Slight Improvement in ABI for February

Demand for architectural design services inched up in February registering 50.7 on the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Architecture Billings Index, up just slightly from 50.4 in January. The new projects inquiry index fell to 56.8 from 58.5 the previous month. Increase in design activity for multi-family residential and commercial nudged growth in February.

“The unusually severe weather conditions in many parts of the country have obviously held back both design and construction activity,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “The March and April readings will likely be a better indication of the underlying health of the design and construction markets. We are hearing reports of projects that had been previously shelved for extended periods of time coming back online as the economy improves.”