Steep inflation over the past few months has exacerbated an already volatile market for construction materials, further complicating specialty contractors’ efforts to successfully navigate a post-pandemic environment where many markets remain active, albeit with resources in short supply.

Many subcontractors are attempting a number of workarounds to their supply chain challenges, such as identifying alternative sources of supply, making bulk purchases, and negotiating project-specific contingencies with suppliers, general contractors, and owners. Ryan Anderson, purchasing director of St. Paul, Minn.-based mechanical contractor Harris, calls such early planning measures “a necessary shift from the customary just-in-time approach to a plan-for-early materials delivery method to position projects for success.”

Even if materials are available, subcontractor bids are becoming increasingly short-lived, while supply reliability has also suffered as a result of supply chain volatility. While there are indications that the spring-summer price acceleration may have abated, if not peaked, subcontractors remain wary.

Despite the need for more power and the recent increase in federal spending to meet rising energy needs in the U.S., building the infrastructure necessary to meet demand has proven difficult due to regulatory challenges posed by local communities and environmental groups.

Even with approval from authorities in several jurisdictions, utility-scale energy projects -- such as power transmission lines and offshore wind farms -- face legal challenges that create delays and elevated costs.

As a companion to the Democrats’ energy and climate-spending package, Senator Joe Manchin is spearheading deal negotiations focused on expediting new energy projects, in part by streamlining federal permits and limiting court challenges.

A $21-million federal grant was announced on Wednesday in Victoria, B.C., intended to incentivize the hiring and registering of new apprenticeships and will be paid directly to contractors who participate over the next two years.

To encourage a larger and more diverse labor pool in the industry, participating employers will receive $5,000 for hiring or registering any worker, with an added $5,000 if the worker self-reports as a woman, new Canadian, LGBTQ+, Indigenous, a person with a disability or a visible minority.

Employers can receive payments for up to two first-year apprenticeship positions per year during the two years of the drive for a maximum of $40,000 per employer.