{"id":30279,"date":"2025-05-04T16:19:06","date_gmt":"2025-05-04T23:19:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/tariff-fears-settling-down-graycor-southwest-lead\/"},"modified":"2025-05-04T16:19:06","modified_gmt":"2025-05-04T23:19:06","slug":"tariff-fears-settling-down-graycor-southwest-lead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/tariff-fears-settling-down-graycor-southwest-lead\/","title":{"rendered":"Tariff fears \u2018settling down\u2019: Graycor Southwest lead"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> [ad_1]<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"text-to-speech\">\n    <button class=\"text-to-speech__button button\"><\/p>\n<p>            <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"text-to-speech__button__icon\" src=\"https:\/\/www.constructiondive.com\/static\/images\/audio_icon.svg?482016190122\" alt=\"-\"><\/p>\n<p>        Listen to the article<br \/>\n        <span class=\"text-to-speech__button__audio-length\">5 min<\/span><br \/>\n    <\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"text-to-speech__controls\">\n        <audio controls=\"\" class=\"js-text-to-speech\" preload=\"none\"><source src=\"https:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/dmgi9movl\/video\/upload\/q_1\/v1746044396\/news\/text_to_speech\/tariff-fears-settling-down-graycor-southwest-division_wp1zam.wav\" type=\"audio\/mp3\"><\/source><\/audio><\/p>\n<div class=\"text-to-speech__controls__text\">\n            This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.constructiondive.com\/contact\/\" target=\"_blank\">feedback<\/a>.\n        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Tariff fears are abating as the Southwest\u2019s construction landscape heats up due to demand for data centers and chip fabs, according to Graycor Construction\u2019s new general manager of the region.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>The Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois-based firm and other contractors are racing to capture opportunities across Phoenix and beyond, even as the challenges of <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.constructiondive.com\/news\/deepseek-ai-data-center-construction-energy\/742775\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>labor shortages and power needs<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span><span><span><span><span><span> loom over the sector. Amid this backdrop, <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.constructiondive.com\/news\/semiconductor-graycor-hire-construction-southwest\/745739\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>Graycor Construction recently tapped Brett Helm<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span><span><span><span><span><span> to lead its Southwest division\u2019s expansion into these fast-moving sectors.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Based in Phoenix, Helm brings 30 years of experience at various firms, including Redwood City, California-based DPR Construction and Falls Church, Virginia-based HITT Contracting.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Here, Helm talks with Construction Dive about market expansion, semiconductor competition and power constraints for data centers.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><em><span>This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<h4><span><span><span><strong><span><span>CONSTRUCTION DIVE: What inspired your move to Graycor, and what are your first priorities in your new position?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n<p><span><span><span><strong><span><span>BRETT HELM: <\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><span><span><span><span><span><span>A mutual subcontractor friend had mentioned to me that there could be a great opportunity here, and that he had nothing bad to say about them. So, that really perked my interest. I\u2019m very grateful to be here and very grateful for the opportunity.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>First priority is really to get in what I would call adjacent markets to the markets that Graycor is in here in the Southwest. We do have great builders, but the idea is to get a little bit more diversified in our markets. So, as one market goes down, ideally another market goes up, and we can just transfer our people from market to market. Ideally, that\u2019s where I want to take us.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<h4><span><span><span><strong><span><span>When you look at sectors like semiconductors and advanced manufacturing, how is Graycor positioning itself to stay competitive in the Southwest? Are you still seeing strong momentum in these sectors?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Yes, I\u2019m definitely seeing strong [momentum.] We have opportunities in our pipeline right now that we\u2019re going after. The resources that we have as an organization from the projects that we\u2019ve completed over the years, and bringing that information to the Southwest from our other offices throughout the U.S., is how we are competitive. That is really the strength that we have.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>So, when I say an adjacent market, that semiconductor and manufacturing part is really what I\u2019m talking about, along with data centers.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<h4><span><span><span><strong><span><span>What types of opportunities are you seeing in the data center space?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>We have a lot of builders that can do parts of a data center, but what I\u2019m going to do is bring in some additional resources to help us fill that market.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>I\u2019ve been in this market since the late 1990s, so a little over 25 years.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>The data center market in Phoenix has just really accelerated. A lot of the colocation type markets \u2014 the quick hitters \u2014 those are a little bit easier for us to get into. And ideally, we would build that market to where we can get at the hyperscale type of clients.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<h4><span><span><span><strong><span><span>With the ongoing pressures from rising costs and labor shortages, how do you see construction activity going the rest of 2025?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>The tariff issue seems like it has really settled down. I know if you would have asked me this question three or four weeks ago, I probably would give you a different answer.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>But right now, we\u2019re actually getting a lot of competitive numbers from our subcontractor community. That\u2019s a very competitive market out there right now. So, I think, construction activity is actually going to probably stay as is.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>Our subcontractors are getting very good coverage on the projects that we\u2019re going after right now. So, hopefully that continues throughout 2025.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<h4><span><span><span><strong><span><span>Any other important trends in construction worth mentioning?<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>When we talk about data centers, our next big challenge that we\u2019re going to have is power, getting power to these mega data centers.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>You hear about these small modular reactors, SMRs. That next technology for power I think is going to be the trend that we\u2019re going to see down the road.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span><span><span><span><span>I know the technology is there right now, but just getting through the permitting and all the hurdles that they have in their way to start building on these sites is difficult. Because right now, we have two great utility companies here in the Phoenix area, but there\u2019s only so much power they can deliver. I think that\u2019s what\u2019s going to hold us back in this area.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>[ad_2]<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.constructiondive.com\/news\/tariff-fears-settling-down-graycor-southwest-division\/746808\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">This article was originally posted at Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[ad_1] Listen to the article 5 min This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. Tariff &#8230; <a title=\"Tariff fears \u2018settling down\u2019: Graycor Southwest lead\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/tariff-fears-settling-down-graycor-southwest-lead\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Tariff fears \u2018settling down\u2019: Graycor Southwest lead\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[457],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-construction-dive","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30279"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30279\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}