Construction: tech’s unlikely teacher?

In some ways, construction’s reputation isn’t necessarily unfair. When it comes to how we use technology, there is much room for progress: recent research shows that 95% of data gathered on construction sites goes unused. This is particularly worrying since buried within this data could be the solutions to the sector’s most pressing problems, such as productivity and sustainability.

The UK Government’s Construction Sector Deal aims for construction projects to become 33% cheaper and 50% quicker, and for good reason: the sector’s productivity has been lagging behind the rest of the economy by 21% since 1997. At the same time, the built environment is responsible for approximately 40% of the UK’s total carbon emissions. Therefore, with sustainability high on the agenda, the importance of unlocking construction data should be important to all of us, not just those within the industry.

My view is that construction will only become a more productive and more sustainable sector by overhauling how we use data, and this will not only require collaboration between architects, contractors and sub-contractors, but also with the tech community. But how can we go about this, and what initiatives are leading the way?

BIM: a starting point

Certain developments are already showing us the possibilities of better integration between construction and technology. A good example of this is the rise of Building Information Modelling, or BIM. This is a collaboration between all the different contractors working on a construction project to produce a digital version of every aspect of what gets built. It’s not just for buildings, either; BIM can be used to model projects such as gas and electricity infrastructure or railways, roads and bridges.

One of the key benefits of BIM is that it allows for solutions to various problems to be tested out on the digital model, which has enormous cost-saving potential. The use of BIM has surged in recent years: a recent survey showed that 69% of construction professionals are currently using the technology. This figure shows that the sector is ready to embrace change, especially when the benefits of innovation are clear.

Hackathons: the next step?

With BIM becoming the norm, rather than the exception, another initiative has taken the baton for driving change. Project:Hack demonstrates how construction and tech can collaborate further. During these hackathons, teams meet up regularly for a weekend to comb through construction project data. The aim is to create proofs-of-concept that show the potential of tech effectively working together with other sectors. On the one hand, these help the construction industry find new ways to innovate; on the other, they give tech ready-made real-world problems and data sets to solve, and a market for these solutions.

In other words, they provide a time and a space for talented people to apply their skills to practical problems, and with great success. The hackathons grew out of the Project Data Analytics Meetup, where about 250 people would come together to share their ideas and understanding of how data could be applied to construction problems. The group behind the meet-ups, Projecting Success, then had the idea for hackathons that brought these ideas to life, with the help of data from real projects, and the aim of asking real questions.

At the fourth, and most recent hackathon, a team developed a voice-activated safety app that allows users to input observations about their surroundings, which are then assessed as potential safety risks while the app gathers useful data in the background. And this was developed in just a weekend! However, as impressive as these innovations may be, they need to be tested on the ground for them to become truly groundbreaking. This is why Sir Robert McAlpine offered to trial the app on one of its own projects. This sort of back-and-forth between the two sectors is vital for the potential of both to be reached: the more practical feedback developers have, the more they learn to think in practical terms, and the more useful their innovations are for outside of their sector.

Sharing resources

Another difference between the tech and construction sectors can often be resources. Budding data scientists may not have the raw materials to bring their skills and ideas to fruition, so they need support from larger, well-established companies if both sides are to benefit from their talents. This can come in various forms: bigger firms can support initiatives like Project:Hack, whether it’s by sharing the reams of information they’ve gathered over the years so that it can be analysed, or by providing financial support to initiatives.

Another way sectors like construction can support tech is to provide a framework for incubating ideas that have already started to grow. For example, setting up an ‘app store’ for proofs-of-concept developed at hackathons can create a marketplace for these ideas to attract investors, making sure that they reach their potential in the real world.

Where next?

It’s not just construction that can make leaps by opening up its doors to let others in. Any sector that delivers projects can benefit from better collaboration, and they can look to construction for examples of how to improve. The latest Project Data Analytics Meetup, for example, has surfaced in Aberdeen, which is known as a hub for the energy industry. The potential is enormous and the possibilities are huge

The Government’s Office for Artificial Intelligence aims to make the UK a world leader in data analytics, machine learning and AI. This can only happen when collaboration does; when people with the relevant tech skills begin to work effectively with those that have traditionally sat outside of this space, but who can provide a ready-made Rubik’s Cube that is asking to be solved.