Recent data from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Commercial Construction Index marked records. Unfortunately, they were records pointing in the wrong direction.
Ninety-three percent of responding general contractors reported facing at least one material shortage in Q3. An all-time high of 98% reported cost fluctuations for materials were impacting their operations.
Lowered materials availability was contractors’ top concern at 62%, followed by worker health and safety (38%) and labor shortages (37%).
While industry experts predict materials shortages will continue through the rest of 2021, there is no clear vision as to how far beyond year-end the problem will persist, or which materials will be affected at a given time. Materials that have seen supply chain disruptions include lumber, steel and mill products, roofing materials and PVC piping, among others.
In some markets and for some materials, lead times have gone out as long as 10 months, down from a normal timeframe of three months. (Source)