ENR's Top 400 2019: Bechtel holds No. 1 in market growth streak

Dive Brief:

With $16.8 billion in total revenue last year, Bechtel is No. 1 on Engineering News-Record’s 2019 Top 400 Contractors list, a ranking it’s held for the past two decades. Next up in terms of revenue, respectively, are Fluor Corp., Turner Corp. and AECOM. The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. rounded out the top five as the only newcomer on that list compared to last year. The only other firm that was new to the top 10 is DPR Construction, having moved up from 15th last year to tenth this year.
As a group, the 373 companies that submitted surveys to ENR generated a new record of $405 billion in 2018 contracting revenue, a roughly 8% increase over the prior year.
Nearly 69% of participating companies increased their 2018 revenue compared to 2017, while roughly 31% had lower revenue. As the economy continues an almost 10-year growth streak, contractors see few signs of slowing, ENR reported.

Dive Insight:

Bechtel solidified its spot at the top in the 2018 financial year with such projects as Cheniere Energy’s $11 billion Liquefaction project in Corpus Christi, Texas, and Tellurian’s $27.5 billion Driftwood LNG export terminal near Lake Charles, Louisiana. The firm is capitalizing on the U.S.’ growing role in global oil and natural gas production, ENR reported.

Fluor’s roughly $15.6 billion in 2018 revenue earned it second, though it tops all firms in the petroleum and industrial sector. Turner, the country’s largest domestic contractor, recorded about $13.2 billion and AECOM about $11.2 billion. With roughly $8.4 billion in 2018 revenue, Whiting-Turner climbed from eighth place last year, pushing Kiewit Corp. to sixth.

Skanska USA, PCL Construction Enterprises Inc., McDermott International Inc. and DPR Construction fill out the top 10.

Some of the movement in rankings across the full list can be attributed to mergers and acquisitions by companies looking to expand or enhance their offerings, according to ENR. McDermott merged with CB&I in a $6 billion deal last year, for example, and Structure Tone, which has since rebranded as STO Building Group Inc., extended its geographic reach after acquiring Ajax Building Corp. and Canada-based Govan Brown.

A few other contractors built up their presence in some regions to win more work there. AECOM, ENR noted, completed or won a number of high-profile projects in Los Angeles — like The Grand, a $1 billion mixed-use development downtown — since expanding its California operations last year.

In general, according to ENR, contractors are more focused on the opportunities presented by current market conditions than the challenges a downturn would present. With economic growth at 3.2% in the first quarter of 2019 on the heels of a strong growth streak the year prior, there’s little reason to gear down.