While productivity improves in almost every sector of the U.S. economy, it's dropping quickly in the construction industry.
"Superficially, the construction industry would seem healthy enough," according to an article in The Economist. "Yet more than 90% of the world’s infrastructure projects are either late or over-budget, says Bent Flyvbjerg of Saïd Business School at Oxford University."
"Construction holds the dubious honour of having the lowest productivity gains of any industry," adds the article, citing data from McKinsey. The United States provides a particularly bad example of the problem. Here, productivity "has plunged by half since the late 1960s."
The article digs into the list of potential causes for the woes of the industry, discarding one of the usual suspects as the culprit (i.e., "Prices for building materials are not to blame). Instead, the article suggests two structural trends are to blame: the work is less capital intensive and the industry has yet to consolidate.
FULL STORY: Efficiency eludes the construction industry
Construction Costs Holding Steady During Pandemic
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New York State, Pennsylvania Halt Construction
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Construction Materials Increasing Building Costs
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Cool Walkability Planning
Shadeways (covered sidewalks) and pedways (enclosed, climate controlled walkways) can provide comfortable walkability in hot climates. The Cool Walkshed Index can help plan these facilities.
Federal Infrastructure Dollars Funding Road Expansions
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Downtown Omaha Planning for its Post-One-Way-Streets Era
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Planning for Proximity, for the Climate’s Sake
A new global platform will help the world identify and encourage opportunities for more proximity in the built environment—development patterns that can help reduce sources of greenhouse gas emissions and other forms of pollution if built well.
Bossier City - Parish MPC
Wichita-Sedgwick County Metropolitan Area Planning Department
City of Bangor
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Montrose County
Wichita-Sedgwick County Metropolitan Area Planning Department
City of Lomita
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
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