As Southeast specialty contractorshold on for what seems like an ever-elusive recovery, successful firms are getting as lean as possible, watching their bottom lines and adjusting to a “new normal” with a mix of discipline and expanded services.
就目前而言，这一切都是关于生存的，因为东南部的特殊合同服务市场继续运转精益，有时甚至是卑鄙的。这些数字揭示了企业正在持久的下降幻灯片。
This year's Top Specialty Contractors ranking includes 110 firms, with collective revenue totaling just over $4.5 billion. The list number itself is the first sign of market weakness. Just two years ago, ENR Southeast's Top Specialty Contractors ranking peaked at 200, and a year ago numbered 150.
The revenue figures tell the real story, though. This year's collective total of $4.5 billion, which reflects 2010 revenue, is 47% lower than the $8.5 billion that regional firms reported two years ago. Compared with last year's ranking, when 150 firms reported $5.1 billion in revenue, the current total reflects a further decline of $600 million, or nearly 12%.
Declining revenue has become the ranking's norm. But some firms are also finding success, often by making the most of long-term relationships with contractors and owners that are busy during this downtime.
例如，在今年的前25名中，有八项报告说，与一年前相比，区域收入增加。其中包括永久排名最高的MASTEC，佛罗里达州的Coral Gables，其区域收入增加到近7.6亿美元，高于去年的5.88亿美元。
其他有所改善的命运的公司包括排名第二的EMCOR集团，排名第11的Baker Roofing Co.，排名第13位的Wayne J. Griffin Electric，第14位排名第14位的D.H. Griffin Wrecking Co.，排名第15位的南方工业构造师，第17位，排名第17位的Ivey Ivey机械公司和23排名Garney Cos。
强调变革
Specialty firms across the region are doing what they can to adjust to a “new normal” of shrinking markets.
“We believe the economic environment we're in now will remain significantly unchanged for the foreseeable future,” says Michael Cannon, president of KHS&S Contractors, Tampa. “Specialty contractors will have to learn how to thrive in this 'new normal' economy.”
As a result, some specialty firms are aiming to boost company discipline and expand services.
佛罗里达州杰克逊维尔的Gate建筑材料集团总裁兼首席运营官Dean Gwin说：“我们正在提供更多产品，仔细检查所有支出，无论目前的经济状况持续多长时间，都愿意呆在那里。”
南卡罗来纳州斯巴达堡的Waldrop机械总裁Bill Caldwe18luck官网ll补充说：“在追求最适合我们的能力，技能和深度的项目方面，有选择性是至关重要的。其他未知风险。我们还成功地将其多样化到商业服务/维护和太阳能市场。”
Firms are right to focus on change, Cannon adds. “The most important thing is realizing you can't be successful if you continue to do business the way you did in the past,” he says. “Those days are over.”
