Invoice Harman, vp of product administration, business and common building at DEWALT, shares his perception into the state of the concrete {industry} and the challenges contractors are managing each day. Concrete Contractor linked with Harman over e mail in June 2025.
Q. What have been the largest challenges for concrete contractors up to now in 2025?
Invoice HarmanDEWALT
Provide Chain Disruptions — Ongoing disruptions within the provide chain have led to delays in acquiring important supplies like cement, aggregates, and admixtures. These delays have been attributable to international delivery points, labor shortages, and geopolitical tensions.
Influence:
- Tasks are being delayed, leading to prolonged timelines that result in elevated prices and penalties for contractors.
- Contractors are pressured to supply supplies from different suppliers, usually at greater costs, lowering revenue margins.
Environmental Requirements — Evolving environmental requirements and buyer expectations round sustainable constructing practices are driving demand for extra eco-friendly supplies and options that cut back carbon emissions.
Influence:
- Contractors and producers are investing in new applied sciences and supplies to fulfill buyer demand.
- Being required to trace the information for reporting results in insights that may enhance operational effectivity.
- Contractors that may adapt shortly to the altering necessities can have a aggressive benefit.
Labor Shortages — A scarcity of expert labor within the building {industry} has made it troublesome for contractors to fulfill mission deadlines and preserve high quality requirements.
Influence:
- Contractors are spending extra time and funds on recruitment and coaching to fill gaps of their workforce.
Climate-Associated Challenges — Unpredictable climate patterns, together with excessive warmth and heavy rainfall, have disrupted building schedules and impacts the curing strategy of concrete.
Influence:
- Tasks are taking longer to finish, rising labor and tools prices.
- Contractors are implementing extra measures, akin to protecting coverings and temperature management programs, to mitigate climate impacts, which will increase prices and reduces margins.
Q. What has been taking place to deal with these challenges? How impactful have these efforts been?
To handle a few of these challenges, DEWALT has developed a number of options that permit contractors to optimize their workflow, ease the results of labor scarcity, and meet environmental requirements. One among our more moderen product developments for the concrete contractor is DEWALT POWERSHIFT, a cordless tools system that harnesses electrification to optimize the workflow of concrete and building jobsites. The road features a vibrator, backpack vibrator, concrete energy screed, rammer, plate compactor, core drill and stand, 554WH battery and 550W charger. The system can produce as much as 60 % much less CO2e emissions throughout use vs. gas-powered tools* and meets the important wants of energy and runtime with out compromising effectivity and efficiency. The tools can be ergonomic, light-weight, and user-friendly with options like mushy begin, to assist much less skilled expert staff regulate to utilizing these high-performance instruments.
As one other instance, DEWALT has partnered with Converge to launch the DEWALT Sign Sensor. This expertise leverages Converge’s ConcreteDNA platform to interpret real-time knowledge from the sensor. The DEWALT Sign Sensor permits customers to watch compressive power acquire of concrete, and to foretell when it’ll attain important power by means of superior expertise and native climate knowledge. This optimizes workflows by permitting concrete professionals to start work sooner as customers can straight measure hardening reasonably than counting on estimation. Customers can even extra exactly measure the precise quantity of cement wanted within the combination, which helps cut back pointless value and carbon emissions.
*vs. main rivals, common of particular person DEWALT POWERSHIFT tools weighted by lifetime emissions throughout use; US common grid output emission charges and grid loss based mostly on the US EPA’s eGRID2022 database, printed Jan. 30, 2024 (epa.gov/egrid); gasoline emissions components based mostly on the U.S. Power Info Administration’s Carbon Dioxide Emissions Coefficients for completed motor gasoline, printed Sep. 7, 2023 (eia.gov).
Q. The place are concrete contractors at with employment and the expert labor scarcity?
From being out within the area and on jobsites, my sense is not any concrete contractor is proof against labor constraints. Some have chosen to take fewer contracts; others have absorbed time beyond regulation pay to navigate these challenges. In both case, it impacts their profitability.
DEWALT acknowledges the important want for expert labor. To assist navigate this problem, the model has dedicated $30M by 2027 to “Develop The Trades,” offering scholarships, grants, assets, coaching and instruments to assist present tradespeople and create pathways for younger folks to enter the trades.
Q. What improvements would you wish to see developed in concrete tools and instruments?
Continued improvement on electrifying the jobsite — eliminating cords and hoses helps decrease journey hazards. Eradicating fuel on the jobsite additionally mitigates engine restore, having to take care of tank refills and usually coping with the complications of storing and utilization of fuel.
Q. What do you anticipate the largest problem(s) shall be in 2026 for the concrete {industry}?
My perception is that the present challenges will, for probably the most half, stay within the close to future.
I’d say labor constraints will proceed to be a priority and navigating the macroeconomic uncertainty and general pricing of supplies will stay entrance and middle.
Q. What are the most recent adjustments for DEWALT?
DEWALT has continued to advance the linked jobsite. Expertise like Web site Supervisor and TOOL CONNECT+ permit for asset administration, reviewing of important security occasion knowledge, and even understanding utilization patterns to make customers safer and extra productive.
We are also persevering with to advance our DEWALT DESIGN ASSIST (or DDA Software program), which is a world-class connection design software program for anchoring. Probably the most time-consuming duties for concrete contractors is prepping holes and placement structure of structural anchors, threaded rod, and rebar connections. Making this course of extra productive with fewer errors is a big value-add to clients.
Q. What improvements in tools do you anticipate in concrete tools for 2025 and the close to future?
Electrification within the area will proceed to advance, by means of extra cordless instruments and extra highly effective battery options, driving the conversion from fuel to cordless.
Q. What has caught your curiosity these days in concrete?
The concrete commerce has been evolving quickly, with a number of tendencies and improvements catching my consideration these days. Among the key areas which have sparked curiosity embody:
Developments in Sustainable Concrete — The push for eco-friendly building has led to the event of sustainable concrete options, akin to carbon-neutral concrete and recycled mixture concrete. These supplies assist us higher meet our clients’ calls for and cut back the carbon footprint of building initiatives. Contractors are exploring methods to combine these options with out compromising on power and sturdiness.
Use of AI and Automation — Synthetic intelligence and automation are being more and more adopted within the concrete commerce for duties like combine optimization, high quality management, and predictive upkeep. AI-driven instruments are enhancing effectivity and lowering waste in concrete manufacturing. This automation helps contractors handle labor shortages and streamline operations.
Extremely-Excessive-Efficiency Concrete (UHPC) — UHPC is gaining traction for its distinctive power, sturdiness, and resistance to environmental components. It’s being utilized in important infrastructure initiatives, akin to bridges and high-rise buildings and the lengthy lifespan reduces upkeep prices, making it a cheap selection in the long term.
3D Printing with Concrete — The usage of 3D printing expertise in concrete building is revolutionizing the way in which buildings are designed and constructed. It permits for sooner building, decreased materials waste, and complicated designs that have been beforehand troublesome to attain at the moment are doable, unlocking some actually artistic pondering throughout the {industry}.
The concrete commerce is present process a transformative section, pushed by sustainability, expertise, and the necessity for resilience. These developments will not be solely enhancing the standard and effectivity of building but additionally unlocking new alternatives. Contractors and {industry} professionals are actively exploring these improvements to remain forward in a aggressive market.
