Cushman & Wakefield reports rising industrial construction costs

Industrial construction costs are rising across the Americas due to increasing demand and a recovering development pipeline. According to Cushman & Wakefield, costs have increased across all tracked project sizes: small industrial projects rose an average of 3.6% year-over-year to $144 per square foot, medium projects increased 2.8% to $87 per square foot, and large projects rose 2.3% to $78 per square foot.

A significant shift is occurring in the drivers of inflation. While previous construction cycles were defined by labor shortages and wage growth, current pressures are increasingly concentrated in materials. Construction-related commodity prices have risen 13.3% year-over-year, a rate more than 4.7 times higher than the previous year.

This surge in material costs is being driven by tariffs, metal supply constraints, and high demand from infrastructure and data center projects. Notable increases include aluminum at 40.9%, copper base scrap at 39.3%, and nonferrous metals at 38.5%. While labor cost growth has moderated, specialized trades continue to experience strain, outpacing common labor costs.