In a rapidly evolving digital age, the construction industry is poised for transformation, with technology promising to revolutionise the sector’s quality and safety protocols. However, a recent Construction Quality & Safety Report for 2023, developed by Autodesk in collaboration with The University of Melbourne, sheds light on persistent digital shortages that continue to hamper the industry’s progress in Australia.
The Challenge of Digital Shortages
Launched during National Safe Work Month, the report combines findings from qualitative interviews with construction industry and government leaders with a survey of 75 Australian industry and government experts. It reveals several key issues currently affecting construction quality and safety in Australia:
- Lack of Clarity and Audit Trails: Over half (51.9%) of Australian respondents report challenges related to the lack of clarity and audit trails for decision-making processes.
- Difficulty in Capturing ‘As Built’ Information: Close to 50% of respondents struggle with capturing ‘as built’ information, a critical aspect of ensuring quality in construction.
- Accessing Data: Difficulty in accessing data (42.3%), managing and maintaining data (40.4%), and a lack of due diligence process (36.5%) are among other predominant issues.
- Manual Processes: The report highlights that a significant portion of respondents (60%) still rely on manual take-off during work-in-progress and defects inspections to verify ‘as installed’ conditions. Only a small fraction use automated detection methods or 3D laser scans and building information management (BIM).
- Role of Technology: While a majority of respondents (61%) acknowledge the role of technology in quality and safety, nearly 40% regard it as having little or no relevance.
Proicere’s Response: Addressing Digital Shortages
The report’s findings resonate with the challenges the construction industry faces, and they emphasise the need for innovative solutions to bridge these digital gaps. This is not only relevant to Australia but also the whole world here digital innovation isn’t being adopted early enough. Proicere, a leader in digital planning and reality capture, is dedicated to addressing these challenges head-on. Here’s how our solutions align with the report’s key insights:
- 4D Planning (Building Information Modelling – BIM): Proicere’s advanced 4D planning capabilities, a form of BIM, introduce the dimension of time into project planning. This provides a dynamic visual representation of the construction process, addressing the need for clarity and audit trails in decision-making.
- Digital Reality Capture: We utilise reality capture technologies such as 3D scanning to gather accurate site data early in the project lifecycle. This technology significantly improves the ability to capture ‘as built’ information with precision.
- Immersive Gaming Applications: Our gaming capabilities are instrumental in recreating complex tasks accurately, optimising routines, and understanding routes, physical constraints, and health and safety concerns. This also aligns with the report’s emphasis on technology like augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and 4D planning.
- Knowledge Transfer and Data Accessibility: Proicere’s digital planning solutions ensure that construction quality and safety information is accessible by all stakeholders. It streamlines data management, aiding in the reduction of quality and safety issues.
The Path Forward
The report underlines the pivotal role of technology in addressing construction quality and safety challenges. It highlights that technology can help automate the detection of potential issues, train workers for hazard identification, and ensure supervisors are aware of potential cases of negligence at sites.
Proicere is committed to a future where technology delivers value by ensuring that projects are checked against codes and that knowledge is consistently transferred across projects. Together, we can shape a safer, more efficient built environment. We invite construction professionals to explore our innovative digital planning and reality capture solutions and join us in overcoming the digital shortages that continue to impact the industry’s quality and safety protocols.
In conclusion, the digital gaps identified in the report present both challenges and opportunities for the construction industry. By harnessing the power of digital planning and reality capture, we can pave the way for safer, more efficient, and higher quality construction projects not only in Australia but everywhere.
