With many states across the country slowly beginning to re-open amid the Coronavirus Pandemic, it’s been interesting to see how the construction industry has reacted. In the past, it’s been extremely difficult to get a firm grasp at how large sectors of the industry are affected by events, but with the influx of data being poured into relatively new technologies, we can start to gain a much clearer picture.
Construction Management software, Procore, has been using high level data put into their system to measure the impact of shelter-in-place orders have had on the construction industry on a state-by-state basis since March 1, 2020. Each week, the company updates their information based upon number of worker hours by state, size of company, and project type to find out who has been the most impacted and who is recovering faster.
It’s extremely interesting and exciting to see that many states have not only posted a positive trend on construction activity, but many are now showing increases versus the week of March 1st for the first time since data began being analyzed. Obviously, an uptick in late spring is to be expected in a normal year, but was not a guarantee based upon the current situation.
In the last data compilation, Tennessee and Wisconsin showed the two highest increases in activity since March 1st, a 21% and 19% increase, respectively. West Virginia and New York lead the US in largest decrease in activity since March 1, but New York has showed signs of growth for the past few weeks.
Small companies have shown an 8% decrease in worker hours versus March 1, while large companies only show a 1% decrease and medium sized companies show a 2% decrease. In terms of project type, energy projects are facing the largest decrease (16%) as of May 16.
Procore is not the only company to be using data to track impact. OxBlue, a jobsite camera technology company, has been using AI to track jobsite activity across the country. Since each of these companies still operate off of limited data set, using data from both can give a deeper understanding of the impact the coronavirus has had.
Full story: Jobsite Activity by the Numbers | Procore
Shane is the creator of Construction Junkie and an active construction project manager. In his career, he has managed interior remodel projects, site development, construction safety, governmental project compliance, and facility maintenance. He has a strong passion for construction technology and safety, as well as sharing the knowledge or insights he has gained throughout his career.