BuildBlock announced that Russ Nicely has joined the company as commercial development director. Nicely will focus on continuing education and promotion for architects, engineers, general contractors, specialty subcontractors, owners and developers, as well as working to further develop commercial construction projects across North America.

The American Institute of Architects published its latest consensus forecast for 2024 and 2025. Learn more about what the AIA and other forecasting resources are projecting for the construction market in the coming years.

The construction industry added 17,000 jobs on net in December, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data released on Jan. 5 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. On a year-over-year basis, industry employment has grown by 197,000 jobs, an increase of 2.5 percent.

National nonresidential construction spending decreased 0.1 percent in November, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data published by the U.S. Census Bureau on Jan. 2. On a seasonally adjusted, annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $1.143 trillion.

The latest Consensus Construction Forecast indicates clear opportunities for growth in a number of segments. But compared to the second half of 2023, the early look in 2024 is more modest.

The Marcum Commercial Construction Index for the first quarter of 2023 reports that the construction industry retains momentum despite still-elevated inflation and ongoing labor shortages.