YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – For the first time in years, the region’s electrical contractors face a season without a mega construction project on the books.
Still, business in the private sector has rebounded since the winter, they say, and all indicators point to a spring and summer of steady work for the industry. These include opportunities in health care construction, maintenance work in the industrial sector, and development in new industrial parks.
“As crazy as this economy is, construction is still on the uptick,” observes Eric Jay, vice president at University Electric Inc. in Youngstown.
The company is contracted for the electrical work at the new Mercy Health Behavioral Hospital, which broke ground April 16 on a new 11-acre campus along Belmont Avenue in Liberty Township. Mercy Health has partnered with Lifepoint Behavioral Health on the project.
“This is the largest project we’ve ever undertaken in our 37 years in business,” he says. “We’re very fortunate,” since the project should carry work well into 2025.
The campus will include a Mercy Health Rehabilitation Hospital, another joint venture with Lifepoint Rehabilitation. Dickey Electric Inc. of North Lima is handling the electrical work on that building, under construction at the site.
Jay says that University Electric is also keeping busy with a selection of smaller jobs throughout the area, including renovations at Youngstown State University’s planetarium, which was damaged by fire last year. Additional work at YSU included lighting improvements at Beeghly Center and Stambaugh Stadium. “Most of the work we did was in commons areas and restrooms,” he says, swapping older fluorescent lights with LED fixtures. “They’re energy saving with a better output,” he says.
University Electric was also tapped by the city of Youngstown to install new electric-vehicle chargers once work is completed on two new parking lots downtown. The project calls for the installation of two EV charging stations – each equipped with two charging ports – at an empty lot at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. A second lot downtown along West Federal Street where the Kress Building once stood is also slated for two charging stations, each with two ports.
Still, EV charging installation projects are few, and have yet to take hold in this region, Jay says. “There’s not a whole lot in the EV market right now.”
Nevertheless, Jay says he’s generally optimistic about the bid environment for new work. “I haven’t seen a lot of slowdown,” he says.
Tom Lipka, executive director of the Youngstown Chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association, or NECA, observes that the local market might appear slower because of the absence of mega projects such as Ultium Cells LLC’s $2.3 billion EV battery cell manufacturing plant in Lordstown. Work has all but wrapped up at that site and Ultium began shipping battery cells in the summer of 2022.
“As work hours go, 2020 to 2023 were fantastic,” Lipka says. “The IBEW locals were putting up record numbers because of the Ultium plant.”
Now that Ultium has wound down, Lipka says he sees “a little lull” in the overall electrical market, but anticipates a rebound. “It’ll bounce back,” he says.
Kimberly-Cark’s acquisition of 560 acres of former steel mill property in Warren late in 2023, for example, could signal a major construction project in the near future, Lipka says, although no specific project has been announced or confirmed. Other smaller projects in both the residential and commercial sectors are helping to fill order books.
Often, NECA’s member contractors will travel out of the region with the work, Lipka says. “Some of our local contractors have projects all over the country,” he says. “These guys will adapt by traveling a little further.”
National projections across the industry show sustained growth in the electrical contracting industry over the next four years, according to data published by researchandmarkets.com. By 2028, the market value for electrical contractors is projected to stand at $283.74 billion in the United States, up from $225 billion in 2022 – an annual growth rate of nearly 4%. Productivity, the study warns, could be impeded by the lack of skilled labor available and a volatile pricing environment.
Among the national trends expected to affect the industry over the next four years is a growing demand for data centers, the shift toward clean energy projects, the development of EV charging infrastructure, and the implementation of 5G networks, according to researchandmarkets. Other general factors include additional infrastructure spending and renovation projects.
“It’s a little soft right now but it’s picking back up,” says Dan “Bud” Santon, president of Santon Electric, Boardman. “I think we’ll have steady work ahead of us – residential hasn’t slowed up at all.”
Santon says most of his company’s residential work is with new construction, which has helped bridge any gaps in commercial projects: “We’re doing pretty good – we’re busy.”
Dave Wright, senior estimator for Dickey Electric Inc., also witnessed a slowdown during the winter months but says all indicators show that the market is strengthening as the building season takes hold.
“We’ve been pretty steady on the sanitary end of things such as pumping stations and projects tied to things like sewer line extensions,” he says.
Work in the private sector appears to be gaining more traction, Wright says, noting he’s hopeful for additional growth along the North Jackson/Lordstown corridor. There, new developments such as the North Jackson Commerce Park are preparing for new construction. “They’re looking at one building now and a couple more in the future,” he says. “We’ve been asked to put a budget together for that. So, it seems like it’s picked back up pretty good.”
The manufacturing sector has also served as a steady customer, mostly for maintenance within the plants instead of new expansions, Wright says. Other work includes the Mercy Health Rehabilitation Hospital along Belmont and an addition to the Freshmark plant in Salem. “We’ve got a steady stream of stuff coming through the doors,” he says. “There’s no lull in the estimating department.”
There are nonetheless persistent headwinds that continue to dog the industry, including longer lead times for components because of sluggish supply chains, Wright says. “It’s gotten better with some items but we’ve got distribution equipment that we’re waiting over a year to get,” he says. Prices on materials were starting to fall last year. But commodities such as copper have begun to climb because of a spike in demand.
Thus far, the company is not facing any workforce shortages and believes it’s adequately staffed for this season’s projects, he adds. Moreover, there’s no apprehension among Dickey Electric’s customers about moving forward on projects despite it being an election year and a market marked by higher interest rates. “It’s looking good as of right now,” Wright says. “We’re always on the hunt to keep that backlog.”