RC108 SeptOct2023 - Magazine - Page 14
THE FUTURE OF CONSTRUCTION
Hitting the labour wall
Like many other industries, the construction industry is
facing a labor shortage, exacerbated by the pandemic-induced early retirement of older workers. Contractors
across the country are experiencing a significant labor
crunch, with 90 per cent reporting shortages. Technology offers ways for companies to weather the scarcity of
labour, with 86 per cent believing that project management tools and digital technologies can enhance labor
effectiveness. Additionally, 89 per cent of respondents are
considering alternative construction approaches including prefabrication, modularization, and innovative tools
and machinery to improve efficiency.
Technology adoption: What’s in your toolkit?
Where are construction companies putting their digital
investment dollars?
Demand-driven supply chain
Demand-driven supply chain (DDSC) integrates links
along the supply chain to anticipate demand and enable
faster and more cost-effective delivery of materials and
services. While DDSC has been leveraged for years in the
manufacturing industry, the pandemic highlighted the
importance of active supply chain management in the
construction sector.
Blockchain &
Smart Contracts
Big Data &
Data Analytics
Effective
DDSC
BIM &
Digital Twin
Technology Adoption: 2020 to Today
144%
Internet
of Things
ADOPTION
108%
80%
Investments in new technologies intersect with DDSC to enhance
supply chain management accuracy and effectiveness.
INCREASE
78%
63%
ADOPTION
DECREASE
Demand Blockchain Additive
BIM &
Robotics
driven
& smart manufac- digital
supply
contracts
turing
twin
chain
Showing contractors only.
-13%
-17%
Cybersecurity
Cloud
storage &
computing
Big data
Big data and analytics can help companies better analyze
and understand project performance and enable targeted
actions to reduce project costs and timelines, identify
safety issues and material wastage, improve sustainability, and increase efficiency. Predictive analytics, machine
learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI), can also help
owners and contractors to better analyze historical material and equipment costs, labour productivity, schedule
performance and other project variables to evaluate a
project’s risk profile and develop more accurate estimates
of project cost and timelines.
Big data has made a “great or considerable” positive
impact for 40 per cent of the companies currently using
it. However, this leaves 60 per cent of companies where
there is opportunity for improvement. This also begs the
question as to the quality of the data that’s collected, and
whether a wholistic big data strategy has been developed
or implemented.
14 RENEW CANADA – SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2023
Intelligent
Automation/
Machine Learning
Building information modelling and digital twins
BIM uses 3D modelling to digitally render construction
designs and analyze construction phases and site
logistics, increasing both efficiency and productivity
by providing a central repository for project data,
providing critical project data spanning design criteria,
materials, construction, cost, and warranty and operation
documentation.
Over half of respondents (62 per cent) say they are
experienced to a “moderate” or “great extent” with BIM
and digital twin technologies and their application in
project delivery.
Robotics and Automation
When asked the extent to which they are using robotics
– like drones, exoskeletons, collaborative robotics, etc.—
over half of companies (32 per cent) say to a “moderate”
or “great extent”.
While the survey shows an increasing focus on robotics
and automation, we believe that companies are primarily
investing in lower-cost technologies, like drones. Based on
the survey findings, the key business case for robotics is
worker health and safety followed by schedule efficiency
and productivity. This is aligned with the manufacturing
sector, where automotive companies have already invested
in tools like exoskeletons to improve workplace safety.
Blockchain and smart contracts
Almost six in 10 companies plan to introduce or are
in discussions to implement smart contracts built on
blockchain technology, finds the research. The objective
is to improve transparency, accountability, and traceability. It’s a single source of truth covering all aspects of
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