without the fear of external factors that could be an issue during on-site casting. This, in turn, limits the number of days that a large construction crew would have to spend at the site.
Additionally, it takes a much smaller labor force to complete the pre-casting process, as compared to on-site casting. On considering the fact that precast concrete is also stronger, more durable, of higher quality, and comparatively more sustainable, the rise in its popularity this year begins to make even more sense.
