Weekly Briefing: November 14, 2025
- Socially Adept Solutions
- Nov 14
- 4 min read
Week of November 10, 2025
Backlog Falls in October, While Expectations for Growth Remain
In October of 2025, the average backlog fell to 8.4 months, which is the lowest since May and third straight monthly drop, according to the Associated Builders and Contractors. However, backlog is the same as October of 2024.
Smaller contractors, generally earning below $30M in revenue, saw backlog shrink to 7.3 months, while data center-focused firms remain strong at 10.9 months.
Northeast continued its decline to 7.7 months, Middle States retreated to 8.1, West rebounded to 8.1 months, and South stayed strongest at 9.6 months.
Expectations for sales are flat, and profit margin and staffing outlook weakened; though, there is still expectation of growth in the next six months.
Shutdown Delays Put IIJA Funds at Risk of Going Unused
The recent federal government shutdown created a multi-week backlog in reviews and approvals at the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), jeopardizing timely use of funds from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).
The DOT has obligated only about 59% of its available IIJA grant funding for fiscal years 2022-2025 and has spent only about half of those committed funds, according to a July 2025 Government Accountability Office audit.
Many IIJA formula and discretionary grants carry strict obligation deadlines, with some funds having already lapsed on Sept. 30, 2025, and the overall program set to expire on Sept. 30, 2026. Further delays heighten the risk that significant funding may go unused unless Congress intervenes.
States and contractors report that project advancement is uneven: large-scale transit and rail investments are especially challenged, with inflation, compliance burdens (e.g., NEPA reviews and Build America, Buy America), and the shutdown-induced review backlog adds complexity.
November 10, 2025
EFCG is pleased to announce that our client, C2AE, a U.S.-based architecture and engineering firm headquartered in Michigan, has been acquired by AtkinsRéalis, a global engineering services and nuclear company.
EFCG congratulates both the C2AE and AtkinsRéalis teams on this milestone transaction, which expands AtkinsRéalis’ capabilities in key end-markets such as Water, Transportation, and Buildings & Places, and strengthens its presence across the Upper Midwest. The combination sets the stage for immediate collaboration, new opportunities for employees, and long-term growth.
EFCG provided advisory and valuation services to C2AE in advance of the transaction.
November 12, 2025
EFCG is pleased to announce that our client, GHD, a leading professional services company operating in the global markets of water, energy and resources, environment, property and buildings, and transportation, has divested its digital procurement platform, bids&tenders, to Valsoft Corporation, a Montreal-based company specializing in the acquisition and development of vertical market software businesses. Designed to simplify and centralize procurement for public- and private-sector organizations, bids&tenders supports the full procurement lifecycle.
“EFCG’s market-leading AEC technology expertise and transaction guidance enabled GHD to secure a great long-term home for the bids&tenders team,” said Steve Hammerton, Head of Corporate Finance & Strategic Projects at GHD.
EFCG provided advisory services to GHD on the transaction.
November 10, 2025
Schaub Projects (Schaub), a Missouri-based residential architecture firm, has acquired Metheny Architects, a Missouri-based residential architecture firm. This acquisition strengthens Schaub’s ability to deliver more complex projects with greater efficiency while continuing to expand in the greater St. Louis region. Additionally, Founder Jon Metheny will join the Schaub team as Junior Partner and Director of Design. “As our industry continues to evolve in the St. Louis region and beyond, we were looking for a partner who could expand our design bandwidth,” said Dave Schaub, Founder and Managing Partner of Schaub. “Jon [Metheny] has an entrepreneurial mindset—like us—and brings a deeper modern design capability to our firm. His client-service focus and business values align with ours, and we are excited about the opportunities ahead.”
November 11, 2025
BW Design Group (BW), a Missouri-based, fully integrated architecture, engineering, and construction firm, has acquired Malisko Engineering (Malisko), a Missouri-based firm specializing in process controls and automation, industrial networking and cybersecurity, data integration and visualization, and manufacturing system integration and modernization. This strategic move bolsters BW’s ability to deliver tailored, end-to-end solutions for complex manufacturing and technology needs. “We built a reputation for engineering excellence and lasting client partnerships,” said Steve Malyszko, CEO and Co-Founder of Malisko. “Joining BW Design Group allows our team to continue that legacy while offering our clients access to broader expertise, expanded resources and fully integrated capabilities — all united and with the same dedication to quality, partnership and shared purpose.”
November 12, 2025
SitelogIQ, a Minnesota-based energy services and facility improvement solutions firm, backed by AEA Investors, has acquired the lighting design backlog and team from Sparkfund, a Colorado-based energy utilities services firm providing distributed energy resource planning and management services. This acquisition expands SitelogIQ’s footprint in Colorado and increases capabilities in SitelogIQ’s lighting design business. “We are thrilled to welcome these lighting design experts, which we know well, into SitelogIQ,” said Kelly Schuller, SitelogIQ’s CEO. “They will strengthen our streetlight replacement capabilities in particular and increase our overall capacity to support customers.”
Tata & Howard collected 2,116 items to donate as part of their annual food drive. As food insecurity touches Americans across the nation, employee-owners at the firm generously and competitively donated nonperishables of all kinds for the Worcester County Food Bank in Massachusetts.
The EFCG Weekly Briefing summarizes the week’s key news in the AEC industry, including M&A updates, and micro- and macro-trends, aggregated from industry-focused and global news sources.
To send any additional press releases or news from your firm that you would like us to share please email Clay Han at chan@efcg.com.