Electrical Contractors
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Industry Structure, How Firms Opertate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Quarterly Insight, Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 72,100 electrical contractor firms in the US provide electrical installation, repair, and maintenance work. They handle wiring, lighting, networking, fire and safety equipment, and energy management systems, among other tasks. Much of the work is installation and repair of residential electrical wiring. Contractors must buy materials and then install them according to code in homes and other buildings.
Demand Dependent on Construction Activity
Contractors can market new services such as design work during periods of low demand, but new construction ultimately drives the industry.
Liability for Damages
Oftentimes builders or general contractors will try to cut corners, directing ECs to take shortcuts that violate code.
Industry size & Structure
An average electrical contractor has 13 employees and does $2-3 million in annual revenue.
- Overall, the electrical contractor industry has $173 billion in annual revenue and 952,000 employees.
- Segments include power installation, telecommunications setup, fire and safety systems.
- 88% of establishments have fewer than 20 employees.
- About 41% of establishments do less than $500,000 a year in business.
- Large firms include Emcor Group (CT), Integrated Electrical Services (TX), and Rosendin Electric (CA).
Industry Forecast
Electrical Contractors Industry Growth
Coronavirus Update
May 11, 2022 - China’s Zero-COVID Policy Slows Factory Output, Exports
- Electrical contractors may be experiencing increased supply chain disruptions of Chinse electrical equipment exports. China’s manufacturing output decreased to a 26-month low in April as its zero-tolerance approach to the pandemic slowed factory output. The Caixin China General Manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) dropped from 48.4 in March 2022 to 46 in April. A reading below 50 suggests output is contracting rather than expanding. In April, new orders and production fell to their lowest levels since the survey began in 2004, and exports declined at the steepest rate in nearly two years. Delivery times grew at the second-fastest rate in the index’s history amid travel restrictions and raw materials shortages.
- The coronavirus pandemic is boosting demand for warehouse space, and electrical contractors may benefit from the construction boom. The US may need an additional 1 billion square feet of new industrial space by 2025 to keep up with demand, according to commercial real estate services company JLL. "The industry is effectively sold out through the next year," Chris Caton, managing director of global strategy and analytics at Prologis, said in late 2021. Demand is driven by retailers beefing up e-commerce operations amid the online shopping boom and investing in faster delivery. Retailers are also securing more storage space in the US to mitigate the impact of future supply chain shocks like those caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
- Total construction spending increased 0.1% in value month over month on an adjusted basis and 11.8% in value year over year on an unadjusted basis in March 2022, according to the US Census Bureau. Residential construction spending increased 1% month over month and 17.8% year over year in March. Nonresidential construction spending declined 0.8% month over month and increased 5.8% year over year in March.
- Homebuilder sentiment, as measured by the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index, decreased to 77 in April 2022 from 79 in March, marking the fourth consecutive monthly decline. Higher materials costs and rapidly rising interest rates are making housing less affordable, which is weighing on builder confidence. Builders report that sales traffic and current sales conditions are at their lowest levels since summer 2021. Higher mortgage rates and supply chain disruptions have unsettled the US housing market, especially for potential first-time homebuyers.
- The Dodge Momentum Index increased 6% in April 2022 to 164.8 (2000=100), up from the revised March reading of 155. The Momentum Index is a monthly measure of the first (or initial) report for nonresidential building projects in planning, which has been shown to lead construction spending for nonresidential buildings by a full year. The commercial planning component increased by 9%, and institutional planning rose by 2%. The commercial planning pipeline was robust due to data center, warehouse, and hotel projects. While the backlog of nonresidential building projects is strong and should remain solid in the coming months, rising interest rates and higher materials costs could moderate construction activity through the end of 2022.
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