Article Number : 3405 |
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| Date | 7/2/2008 8:28:05 AM |
| Written By | LGM & Associates Technical Flooring Services |
| View this article at: | //floorbiz.com/BizResources/NPViewArticle.asp?ArticleID=3405 |
| Abstract | As sure as death and taxes, there are two certainties when you spend three days covering NeoCon: 1. You’ll sleep well each night after spending a good portion of your day in the stairwells in lieu of waiting for elevators, and 2... |
| Article | As sure as death and taxes, there are two certainties when you spend three days covering NeoCon: 1. You’ll sleep well each night after spending a good portion of your day in the stairwells in lieu of waiting for elevators, and 2. You’ll get on your plane a whole lot smarter than when you arrived in Chicago. So what’s in store for the rest of the year and beyond? It’s relatively safe to say the commercial market will continue to grow for the next 18 months, albeit at a slower pace than in recent years. A few segments in particular are driving that growth, namely healthcare and education. Healthcare will remain robust because of the graying of America. Hospitals and assisted living facilities are upgrading as they compete for patients. As Greg Wittlinger of Mohawk told me, old and/or dirty floors don’t speak well for the hygiene of the hospital. Education is also vigorous and is expected to remain that way, but the sweet spot is higher education rather than K-12. The latter tends to be more budgetary in nature, and also has hit a bit of a slump in some areas because of what’s going on in the residential market. Sub developments that were in the works and would require another school have been put on hold and, as such, those schools have been put on hold. Meantime, colleges and universities are carrying the sector as they compete for students. Student activity centers and wellness centers are either being built or upgraded. The segment where there is a differing of opinion is corporate, the largest commercial sector. Some manufacturers told me a lot of corporations are redoing their spaces. Others are seeing a slowdown, driven primarily by the financial community, which is somewhat nervous about earnings, so they are postponing small projects, although major projects are going forward with enthusiasm because employment is still strong, according to Tim Baucum of Shaw Contract Group. Retail spending is slowing and will continue on a downward trajectory for some time given how this segment is most tied to the residential market. The large chains are still continuing to expand, but not at the same aggressive rate. Hospitality has been riding the crest of a wave for some time as the economy soared in the early part of the decade, and hotels and restaurants were forced to compete against one another. However, this segment is expected to slow more so than any other in the next six to 12 months. Why? This is the most discretionary of all segments— people need to go to school and have healthcare—and with the cost of fuel at an all-time high, people are choosing to stay home rather than get in their car or drive to the airport. |