Investment in manufacturing is creating a construction boom

Through June, manufacturing construction spending increased nearly 80% in 12 months, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis. On a seasonally adjusted annual rate, spending in the sector hit approximately $195.9 billion during that 12-month span.

The renewed push to revive American manufacturing after decades of offshoring has led to over $503 billion in private company investment as of June 2023, according to the White House. The multibillion-dollar investments scattered across the country range from biotechnology facilities and chip fabrication plants to electric vehicle battery factories and clean energy projects.

Some major manufacturing projects to break ground since August 2022 include a $25 billion Samsung chip fabrication plant in Taylor, Texas, and a $20 billion Intel semiconductor chips plant in Licking County, Ohio. Additionally, several $1 billion or more manufacturing projects remain in the pipeline over the remaining months of the year. That should keep construction starts in the sector elevated for the foreseeable future, said Branch.