Civils contractors today said after a lull caused by political uncertainty during the General Election campaign, growth in the sector is now set to take off.
Results from the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) Workload Trends Survey for the first quarter of 2015 showed that the pace of growth in output slowed slightly as the nation prepared to go to the polls, down to +29 per cent from +52 per cent in the last quarter of 2014.
The Association represents over 300 contractors of all sizes, covering approximately 80% of the civil engineering market in Great Britain.
CECA said that the figures for orders suggest that the pause in growth won’t last long - at +59% the balance between those showing falling and rising orders is at its highest level since the downturn, predicting a future boom in activity in the sector.
Healthy order books were offset by supply issues with staff, with more than half of those surveyed reporting difficulties in resourcing sufficiently skilled operatives.
In the water and sewerage sector, contractors reported a 1% fall in workload Q1 2015, compared with the same period 12 months ago, preceded by an 8% increase in Q4 2014. However, this is likely to relate primarily to the ending of the AMP5 investment period in March 2015.
Commenting on the overall results, CECA Chief Executive Alasdair Reisner said:
“There has been a slowdown in growth in our sector as the industry awaited the outcome of an uncertain election. Now that the votes are counted, increased order books show that growth in the sector is poised to take off."
“This shows the results of the last government’s focus on infrastructure as a driver for growth in the economy. It is crucial that the government remains committed to its existing programmes of investment."
“In order for the industry to thrive, the new government must work with industry to do everything it can to equip the sector for delivering the existing pipeline of projects, and upskill the workforce to deliver the projects of the future."
“That’s why CECA is calling on the new government to develop a comprehensive infrastructure skills plan, to be implemented without delay.”
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