Report Highlights

Advanced Building Materials in the U.S.: Market Overview

The U.S. advanced building materials market was valued at USD 58.4 billion in 2024 and is forecast to reach USD 96.2 billion by 2032, a 6.4% CAGR. It spans low-carbon cement and concrete, cross-laminated timber, high-performance insulation, structural insulated panels and advanced roofing systems. Demand concentrates in commercial construction and federally funded infrastructure, where specification rules set by federal and state agencies determine which suppliers qualify for projects.

Government has been the dominant force in shaping supply through tax credits, procurement mandates and research funding, while private developers and manufacturers have led product innovation. The Department of Energy's Industrial Demonstrations Program and GSA's federal building standards set the direction for decarbonization, yet commercial roofing and insulation brands such as Owens Corning and Carlisle Companies have driven commercial rollout. Private capital now follows public specification signals rather than preceding them.

Policy-Driven Growth in U.S. Advanced Building Materials

Section 48C of the Internal Revenue Code, expanded by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-169), provides a 30 percent investment tax credit for qualifying manufacturing facilities, with USD 10 billion in allocated credit capacity. This lowers the capital cost of new plants producing cross-laminated timber, low-carbon cement and insulation, expanding domestic output. Section 50131 of the same Act provides USD 1 billion to states for energy code adoption, so state adoption of the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code drives demand for higher-performance envelope products.

Build America, Buy America Act provisions within the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58) require that iron, steel and manufactured construction materials used in federally funded projects be produced in the United States, with compliance overseen by OMB's Made in America Office. Executive Order 14057 of December 2021 directs federal agencies to procure low-embodied-carbon materials, which GSA implements through Environmental Product Declaration requirements. Domestic producers capture this demand because imported products fail the content test, shifting procurement volume toward U.S. plants.

Regulatory Barriers and Compliance Costs

EPA administers formaldehyde provisions of the Toxic Substances Control Act, as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Public Law 114-182). Title VI emission standards for composite wood products and EPA's January 2025 final formaldehyde risk evaluation require third-party testing and certification for engineered wood and cross-laminated timber adhesives. Small regional mills struggle to absorb these testing costs, and certification documentation alone can delay product launches by several months.

Model-code acceptance is the second barrier. Cross-laminated timber and novel insulation systems require an ICC Evaluation Service Evaluation Report before local building departments will approve them, a process typically running six to twelve months with full-scale fire testing under ASTM E119. Section 232 duties of 25 percent on steel and aluminum, proclaimed in February 2025 and administered by the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security, lift input costs for metal roofing and framing components imported from Canada and Mexico.

Policy-Created Opportunities in the U.S.

The Department of Energy's Industrial Demonstrations Program, funded at USD 6 billion under the Inflation Reduction Act, finances first-of-kind low-carbon cement, insulation and steel capacity, creating a pipeline of demonstration plants that will supply commercial markets from 2027. Federal agencies also procure low-embodied-carbon concrete and insulation under GSA's Buy Clean implementation, opening a subsidized demand category for certified producers with verified Environmental Product Declarations.

California's Buy Clean California Act (Assembly Bill 262, 2017), administered by the Department of General Services, sets maximum global warming potential limits for structural steel, flat glass, rebar and mineral wool insulation in state-funded projects. Washington and Colorado have adopted comparable procurement laws, creating a multi-state compliance market in which producers with verified Environmental Product Declarations win contracts that uncertified competitors cannot bid on. This market rewards early certification.

Market at a Glance

Leading Market Participants

• Owens Corning
• Saint-Gobain
• Kingspan
• Carlisle Companies
• Trex Company
• Armstrong World Industries
• Johns Manville
• Amrize
• Boise Cascade
• Sika

Regulatory and Policy Environment

The governing framework rests on the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (Public Law 117-169), the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58), Executive Order 14057, the Toxic Substances Control Act as amended by Public Law 114-182, and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Public Law 119-21). The Department of Energy's Building Technologies Office, EPA, GSA, OMB's Made in America Office and ICC-ES administer compliance. Key requirements include Environmental Product Declarations to ISO 14025, domestic manufacture under Build America, Buy America, TSCA formaldehyde emission certification, and ICC-ES Evaluation Reports for code acceptance.

Upcoming changes include termination of Section 45L credits for homes acquired after June 30, 2026 under Public Law 119-21, EPA risk management rulemaking that follows its 2025 formaldehyde evaluation, and state adoption cycles for the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code. Compared with regional peers, the U.S. framework is more fragmented: Canada's federal Buy Clean Strategy applies a single national procurement standard, while the EU Construction Products Regulation mandates CE marking for building products across 27 member states.

Long-Term Policy Outlook for U.S. Advanced Building Materials

Between 2026 and 2032 the most consequential change is the phase-down of federal tax incentives, as Public Law 119-21 terminates Section 45L credits for homes acquired after June 30, 2026 and narrows other clean-energy credits. Expansion of Build America, Buy America coverage to additional construction materials and tighter Buy Clean thresholds will compensate, shifting demand toward procurement-mandated products certified to Environmental Product Declarations.

The market will consolidate around producers able to certify low-carbon output, as Amrize cement capacity, Saint-Gobain's CertainTeed insulation and Kingspan's North American panels compete for certified federal and state contracts. Import-dependent fabricators face margin pressure from Section 232 duties, so domestic capacity expansion becomes the decisive competitive variable through 2032. Compliance costs will become a fixed barrier, favoring vertically integrated firms.