The U.S. construction pipeline strengthened in April, but the latest contractor data suggests much of that momentum is being captured by large firms tied to high-value data center development rather than the broader market.
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Associated Builders and Contractors reported its Construction Backlog Indicator climbed to 8.8 months in April, marking a modest monthly increase and a slight gain from the same period last year. While the headline figure points to continued sector resilience, the distribution of that work remains heavily concentrated among major contractors with access to large-scale digital infrastructure projects.
Builders with annual revenues above $100 million saw backlog expand significantly, reaching levels well above last year’s pace. According to ABC survey findings, this group has benefited disproportionately from the surge in data center construction, a segment increasingly fueled by cloud expansion, artificial intelligence infrastructure and enterprise computing demand.
The numbers highlight a growing divide: large contractors are far more likely to participate in data center projects than smaller firms, giving them access to longer project pipelines and more predictable revenue streams. Contractors involved in data center work reported substantially stronger backlog than peers outside that niche, reinforcing how specialized megaprojects are reshaping workload concentration.
For construction owners and developers, this trend could have meaningful implications for procurement strategy. As top contractors commit resources to data centers and other capital-intensive projects, competition for skilled labor, equipment and subcontractor capacity may tighten in other segments, potentially affecting project schedules and bid pricing.
At the same time, ABC’s Construction Confidence Index showed contractors remain broadly optimistic. Sales expectations, staffing plans and profit margin outlook all improved in April and remained above growth thresholds, suggesting firms still anticipate expansion over the next six months even as materials costs and broader economic volatility persist.
This optimism is notable given recent concerns around weaker national construction spending figures, rising energy costs and material price escalation. For many contractors, confidence appears tied less to macroeconomic caution and more to project-specific opportunity pipelines.
For owners, developers and institutional project sponsors, April’s backlog data signals that contractor availability may increasingly depend on project type and scale. Firms pursuing large industrial, mission-critical or technology-driven developments may continue to secure top-tier builders, while smaller commercial or regional projects could encounter shifting capacity and pricing dynamics.
Owners should closely monitor contractor specialization, labor competition and procurement timing—especially in markets seeing accelerated data center expansion. As backlog growth becomes more concentrated, early contractor engagement and supply chain planning may become more critical to protecting budgets and delivery timelines.
