Construction Technology Trends Today
It seems these days technology advances so fast it’s hard to keep up - and commercial construction technology trends are no exception. But to grow in construction it’s helpful to stay on top of it all. Here are some construction technology trends to watch for in the coming year.
The internet of things (IoT) represents how common objects, previously with little technology connectivity, today can be connected to each other, as well as to internet technologies and data. Smart devices, wearables, smart home devices and appliances are all examples we’ve been seeing explode in the everyday world around us. In the construction industry, IoT raises its head in wearable construction technology such as smart devices. Entire work sites today can be connected to smart technology with onsite cameras and sensors for safety, environmental conditions, and data purposes - and all can be integrated to construction management software. Not to mention the smart devices, such as doorbells, and smart appliances, which may be installed during or after construction for tenants.
Augmented reality and virtual reality (AR and VR) are also in heavy growth as commercial construction technology trends. VR technology allows for 3D models of construction projections on actual spaces, expanded wireframes and virtual building walkthroughs. Augmented reality allows for overlaying data on actual physical reality, such as from wearable devices.
Drones are another construction technology trend gaining a lot of use. Usage can be as basic as roofing estimators managing drones to estimate renovations. Drones are also useful in job site inspection, saving time and checking safety where in the past workers had to do this inspection covering a lot of ground or climbing scaffolding for greater visibility. Drones can generate 3D models of job sites and do other area calculations and push data to predictive analytics systems. There are other automated vehicles on the rise in addition to drones.
Machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) are instrumental in helping handle all the additional data generated in today’s work world - such as data from IoT - and they make the data available in today's construction management software. Machine learning and AI can slice and dice all the new data and serve it into palatable reporting for workers. This technology helps move construction into a future where construction project managers and other workers rely on new IoT and other data to check progress and projections of construction jobs and make forecasting for completions.
Predictive analytics takes the information from all of these technologies a step further by showing potential safety, budget or scheduling issues for the future. Statistics, data mining and modeling can be utilized and served via predictive analytics for future outlooks and decision making. The results can be insights into problem areas as well as advantageous innovations.
The future is wide open for technology in the commercial construction industry. Especially in channels such as IoT, AR and VR, drones and automated vehicles, machine learning and AI, and predictive analytics.
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