WASHINGTON, Oct. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- McGraw-Hill Construction, part of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP), today released its 2011 Construction Outlook, a mainstay in construction industry forecasting and business planning, which predicts an increase in overall U.S. construction starts for next year. The level of construction starts in 2011 is expected to advance 8% to$445.5 billion, following the 2% decline predicted for 2010.

"While the economy is still facing headwinds, the stage is being set for construction to see modest improvement in 2011 from this year's very weak activity," said Robert A. Murray, vice president of economicaffairs at McGraw-Hill Construction, addressing nearly 400 construction executives and professionals at the 72nd annual Outlook 2011 Executive Conference in Washington. "We're turning the corner, slowly. 2011 will be the first year of renewed growth for overall construction activity, and 2010 becomes the final year of a very lengthy and unusual construction cycle."

Based on significant research and in-depth analysis of macro-trends, the 2011 Construction Outlook details the forecasts for each construction sector, as follows.

• Single family housing in 2011 will climb 27% in dollars, corresponding to a 25% increase in the number of units to 565,000 (McGraw-Hill Construction basis).
• Multifamily housing will rise 24% in dollars and 23% in units, continuing to move gradually upward.
• Commercial buildings will increase 16%, following a three-year decline, which dropped contracting 62% in dollar terms. The levels of activity expected for stores, warehouses, offices and hotels in 2011 will still be quite weak by historical standards.
• The institutional building market will slip an additional 1% in 2011, retreating for the third straight year. The difficult fiscal climate for states and localities will continue to dampen school construction, although the healthcare facilities category should see moderate growth.
• Manufacturing buildings will increase 9% in dollars and 11% in square feet.
• Public works construction will drop 1%, given the fading benefits of the federal stimulus act for highway and bridge construction.
• Electric utilities will slide 10%, falling for the third year in a row.

The 2011 Construction Outlook was presented at the McGraw-Hill Construction Outlook Executive Conference in Washington, D.C., which brought together top executives and professionals from all areas of the construction industry.

"Outlook is the definitive event for construction professionals to prepare for the year ahead," said Keith Fox, president, McGraw-Hill Construction. "We are pleased to provide essential knowledge and insight to help our customers grow their businesses and succeed. This year's Outlook showcased the industry's best minds and most experienced players, from economists, to technologists, to industry analysts."

In addition to Mr. Murray's Construction Outlook, industry experts delivered forecasts for green building, residential building, building product manufacturers, building materials, technology, and the economy as a whole, shedding light on these crucial sectors.

"The U.S. economy is in the second year of economic expansion," said Kathleen Camilli, president of Camilli Economics. "While the growth rate is currently modest, momentum is likely to grow as the economy responds to ongoing monetary and fiscal stimulus in the pipeline. Notwithstanding the financial crisis' impact on residential and nonresidential construction, growth in this sector of the economy will continue to be driven by innovation in building technologies."

For more information on the 2011 Outlook, visit construction.ecnext.com/coms2/summary_0249-360828_ITM_analytics or attend a regional outlook event (http://construction.com/events) in Anaheim, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Fort Myers, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, Seattle, or Tampa. Robert Murray will also present the 2011 Construction Outlook in a webinar on December 9.

The Outlook Executive Conference is produced by McGraw-Hill Construction. The event's diamond sponsors are the American Institute of Steel Construction, United Rentals, and Verizon Wireless. Platinum sponsors include Computer Methods International Corp. and Viewpoint Construction Software. The gold sponsors are Cosential Enterprise Software and Hill International.

About McGraw-Hill Construction:

McGraw-Hill Construction connects people, projects and products across the construction industry. For more than a century, it has remained North America's leading provider of project and product information, plans and specifications, and industry news, trends and forecasts. McGraw-Hill Construction serves more than one million customers in the $5.6 trillion global construction industry throughEngineering News-Record, Dodge, Sweets, Architectural Record, SNAP and GreenSource. To learn more, visit www.construction.com or follow @mhconstruction on Twitter.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies:

Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a global information and education company providing knowledge, insights and analysis in the financial, education and business information sectors through leading brands including Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, Platts, and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2009 were $5.95 billion. Additional information is available at www.mcgraw-hill.com.

SOURCE McGraw-Hill Construction