Dodge Construction Network: how 130 years of data is reshaping construction intelligence

Nonresidential construction planning regained momentum in April 2026 after a sluggish start to the year, with the Dodge Momentum Index climbing 6.2% month over month, according to Dodge Construction Network. The rebound snapped three straight months of slowing activity, though the gains were heavily concentrated in one sector.

After three months of slowing momentum, nonresidential planning began to find its footing in April. Data centers remain the largest driver behind growth in the Dodge Momentum Index, but several other sectors appeared to stabilize. — Sarah Martin, director of economic research, Dodge Construction Network, as reported by Construction Dive

The April reading, reported by Construction Dive, underscores how dependent the current construction pipeline has become on hyperscale and AI-linked infrastructure investment. For contractors and building product manufacturers watching for broader market recovery, the stabilization in other sectors offers a cautiously positive signal, even if data center demand continues to carry the headline numbers.

A 130-year data foundation

The company behind that index has one of the longest continuous data histories in American industry. Frederick W. Dodge founded the FW Dodge Company in 1891 to track building permit activity in the northeastern United States, according to Dodge Construction Network's own published brand history. McGraw-Hill acquired the operation in 1961, extending its national reach before the platform was rebranded as Dodge Data and Analytics in 2015 and subsequently spun off from S&P Global as an independent company in 2020 under its current name.

Each transition preserved the core mission: give construction professionals earlier and more reliable visibility into what is being built and by whom. Today the platform, now accessed through its Dodge One product, tracks more than 700,000 unique projects annually, maintains an archive of more than 10 million plans and specifications, and publishes more than 7,000 project updates every day, according to the company's website.

That scale is supported by more than 400 content acquisition specialists and a team of more than 20 market economists and analysts, figures cited on Dodge's platform pages. The combination of human sourcing and data infrastructure is what the company argues gives clients visibility into planning-stage projects months before they reach a public bid board or permit record.

What the platform actually sells

Dodge organizes its commercial offerings into three broad capabilities: project intelligence, market intelligence, and research consulting. Project intelligence centers on early-stage access — surfacing specifications, owner identities, and contractor relationships while projects are still in design, before bid documents are finalized. Market intelligence translates the accumulated dataset into quarterly and annual forecasts broken down by building type, material category, and geography down to the county level, according to the company.

The research and consulting arm pairs Dodge's proprietary dataset with a panel of architects, contractors, and economists for custom strategic engagements. The company claims its dataset spans more than 100 years of verified construction starts and more than 10 million historical projects, making it one of the longest-running longitudinal records in the sector.

A verified G2 reviewer from a construction supply firm described the practical impact in a May 2026 review of Dodge One: the ability to identify materials specified early in the bidding process allowed the sales team to approach contractors with accurate product recommendations tied directly to project requirements, replacing cold outreach with data-informed conversations.

Building out internal data infrastructure

While clients use Dodge to sharpen external business development, the company is simultaneously investing in the data pipelines that underpin the platform. A recently posted job listing for a Sourcing Data and Systems Analyst, published on Workable, outlines a role responsible for evaluating and improving digital sourcing coverage, source quality, and data acquisition strategy across APIs, web monitoring tools, and third-party data feeds.

The position requires four or more years of experience in programming, data analysis, or data operations, along with proficiency in Python and SQL, according to the listing. Preferred qualifications include familiarity with machine learning inputs, data enrichment techniques, cloud-based data environments, and web scraping tools — a technical profile that reflects how modern construction data platforms are built and maintained.

The remote role reports to a senior manager of data analytics and carries a preference for candidates in the Central or Eastern time zones, though the listing notes that other locations would be considered. Taken together with the April Momentum Index results, the hiring activity points to a company expanding both the breadth of its data collection and the analytical depth it can offer clients navigating an uneven construction market.

Data centers and what comes next

The concentration of planning activity in data centers is not a new story in 2026, but the April Momentum Index result gives it fresh numerical weight. For building product manufacturers and specialty contractors not aligned with that segment, the index's stabilization in other sectors may signal that demand is beginning to broaden, though Dodge's own commentary, as reported by Construction Dive, stops short of declaring a broad-based recovery.

For firms that track Dodge data to time bids, allocate sales resources, or benchmark regional market share, the month-over-month improvement in April represents the first meaningful positive reading after a difficult early-year stretch. Whether that carries through the rest of 2026 will likely depend on factors well outside the construction industry's control — interest rates, federal infrastructure spending, and continued hyperscaler capital expenditure chief among them.