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On-Site 2020 Forecast: Canadian construction trends

On-Site Magazine’s 2020 Forecast report looks at the major Canadian construction trends industry leaders are watching for in the upcoming year. It looks ahead at the economic factors, new technologies and other key trends driving the industry.

What this report provides:

  • A regional outlook: a look across Canada at what experts are watching for in 2020, as well as a survey of economic expectations as an indicator of construction activity.
  • Construction trends: 10 items to focus on in 2020, offered by Mary Van Buren, President of the Canadian Construction Association.

This forecast is meant to give readers an outlook for the year ahead, including the economic factors and major projects that are expected to help determine how the industry will perform. It also dives deeper into the trends that are influencing, challenging and changing the industry. New technologies are one notable example as they continue to percolate through nearly every aspect of construction.

“I pulled from our day-to-day coverage of the industry to identify the top issues contractors are grappling with,” says David Kennedy, editor at On-Site. “This year, labour shortages, opportunities offered by new technology and the increasing need for greater levels of collaboration between all stakeholders in the industry were top-of-mind.”

KPMG, Turner & Townsend, Aon, BuildForce Canada and the Canadian Construction Association were among the experts David chatted with in putting together this year's forecast. Each of the aforementioned organizations are able to provide unique vantage points since they come from different areas of the industry and have a broad view of Canadian construction and infrastructure.

A couple important key takeaways:

  • The supply of labour and the level of skilled resources is decreasing over time — without an adequate workforce at its foundation, the industry won’t be able to deliver on the significant pipeline of new projects.
  • Technology will continue to play an immense role in modernizing the industry, improving the labour shortage, and driving collaboration, accountability and productivity across projects.

You can find the full report in On-Site Magazine’s latest print magazine or it is available online here.