The Top Metal Builders for 2012 represent a diverse list of companies spread across the United States and Canada. The companies provide a variety of services for a spread of clients that includes large corporations building multiple locations, public school boards, U.S. military and private citizens. The companies also vary in how they conduct business from bid-only to design-build to negotiated bid. In short, the Top Metal Builders represent a microcosm of the diversity of the metal building industry itself.
The list is broken into two components. One list is the 100 Top Metal Builders as measured by the tonnage of steel purchased. The other list is the 100 Top Metal Builders as measured by square footage of metal building construction put in place. The total of both lists numbers 120 Top Metal Builders.
Trying to glean meaningful insight from the information presented by these companies can be a bit like reading tea leaves. For instance, last year the Top Metal Builders list featured five employeeowned companies, but this year the number was only two. Does that represent a sea change in metal building dynamics? That’s unlikely.
But there is information that does provide a glimpse into the fortunes of the industry as a whole. As measured by total square footage and tonnage, the Top Metal Builders as a group built more. These companies increased their usage of steel by more than 47 percent. And the square footage of the metal buildings constructed increased 34.5 percent.
That represents a strong indication of improved economic conditions and better construction environment that matches what we are seeing across the industry as a whole. More buildings, more work, more employment, more prosperity.
Over the next couple of years, it will be interesting to look at the larger construction numbers and see if there is a change in the market share of metal buildings being used in the overall construction market. If that happens, we will have seen a sea change indeed.
