The metal building industry has made it through a tough couple of years. According to the Metal Building Manufacturers Association’s (MBMA) proprietary statistics program, 2022 saw us back on par with pre-pandemic levels of metal building shipments. But that doesn’t mean the challenging times are behind us. Supply chain shortages have given way to labor shortages and discreet material price spikes have been replaced by global inflation. End users are not as anxious to accept increasing prices and manufacturers are getting squeezed in the middle.
After a couple of tough years, the industry rebounds but still faces challenges
The good news is the demand for metal buildings is still strong. But this may change if the federal reserve continues to raise interest rates to fend off inflation. The challenge for manufacturers will be maintaining a successful business while meeting market affordability demands.
Metal building manufacturing jobs are plentiful, and employers are looking for ways to address the issues that are impacting the dynamics and expectations of a changing workforce. The same can be said for the metal building construction firms
Manufacturers will need to invest in automation. In this tight labor market, the metal building industry faces the same challenges as so many other business entities—it is extremely difficult to hire enough qualified resources. According to the article, “Understanding America’s Labor Shortage,” produced by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in August 2022, the U.S. has over 10 million job openings but only 6 million unemployed workers. That translates to about 66 workers for every 100 available jobs. The U.S. Chamber’s Worker Shortage Index cites Minnesota as the most challenged environment with only 30 workers for every 100 available job openings.
This is difficult data to digest and challenging to navigate as we work to keep our companies strong. The U.S. Chamber says it’s not the “Great Resignation” that is spurring much of the challenge, but rather the “Great Reshuffle” as employees move into positions within firms that offer more of what they perceive they need. A 2022 Gallup poll of over 13,000 employees shows that pay and well-being issues (including work-life balance) top the list of workers’ stated needs, while a job that plays to their strengths and job security follow close behind.
Metal building manufacturing jobs are plentiful, and employers are looking for ways to address the issues that are impacting the dynamics and expectations of a changing workforce. The same can be said for the metal building construction firms. In October, Metal Construction News underscored that challenge, citing U.S. Bureau of Labor job openings statistics that showed 407,000 construction job openings in August and an increase in industry job openings of 54,000—up by 45,000 from the same time last year. Construction workers quit their jobs at a faster rate than they were laid off or discharged for the 18th consecutive month in August.
All of this leads to a mandate that we, as an industry, aggressively reach out to potential employees and determine how to hire, train and retain the quality candidates we need to keep our firms resilient.
Generation Next
One way that the MBMA is addressing the labor issue is to proactively reach out to the next generation of potential employees. This long-term effort does not solve our current dilemma, but rather seeks to help protect the industry from future labor challenges. MBMA is reaching out to the Gen Z/Zoomers population in the following ways:
- A series of 11 job-specific videos interviewing young people who work in metal building manufacturing. • A design competition offering cash prizes to college student teams now in its second year.
- Annual faculty workshops to engage professors and help them better educate graduate and undergraduate students on the attributes of working in the metal building industry.
- Educational architectural folios—in-depth studies of signature metal building projects, such as Alamo Brewing Co., the Michelle & Barack Obama Sports Complex, Boston Sports Institute and the Jacksonville University Basketball Practice Facility.
- A special website just for faculty and students to give them practical access to all MBMA’s learning tools–mbmaeducation.org.
Beyond HR … Huge Building Sales Increases
While we continue to grapple with the industry’s human resource challenges, we must not lose sight of influential market trends. According to proprietary statistics gathered by MBMA from its members, commercial warehouse sales were up 24% and account for about 25% of all metal building sales. Retail building sales were up 33%, airplane hangar sales are up 64%. Manufacturing plants are down 16%, while manufacturing warehouse sales rose a huge 94%. This is indicative of the trend toward globalization and bodes well for the future, and we remain very optimistic for the year ahead.
As we move into 2023, we wish each of you a healthy, safe and prosperous new year. In challenging financial times and worldwide unrest, it’s easy to fall into a pessimistic mindset; but we all have much to be grateful for and may that be our mantra for the coming days. Best wishes to you all.
Tom Boal is chairman of the Metal Building Manufacturers Association. More information about the association is available at www.mbma.com.
