Author: Laura Black
“Operations keeps the lights on, strategy provides a light at the end of the tunnel, but project management is the train engine that moves the organization forward.” Joy Gumz once so astutely said these words, and they are so apropos for construction where project managers are tasked with managing time, cost, and quality of often billion-dollar projects. If project management is done well, then the project is often a success, but if even so much as one ball is dropped, then time, cost, or quality could be sacrificed. There is perhaps no greater area of a construction business that technology…
Collaboration is a buzzword that has been used in the construction industry for more than a decade, but what exactly does it mean for project teams—particularly as it relates to technology? We have some thoughts. The dictionary defines collaboration as the action of working with someone to produce or create something. At its core, collaboration isn’t new. It has been part of the construction industry since the dawn of time. However, when applied in the context of technology, it means tools and systems designed to better facilitate that group work. In the first half of this blog series, we looked…
We are in the middle of a blog series where we are looking at hot construction technology, digging into projected growth for these technologies, specific examples and case studies for construction, and opportunities for the future. Already having explored 5G, AI (artificial intelligence), digital twins, wearables, AR (augmented reality), VR (virtual reality), MR (mixed reality), and the metaverse, today let’s narrow in on robotics. Naturally, robots mean different things to different people. They might drum up images of a futuristic world of George Jetson, his robo-maid, and his career of manufacturing sprockets. This robotic world is often glamorized for the…
Although adoption may not be as wide as digital twins, AI (artificial intelligence), 5G, and AR (augmented reality) and VR (virtual reality), wearables pose an interesting opportunity to the construction industry and can be categorized as a hot construction technology to watch. The overall market is anticipated to grow as well—driven largely by consumer demand, although there are potential business applications as well. Consider this. The global wearable technology market size is expected to reach $118.16 billion by 2028, registering a growth of 13.8% from 2021 to 2028, according to ResearchandMarkets. This is in line with the fact internet penetration…
We are in the middle of a “Hot Construction Technology” series where we are uncovering some of the latest technologies to infiltrate the construction jobsite. So far, we have looked at 5G and AI (artificial intelligence). Today, let’s narrow in on AR (augmented reality), VR (virtual reality), MR (mixed reality), and the metaverse—all of which will change the way construction professionals do business in the years ahead. First, let’s define each, look at some growth projections, and then identify how these technologies will impact the construction industry specifically. Virtual reality is a computer-generated simulation of a 3D image or environment…
Construction technology is heating up, as the labor market and economy are cooling down. In this blog series, we have already looked at how 5G and AI (artificial intelligence) are directly impacting construction, with very specific examples. Today let’s narrow in on digital twins. Of course, we can’t really talk about digital twins without first talking a bit about BIM (building information modeling), which we have been covering here at Constructech for more than two decades. As we have always said, BIM is a process, which is enabled by technologies to plan, design, and construct homes and buildings. At a…
It can easily be said that AI (artificial intelligence) is one of the most disruptive technologies of this decade, as it is impacting nearly every vertical market—and construction is no exception. For today’s blog in our “Hot Construction Technology” series, let’s narrow deep into the wide world of AI, with very specific examples for construction. Broadly, AI is set to impact nearly every industry, with Gartner forecasting worldwide AI software revenue will total $62.5 billion this year, up 21.3% from 2021. The top five use cases across all industries include knowledge management, virtual assistants, autonomous vehicles, digital workplace, and crowdsourced…
Summer is heating up. Let’s talk about the hottest technologies for construction in a new blog series that will stretch the rest of the summer. Everything from AI (artificial intelligence) to digital twin is having a profound impact on the construction industry—and will continue to do so in the months ahead. We will explore what the future holds and how the technologies will impact construction specifically. Perhaps there is no better place to start than 5G. Without connectivity, most technology won’t work as effectively as possible. At its core, 5G is the fifth-generation technology standard for broadband cellular networks. Quite…
The supply chain is failing across nearly every vertical—and construction is no exception. Perhaps this is a good opportunity to realign efforts with digital transformation. Or at least that is what one new survey recommends. The report by Sapio Research on behalf of Sana Commerce shows a big disconnect between buyers’ expectations and their actual customer experiences, with more than half of B2B construction buyers reporting suppliers’ websites were missing the mark when it came to meeting their needs. The biggest frustration came in the form of usability and misinformation, with only 25% of respondents having faith in the ability…
As we wrap up our short blog series on time management, time blocking, and time tracking, we must consider what the future of scheduling—and the accompanying technology—will look like for the construction industry in the months ahead. But first let’s look back to look forward. Historically, there have been several different methods used for scheduling construction projects including line of balance, resource-oriented scheduling, the Gantt chart, and more. Perhaps one of the most common still to this day in construction and in other industries is CPM (critical path method). CPM was developed in the late 1950s by James E. Kelley…