With 2020 becoming a breakthrough year as it witnessed the digitization of the Indian construction industry, there has been a move towards the much-needed and awaited adoption of cutting-edge and latest software technology for the real estate sector. The tech advancement has taken within its ambit all industrial and infrastructure projects. Presently, every construction company is firmly convinced that technology is going to impact the construction industry in an unprecedented manner.
An incredible range of developments – from cloudbased collaboration to artificial intelligence (AI) - is poised to help and improve how buildings and infrastructure are developed in India. The Indian construction industry contributes enormously to the nation’s GDP. Hence, any new developments in this industry are bound to massively affect the country’s GDP growth. Moreover, the government estimates that India is on the path to becoming the third largest construction market worldwide by 2030. The sector is also the second largest employer, after agriculture, and is anticipated to employ over 75 million people by the year 2022.
The major trends that are expected to emerge due to AI technology in the construction sector are: Use of AI in construction Reports have shown that AI and Machine Learning are expected to play an overarching role in the functioning of the construction industry. An already advanced 3D modelling technology is being used in construction, both in India and across the world, known as the Building Information Modelling (BIM). Introduction of AI will enable a swift generation of optimal and feasible alternatives for building design, seamlessly explore the most relevant options for a construction project, and AI-generated models can drastically decrease decision-making cycles.
The industry is fast embracing the centrally-managed process of construction, making it possible to build superior-quality building structures on time and more economically
In addition, AI can be extensively used in risk mitigation, providing support for off-site construction and for effective project planning. In the post-construction phase, AI can be used for detecting potential issues and accordingly, it can present solutions so as to prevent their occurrence. Cloud-based Collaboration For the successful execution of any project, effective communication is a pre-requisite, even more for real estate projects that are very complex and involve large number of people.
Majority construction projects are heavily fragmented as different teams work in silos, often with negligible or no synchronization. In such a case, cloud-based collaboration can be a long-term effective solution which can address this gap quite easily. The jobsites that are connected use cloud technology to make available information regarding every aspect of construction operation to the parties involved, whether they are on-site or off-site.
This way engineers, developers, and contractors can manage their existing processes via a singular, always-connected cloud-based platform. The Shift towards Constructible Models BIM and 3D modelling technologies have been a key driver of digitization in the construction sector, enabling it to make a shift from paper-based drawings to the virtual platform. Construction professionals, who have been using BIM regularly, have come to realize that paper drawings, even in a BIM model, aren’t always constructible and accurate, making it unreliable for actual construction.
The only solution then is to make these digital models inherently constructible – precisely what constructible BIM delivers. Robots at Construction Sites Using robots in the construction industry is no more just a visual revelation; rather the industry is facing a constantly increasing pressure to construct quickly and so, robots are reliable and useful in this regard. The pressure is fuelling the demand for using different kinds of robots such as logistics robots, autonomous drones and building automation. The Indian government is expected to invest over $13 billion in robotics to boost the adoption of robots in construction. Always-on & Connected Construction An essential element of smart city infrastructure is the Internet of Things (IoT).
Sensors connected with the internet can monitor and manage in real-time the critical urban resources – electric systems, water and sewage. In construction, IoT is usually used for monitoring machines placed on the site floor and also for tracking the progress of work. Summing Up Overall, these trends will definitely propel Indian construction industry to adopt a digitally connected, highly collaborated and data-driven construction in the foreseeable future. The industry is fast embracing the centrally-managed process of construction, making it possible to build superior-quality building structures on time and more economically.
