Ontario construction contractors are bullish about the amount of business they’ll do in 2014, according to a new Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of the Ontario Construction Secretariat.
Four in 10 (40%) say they expect to do ‘more’ (9% much more/30% somewhat more) business in 2014 compared to 2013, while just one in 10 (11%) believe they’ll do less (3% much less/8% somewhat less) than a year ago. Nearly half (49%) expect business to be steady, anticipating that it will be ‘about the same’. One per cent (1%) does not know.
Thinking specifically about the work that they’ll conduct in the commercial sector in 2014, a nearly 3 to 1 margin more believe that they’ll do more business (25%) in 2014 than less (9%), while most (58%) believe their business will be about the same. One in 10 (9%) are unsure.
Contractors in some sectors are more bullish than others:
- Among those who do work for the high-rise residential sector, 32% foresee their work rising, while 18% think the volume of work will fall. One half (49%) believe there will be no change in 2014, and 2% don’t know.
- Among those who do work for the industrial and manufacturing sector, two in ten (23%) see an increase versus one in ten (14%) who foresee a decrease in business. Six in ten (61%) think it’ll be about the same, and 2% don’t know.
- Among those who work do work for the engineering and civil sector (power, waste, sewer, roads/bridges, etc.), two in ten (22%) believe the flow of work will increase compared to one in ten (8%) that believe it will decrease. Seven in ten (69%) forecast no change, and 1% doesn’t know.
- Among those who work for the institutional/government sector, opinions are almost flat as equal proportions think they’ll do more (17%) or less (16%) work, while 66% foresee no change and 1% are unsure.
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between November 29th and December 23rd, 2013, on behalf of the Ontario Construction Secretariat. For this survey, a sample of 550 construction contractors working in Ontario was interviewed by telephone. Ipsos sourced business sample for the research. The margin of error for a sample of 550 interviews is +/- 4.2%, nineteen times out of twenty (95% confidence interval). The margin of error for sub-sections (i.e.. region) of the sample is larger, depending on the sample size.
To learn more, please visit www.ipsos.ca.
