The ACEC Research Institute releases two new reports on the engineering and design services industry: the 2021 Economic Assessment of the Engineering and Design Services Industry and a new Engineering Business Sentiment report for Q4 2021. The data reportedly shows the industry has rebounded from project postponements due to COVID, though firms identify a tight labor market and lack of qualified workers as continued barriers to growth across public and private markets.
This is the second annual release of the Engineering and Design Services industry assessment, which tracks the industry’s economic contributions, analyzes key economic drivers and forecasts industry growth. A snapshot of the engineering and design services industry shows:
- 1.5 million direct full- and part-time jobs
- $97,300 average yearly wages
- $338 billion in industry sales
- $198 billion direct economic contribution
- $105 billion collected in total federal, state and local tax
“The engineering and design industry made critical economic contributions to the nation throughout COVID. We kept our industry employed and infrastructure improvements moving forward,” says John Carrato, ACEC Research Institute board chair. “Looking ahead, the industry is poised for tremendous growth with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act finally in place. However, we need to expand the pipeline of qualified employees to keep our industry on the path to growth.”
Additional key findings from the engineering business sentiment report show:
- 97% of respondents agree that the industry labor market was tight.
- 87% of respondents have at least one open position at their firm.
- 64% of respondents believe their firms will see an increased backlog of projects over the next year.
- 74% of respondents predict there will be an increase in hiring over the next year at their firm.
The sentiment report, conducted before the passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), tracked the sentiment of engineering leaders around the country. The sentiment is measured with a net rating that subtracts the percentage of negative ratings (pessimistic) from the positive ratings (optimistic). The higher the rating, the stronger the sentiment.
The report found that compared to three months earlier, respondents noted positive sentiment for transportation sectors, including roads and bridges (+30), transit (+20), and airports (+23). Looking ahead 12 months, the net rating of positive sentiment among respondents was even higher for these segments. Passage of the IIJA will further increase the optimism for hard infrastructure improvements and the need for qualified workers, adding an expected $132 billion in economic output thru 2026.
For more information, visit: www.acecresearchinstitute.org
