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Top Metal Builders for 2015 May 19, 2016

BARNES buildings & management group inc. is honored to be recognized in Metal Construction News as one of the Top Metal Builders for 2014. BARNES was ranked #17 by tonnage and #36 by square footage.

#1 in  New England!

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Charles Dickens famously started his novel, “A Tale of Two Cities,” with the line, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”

For metal building contractors, that sentiment holds true for 2015. We saw significant growth among the members of our Top Metal Builders of 2015. The overall average for tonnage increased 10.8 percent and for square footage it jumped 20.7 percent. Our top of the list denizens saw significant growth, and the largest company, Span Construction & Engineering Inc., Madera, Calif., experienced a 5,889 ton increase. If that increase were a company, it would have placed eighth on the list.

 

But there were struggles as well, and they went to the heart of the growth of the industry. Almost every one of our respondents mentioned that the shortage of skilled labor is the most significant challenge they faced in 2015. That shortage, many said, prevented them from taking on work that was available, and all appearances are that this labor shortage is having a dampening effect on industry growth.

The second biggest challenge mentioned was among those companies that work in the oil-andgas states, such as Texas, Louisiana, Colorado and North Dakota. Plummeting oil prices have caused significant cutbacks among refineries and other service providers in the industry, which is heavily reliant on metal building systems for warehouses, mechanical shops and other functions.

We can expect that problem to resolve as oil prices begin creeping back up to historic norms, but the labor shortage will bedevil metal building contractors for the foreseeable future.

To bring those challenges to life, in this year’s coverage we’ve included brief profiles of companies who are succeeding in a tough environment. We also offer some historical context with graphs showing the Top Metal Builder growth over the last few years.

Article Taken from Construction News