With the current advancement in technology, construction is one of the industries that has leveraged improved technology to make its operations more sustainable and efficient.  With the Covid19 pandemic, there has been a need for better ways of creating construction techniques that meet all the worker regulations and safety.  Therefore, construction companies are increasingly creating innovations around worker safety, prefabrications, and robotics. In addition to this, green building solutions and 3D printing have greatly reduced the negative effects that construction has on the environment.

Here are the current trends in the construction industry globally.

1. Building Information Modeling (BIM)

BIM is a holistic process that entails the creation and management of information for a building project.  It’s based on an intelligent model and enabled by a cloud platform. BIM is made possible through the integration of structured data in the production of a digital representation of a construction asset in its entire life cycle from planning, and design to construction and the operations of the asset.

The planning and design of a building are collaborative processes that require lots of input from several stakeholders such as architects, engineers, builders, and clients to name a few. With other traditional methods, real-time visualization of changes is difficult with all these stakeholders working on their own unique files. BIM prevents this by ensuring all stakeholders work on one version of the same plan to avoid confusion.

2. Construction Robotics

Better and smarter solutions in construction ensure the safety of employees, streamline project timelines, and address shortages in labor. Construction robotics takes care of several time-consuming and repetitive tasks faster through automation and robotics. It also reduces human errors and other losses due to issues such as fatigue. Construction robotics is being used with great precision in processes such as welding, brick-laying, rebar tying, and painting among other repetitive tasks.

3. Construction Project Management

One of the upcoming industry trends in construction is digital project management which makes use of cloud-based software to ensure goals are achieved at the right time and also cuts costs. It makes use of all the defined principles of project management in each stage of the construction process. In the initial stage, the project manager makes use of predictive algorithms to understand the feasibility of the project. Once this is approved, everyone’s milestones are set and the enterprise resource planning software is used in the distribution of resources. Cloud-based tools are also used in storing large volumes of data and ensuring transparency. This type of software is also used by managers in tracking the exact outcomes of each task and collecting any insights. When the project comes to an end, managers draw smart contracts that are blockchain-based to prevent any financial fraud and ensure the legal obligations are met. This type of construction project management reduces waste and increases the efficiency of the workforce while ensuring all the projects are completed on time.

4. Offsite Construction

This is one of the emerging trends in the construction industry that allows the design, manufacturing, and fabrication of all the building materials/elements in a factory. Traditionally, elements such as weather conditions would increase construction costs through contingency fees and additional labor hours.

Offsite construction amends the construction lifecycle in terms of the safety of workers, sustainability, and quality through the incorporation of 3D printing, innovative technologies, and better assembling techniques. The first stage of offsite construction is volumetric construction which allows for the prefabrication of 3D structures that are heavy such as homes or rooms. The second stage is panelized construction where the factory makes flat panels to be used in floors, walls, or roof panes. This is a technique that is used by most modern commercial buildings in the installation of partitions and other support elements

5. Advanced Building Materials

As the world shifts more towards green solutions to protect the environment so does the construction industry. Advanced construction materials are now being used to complement newer construction methods. Many sustainable and innovative materials such as 3D printed basalt and concrete are now replacing the older methods. Materials that are made from living organisms are also becoming more popular such as self-healing concrete that uses bacteria. Other sustainable materials that are forming a big part of the construction industry trends include bio-foam and bioplastics.

These industry trends make up very little of the current top industry trends on the global scene.  Other trends such as green building solutions and advanced operations have taken the construction industry by storm. The identification of emerging technologies and new opportunities to implement into your construction business early goes a long way in giving you a competitive edge.