The history of the construction industry dates back to human existence itself. I can almost imagine the first "developer" putting a few hides and branches and some leaves as a roof over a raw slope and asking people willing to get out in the cold for some fruit and maybe an arrowhead or two for the privilege of having their own home!
Homo sapiens evolved in the industrial age. This progress led to the creation of many industries - agriculture and construction were, almost certainly, the first industries discovered to cover the basic needs of food and shelter for survival. Therefore, industry may have existed long before the term “industry” was coined.
We've come a long way from building bungalows to building mega structures like the Burj Khalifa. This was only possible through technological advancement. Since finishing my own architecture over 25 years ago, I've been fascinated to watch the industry evolve.
So here are the top 5 changes, I think, that changed the construction industry in the time that I was a witness and an active participant:
1. Planning and design
Imagine keeping manual records of every plan detail from inception to delivery. Then we pass through reams of paper when it comes time to fix the leak or, God forbid, if a fire breaks out. The thought is scary in today's digital world, but we used to do it all the time. The studios were a messy affair with papers and huge rolls of paper containing designs and plans. Both the duplication and inaccuracy of the data created havoc for the construction crew as well as the facilities manager. Maintenance work has been affected due to the difficulty of accessing the right information at the right time.
As a result, digitization in the construction industry has been very well received. CAD hit the market first only to be overtaken by BIM. The former Architects and Associate Engineers while the latter offers an integrated platform not only for ACE but for the entire construction site fraternity. Make the central source of information accessible to any stakeholder. Even as BIM adoption has grown, many developed countries today mandate the use of BIM for large projects and many construction companies have their own BIM efforts in progress.
2. Tools, technology and equipment
The construction industry depends on its ecosystem. The success of any building project requires competence from partners and contractors. site excavation, moving and assembling larger pieces or materials, faster procurement and delivery of materials; All of this contributes to the success of the project.
Traditionally, there have been a lot of communication glitches and slowdowns that have resulted in lost production hours. Much of this is due to a lack of ordering and streamlined procurement, resulting in untimely delivery. One of the main reasons for the delay in material procurement was the rule of thumb estimation of quantities. With the help of technology, it has become easy to extract accurate quantities of required materials and determine the right time to order them.
Advances in technology have also provided us with better earthing machines, concrete mixers, cranes and conveyors that are efficient enough to do the heavy lifting posed by the demands of modern-day construction. The use of prefabricated structures or structural elements, manufactured off-site, has become viable due to the improvement in moving handling equipment on-site (more on that later).
3. Building materials
The development of the construction industry did not happen solely in terms of how work was done. With the help of technology, we have discovered and manufactured materials that support ordinary steel and concrete structures and provided them with more strength, agility and durability.
A range of innovative new materials are having an impact on specific areas of construction today. For example honeycomb structures and shapes are used to provide greater strength, and polyester fibers provide durability for retrofitting of sewers and water pipes. Today, construction work is being carried out in challenging locations such as the arctic regions, under the sea, and in radioactive sites to name a few of these extraordinary locations. Specialty materials help cause out-of-the-box thinking in the construction industry.
4. Construction methods
Gone are the days when everything was made on the same construction site. Off-site assembly and manufacturing is a well-established trend now. Off-site assembly of structural elements has an advantage over on-site assembly. Saves time - the most important asset in any construction project.
Large-scale public infrastructure works are maximized by assembling off-site elements. Think of the Nagpur Metro Project. The project moved forward because of this synergy between off-site manufacturing and on-site assembly.
The overpass pillars are constructed on site, while the overpasses and viaducts are constructed off site. Then they are transported to the site and put on the poles through the machines. This has accelerated construction without causing problems for the public using the roads.
5. Expert systems and artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is gradually making its way into our daily lives. Many industries have implemented and benefited from artificial intelligence. And the construction world is taking note. The use of computerized expert systems to assist in construction work is gaining momentum. Some systems assist in diagnosing the impact of wind and vibration problems on structures and in verifying welding performance qualifications. Real-world use cases of AI are still rare. But as sensor technology and IoT technology become more popular and the amount of data available to a construction company becomes strategically important, artificial intelligence is sure to become mainstream very soon.
Change is inevitable. Technology has crept into every aspect of construction.