It was another bumpy ride for the region's top specialty contractors in 2011. Respondents to ENR Southwest's annual survey saw the volume of subcontracting work in Arizona rise, but those gains were offset by steep declines in Nevada and New Mexico. Firms that succeeded did so by finding new niches or adding specialties that dovetailed with their existing skills.
Arizona subcontractors reported $1.4 billion in work during 2011, up 4% over the previous year. But New Mexico subcontracting work fell 27%, and the decline was a whopping 29% in Nevada—on top of the drops already experienced from the early days of the recession.