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94 • ROCK products • May 2015 www.rockproducts.com MONTHLY CONSTRUCTION STARTS (Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rates, In Millions of Dollars) Mar. 2015 Feb. 2015 % Change Nonresidential Building $183,495 $225,212 -19 Residential Building $251,371 $252,289 -0 Nonbuilding Construction $198,465 $253,180 -22 TOTAL Construction $633,331 $730,681 -13 ECONOMICS N ew construction starts in March retreated 13 percent from the pre- vious month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $633.3 billion, according to Dodge Data & Analytics. The decline followed strong gains in January (up 9 percent) and February (up 17 percent), when construction was lifted by the start of several massive projects valued each in excess of $1 billion, including four liquefied natural gas (LNG) termi- nal projects, a petrochemical plant, and a solar power facility. While the March statistics did include the start of a $2.3 billion highway proj- ect in Florida, the boost coming from projects in excess of $1 billion was substantially less than what occurred during the first two months of the year. By major sector, March showed dimin- ished activity for nonresidential build- ing and nonbuilding construction, while residential building held steady. If projects in excess of $1 billion are excluded, the result for total construc- tion starts would be a 4 percent gain in March on a seasonally adjusted basis relative to February, and an 11 percent gain for the first three months of 2015 on an unadjusted basis relative to the same period a year ago. "The presence of unusually large proj- ects will affect the month-to-month pattern for construction starts, and that's certainly been true during the early months of 2015," stated Robert A. Murray, chief economist for Dodge Data & Analytics. "The elevated activ- ity in February exceeded the underly- ing trend for construction starts, and the March pullback returns activity to a more sustainable pace, at the same time showing an industry that's still in the midst of expansion. While nonres- idential building lost some momen- tum in March, the broad pattern over recent months reveals more growth for commercial building combined with strengthening for several institutional structure types, most notably school construction. Although there's concern that public works construction will be dampened by the uncertainty caused by the soon-to-expire federal transpor- tation legislation, a healthy amount of highway and bridge work has reached the construction start stage so far in 2015. And, while residential building still awaits renewed upward progress by single family housing, the multifami- ly side of the housing market continues to strengthen, as low vacancies and ris- ing rents in numerous markets provide the justification for more construction." Nonresidential Building Nonresidential building in March fell 19 percent to $183.5 billion (annual rate), after surging 43 percent in Feb- ruary. The manufacturing building cat- egory in March plunged a steep 57 per- New Construction Starts Slide 13 percent Public Works Categories Showed Across-The-Board Gains; Highway And Bridge Construction Surged 30 Percent. By Mark S. Kuhar cent from its elevated February pace. Although March did feature the start of several large manufacturing projects, such as a $751 million polyethylene plant and a $150 million cement plant expansion, both located in Texas, the prior month had included the start of a $3.0 billion ethane cracker and propane dehydrogenation plant, which is also located in Texas. The commercial building group in March settled back 10 percent, after climbing 20 percent in February. Office construction registered a 20 percent slide in March, although the latest month did include the start of sever- al noteworthy projects, including the $225 million expansion of the Nike headquarters in Beaverton, Ore.; the $120 million Bristol-Myers Squibb office building in Lawrenceville, N.J.; and the $82 million office portion of the $100 million Exchange Plaza mixed-use project in San Francisco. Also reporting a double-digit decline in March was warehouse construction, which fell 26 percent. Hotel construc- tion, down 1 percent, held virtually steady in March, as it benefitted from the groundbreaking of the $203 million Fairmont Austin Convention Hotel in Austin, Texas, and a $67 million Court- yard by Marriott hotel in New York. Store construction was the one com- mercial structure type able to report a March gain, rising 13 percent after a lackluster February. The institutional building group in March retreated 9 percent following its 20 percent jump in February. The healthcare facilities category plunged 40 percent after an unusually strong February, returning to a level more con- sistent with its sluggish performance of recent years. Educational buildings slipped 11 percent in March, although the latest month did include ground-