It’s becoming increasingly apparent the residential sector is in a strong comeback mode.

Two simultaneous revelations right after the first of the year have magnified our predictions of industrial manufacturing and construction expansion, as the first quarter of 2014 gets off and running.

In analyzing the 2014 industrial construction take-off quarter, we consulted industrial components expert Steve Letko regarding the geographical regions’ growth and the intensity of the product components comprising anticipated overall end-use growth.

Go on. Flip over the calendar. Look at that! You’ve made it to 2014. Some of you are celebrating this past year with a bottle of bubbly, a victory lap around the shop and a hearty pat on the back (and maybe year-end bonuses) for your team. Others of you may still be saying: “Whew! Thank goodness that year is over. This year will be different. I know we can succeed.

Although single-family housing starts have continued their comeback climb from under 100,000 annually in early 2009, they have significantly rebounded over that figure well into 2013. Much of the recovery on home sales has been concentrated on the reduction of over-extended existing home inventories.

U.S. prices for polyvinyl chloride, the plastic most widely used in construction, are set to rise by 5 cents per lb. in the first two months of 2014. This is a significant price increase in a market that will see producers end the year with a net five-cent increase in their 2013 margins, according to PetroChem Wire’s PVC & Pipe Report.

As mentioned in previous columns, commercial building loans and their supporting activity are edging toward pre-recession levels. As of mid-year 2013, U.S. banks had issued just short of one trillion dollars in commercial real-estate loans, up almost 4% from a year earlier, according to official sources.

Consumer goods including plumbing pipe could be significantly affected.
 

With recent statistics noting “air pockets” in the post-recession, stuttering economic recovery, new doubts are being cast on the future of America’s housing comeback. On a year-to-year basis, the expansion of additional residential construction seems to have plodded ahead at a low double-digit rate with expectations of a forthcoming pickup, even if that rate is modest by previous standards.

 While much of America’s future economic dynamism has been riveted on the overdue upgrading of the nation’s infrastructure (pipelines, bridges, dams, railroads and highways), little has been heard lately regarding commercial and industrial construction.