Introduction
The year 2020 has significantly impacted the construction industry, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With issues such as the rise in construction costs, a shortage of construction workers, and dangerous work conditions that persisted long before the pandemic, the construction industry is focusing its efforts on trying to combat a lot of these issues. Here are some trends that are currently happening that are breathing new life into the industry.
Construction Management Software
Construction management software is necessary for all construction businesses. This software helps to make a variety of day to day tasks much more easy to manage. Construction management software helps keep track of job scheduling, budget management, and all things related to making sure that a construction project is done correctly and efficiently. There are a number of different construction management software programs available, so each individual business must decide which software program is the best option for their company.
Some of the top construction management softwares include:
- Projul
- Monday.com
- Procore
Green/Sustainable Building
Green building is becoming more and more popular in today’s world. It is already a well-known fact that building green is more sustainable and environmentally friendly, but unfortunately, it is still priced as a luxury, even though it saves more money and resources over time. Not only is green building beneficial to our environment and physical health, but studies have also shown that green buildings have a positive impact on our psychological well-being.
When it comes to the actual construction of green buildings, the goal is to construct the building (and have the building itself) leaving behind a smaller carbon footprint. The practice of greenscaping covers the rooftops of buildings with plants, gardens, and even small parks to reduce rooftop maintenance, lower energy costs, and improve the energy efficiency of buildings.
Increase in the Cost of Materials
While green building is already much more expensive than traditional methods of construction, that still doesn’t mean that construction costs aren’t going up. According to the Association of General Contractors, the cost of construction goods has risen 5% over the last three years. Certain materials, such as 3D graphene, light generating concrete, and transparent aluminum will further increase the costs.
Perhaps other forms of green building that involve reusing old materials to transform them into new building materials can help alleviate the need to use expensive materials. This, of course, creates the need for transporting these materials to the construction site. Luckily, rental companies that specialize in providing vehicles for construction materials offer cost-effective towing packages to businesses in need of vehicles to transport their materials to and from the construction site.
New Technologies
The construction industry is all about precision, but also efficiency. Being inefficient wastes time and money, so it’s no surprise that many of the latest technologies that are being developed in this industry improve efficiency. Some of these new technologies include:
- Augmented Reality (AR)
- Building Information Modeling (BIM)
- Construction Drones
- Smart Contracts
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
With many construction workers returning to work, there have been a lot of updates in safety protocols, as well as new technologies in the form of personal protective equipment (PPE). In addition to the usual PPE (safety glasses, hard hats, earplugs, steel-toed boots, and gloves), workers are wearing masks, boots that signal if a worker has fallen, smartwatches that monitor health and allow for quick communication, helmets that monitor fatigue, and many more impressive technologies.
Conclusion
These trends are definitely making the construction industry a safer field to work in, while also trying to positively impact the environment. Though a global pandemic may do more harm than good when it comes to the price of construction materials, there are other alternatives— even though these alternatives come with a cost as well. As economies around the world start to recover from the pandemic, there is expected to be a positive turnaround for the construction industry.
