While the world is steadily changing pace and face every single day in terms of technology and advancements, we often forget to upgrade and update some of the most fundamental industries that hold the world together. These industries have been present since the presence of mankind. Agriculture, Supply Chain, Construction, etc industries are some of the world’d oldest industries, with a presence well beyond the historical data.
But at the same time, these industries are becoming one of the weakest links in our society and economy. This is because they cannot adapt to the changing environment, which is mainly led by digital transformations. This blog post will mainly focus on the new era of the digital transformation the construction industry is going to have through data.
The construction industry still operates just like in the olden days. The professionals and industry are still heavily dependent upon experience and rely on old methods of contract management, project management, etc for decision making. While this has been something that industry has used to run the projects, this type of management is no longer viable due to the rise of strict requirements such as time, sustainability, etc as well as costs rising due to wastage, inefficiency, etc.
On the other hand, the latest industry which is the digital industry has been able to tap into the potential of their latest information source: Data. Tech companies and many other industries have utilized the data to create new revenue streams and insight for more accurate and better decision making thus creating greater efficiencies in their processes. This is the something construction industry could not tap into but very soon this will change.
With tons and tons of historical data, Engineering and Construction (E&C) can firms can utilize their data in three main stages which are namely pre-construction, construction, and post-construction phases. The preconstruction stage mainly involves contracts, bidding, planning, etc of the project. The construction stage involves the construction, schedule management, safety, material consumption, etc. The post-construction stage involves quality assurance, repairs, and maintenance, etc.
In the preconstruction stage, data from previous projects can be used to draw information and insights. Information could be based on costs of the projects, timelines, material requirements, risks, bidding processes, etc. This can help firms gain advantage through insight and predictions on new projects contracts, costs, scheduling, etc. This ultimately helps the firms price the projects appropriately, schedule the projects in the right manner, have an early idea about the risks involved, etc, thus saving lots of time and money.
In the construction stage, digital tech has to mold itself to be adaptable to both physical works as well as digital works. Physical works would involve on-site execution such as construction, material consumption, labor management, etc and digital works would involve designing, project management, inventory control, etc. The time and money saved in this process are extremely important as a major portion of capital is being utilized in this stage. Every percent saved in money and time adds to a lot in the end.
Finally, in the postconstruction stage, data can help in quality assurance, maintenance, document management, etc. With several teams, contractors, etc are involved in a project, maintaining the quality of the project is a vital aspect to measure performance as well as to ensure the practices employed are up to standards. With data, quality can be measure, tested, and also can be used to mitigate potential problems wherever the quality is subpar. Maintenance is also an important step that many projects fail to consider. This step ensures the longevity of the project as well as ensures the safety of usage. With sensors, switches, etc coupled with data and software, monitoring of building health becomes very easy and efficient.
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