The UK’s construction industry is undoubtedly one of the most important sectors in the UK, but nevertheless, it’s wickedly underutilised. It’s far from reaching its full potential and seems to be confined by restrictions and limitations no matter what they try to do. In the end, it’s simply not good enough.
Of course, technological change is notorious for shattering said restrictions and limitations. It could be just the ticket the construction industry needs to break free of their boundaries and get innovating as they once did.
Consequently, here’s why the UK construction industry needs to embrace technological change.
Everyone Else Is
It might seem like shallow reasoning, but the fact remains that the world is moving on in terms of technology. With every year that passes, entire industries are evolving and adapting to every wave of devices, software’s and gadgets that’re newly released. Hospitality businesses, medical sectors, marketing firms, retailers – they’re all implementing technology into the core of their business structure.
Consequently, the construction industry can’t afford to fall behind here. If it doesn’t innovate, digitise and move with the times, workers in this field won’t optimise their performance or necessarily improve any aspect of their roles. It’s simply a rut to get stuck in, the prospect of which no industry should welcome. There could be stark contrasts of efficiency between builder and supplier, architect and owner, to the point where internal frictions start cropping up everywhere that cripple the trade.
We’ve already witnessed the huge leaps of efficiency made from hammers and nails to the utilisation of power tools. Why not continue to make those long and lucrative strides? After all, housebuilders are already facing numerous difficulties that add to the housing storage, so technology could be that shot in the arm that rejuvenates the industry and keeps it on a level playing field with everybody else.
Benefits of Mobile Management
Construction sites are full of people. Some of them are hard at work assembling the property-in-progress, others are simply roaming around equipped with hardhats and clipboards. Perhaps they liaison between the worksite and offices, and thereby waste a great deal of time in transit going to and from these places. Is the time and risk around construction admin entirely necessary in today’s world?
Instead, such workers can utilise mobile management solutions, keeping an eye on things from afar by using the latest equipment to their advantage. They could monitor the workforce and building progress from simply tapping an app on their phone, in place of driving everywhere and racking up fuel costs in doing so too. Additionally, such employees could mitigate the risk of losing their important clipboards and paperwork; if all the data is stored online through cloud storage, they can access all the worthwhile information anywhere and everywhere.
Drone and VR Usage
Commonly viewed as recreational tools that allow people to film sweeping landscapes or get lost in fictional worlds, drones and VR also have their practical uses too – particularly in the construction industry. Why send a builder into a dangerous spot to scope out building plans when machinery can do it on their behalf? They’ll be safer, and the required data will be collected faster too.
Using drones and VR in construction would significantly boost productivity and efficiency industry-wide. The many months spent mapping out development plans and landscaping ideas can be premeditated both quicker and sooner. Design changes and innovative ideas can be thought up and drummed up without any real-world costs (other than purchasing the tech) or consequences. In the end, these technologies streamline processes and mitigate risk factors at the same time.
