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Innovation in construction

Construction innovation standards are becoming essential for transformation of the UK industry. Innovation delivers value throughout the whole construction supply chain. In times of rapidly changing markets, technologies and communications, construction firms have become increasingly reliant upon innovations and improvement. Innovation standards can help your construction company embrace innovation best practices.

Innovation standards are the building blocks of our future

Discover the benefits of innovation standards to your construction organization

How can construction businesses embrace innovation?
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How can construction businesses embrace innovation?

The built environment is massively important to the UK economy and the wider public good, encompassing as it does all major infrastructure such as road and rail and the buildings in which we live, work, and are educated. However, the sector suffers from low productivity compared to sectors like finance, insurance, and manufacturing. Research and development spending in the built environment also runs well behind that of other sectors at less than 1% of revenues, compared to 3.5% and 4.5% of automotive and aerospace sectors. Large projects are typically taking 20% longer to finish than scheduled and end up around 80% over budget. With challenges of that scale facing it, you might expect the built environment to embrace the transformative effect of digitalization, but it remains inherently conservative when it comes to taking advantage of this new technology. The goal, for many, is to digitally transform their business and embrace innovation standards and construction innovation best practices. Digitization vs. digitalization: What’s the difference? Catalysed by the sector’s mandate and subsequent adoption of Building Information Modelling (BIM), businesses have begun to explore the wider realms of innovation as they strive to achieve a digital transformation. To read more on the topic of Building Information Modelling (BIM), click here. A business looking to digitally transform will likely find it difficult to integrate these new technologies and processes without support. However, by first introducing digitization and digitalization, many of the skills needed to utilize these technologies and processes, such as manipulating metadata, will have been integrated into your business. Therefore, by using innovation best practices around digitizing information and digitalizing processes, a business can support itself to cross the digital chasm to achieve digital transformation. Digitization Simply put, by making something digital, it has been digitized. For example, by scanning old drawings, documents and even taking photographs with a digital camera, the physical form has been transformed into a digital form that a machine can read. Often this transformation is done with little thought, however, a well-thought-out strategy can provide an organization with a myriad of benefits. For example, PD ISO/TR 13028:2010 provides guidance on how to establish a digitization procedure within a business. Through careful consideration of properties such as format, resolution, and compression a “Master Copy” is maintained in an open format with derivates produced to suit the task they will be used for. Digitalization Distinct from digitizing, by incorporating digital technologies into a process, it has been digitalized. For example, by applying metadata (data about data) to documents kept in your office, the process of storing, managing, and retrieving these documents has been digitalized. As opposed to navigating through countless folders and sub-folders, documents can be found based on the information recorded against them. Standards such as BS EN 82045-2 provide a specification for what metadata could be recorded and how to record it; aligning to other standards such as BS EN ISO 7200 so that information recorded within document headers and title blocks matches the metadata being recorded. For some time Building Information Modelling (BIM) has been used to create digital representations of the built environment, helping designers and constructors visualize and coordinate their creations. Embracing innovation standards in the built environment As a first step in digitalizing your processes, it helps to start with BS EN ISO 9001 Quality management systems. This specification details the requirements of a quality management system. With the foundations in place, your business can turn to BS ISO/IEC 19510 Information technology. Object Management Group Business Process Model and Notation. It provides a system of notation that is readily understandable by all business users, including the business analysts that create the initial drafts of the processes, the technical developers responsible for implementing the technology, and the business people who will manage and monitor those processes. It creates a standardized bridge for the gap between a business’s process design and process implementation. Once you’ve mapped the process using this notation you can start to assess how the elements of a process can be digitalized in an integrated way. The Future of Construction Innovation While information models have been used to support decision-making, the ability to do so improves exponentially when these information models are connected to the Internet of Things (IoT). This connection turns digital models into dynamic tools capable of capturing live data which can be used to provide insights and better inform how decisions are made. As this data grows in volume and complexity, predictive analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) can be integrated to connect and interpret this data and continually improve decision-making. To help your construction business better embrace construction innovation and prepare for the technology of tomorrow, add these key innovation standards to your collection today. Discover BSI Knowledge As the application of new technologies rapidly advances across the built environment, from housing, industrial, and commercial, to civil engineering, infrastructure, and urban spaces, our standards are designed to help you establish good practice, build resilience, embrace new technologies and be fit for the future. With a BSI Knowledge subscription, supply chain stability is at your fingertips with instant access to over 9,000 best practice documents related to the construction industry. Request to learn more.Read more
Will we even recognise the construction site of 2030?
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Will we even recognise the construction site of 2030?

Forget workers in yellow hard hats – within a decade or so construction sites could be characterized by drones, robots, automated machinery and a few human workers wearing metal exoskeleton suits to multiply their strength and prevent injury. This vision of the future is not too far-fetched. The pace of change in construction is breath-taking. For example, within recent years the adoption of Building Information Modelling (BIM) has transformed the way buildings are designed, built and managed, linking different stakeholders along the way. The transformation of the industry inevitably comes with both challenges and opportunities. What are the key drivers that will shape the construction site of the future? Challenges facing the UK construction industry There are plenty of difficulties facing the construction industry. Firstly, productivity has changed little in the last 50 years, and is growing at a slower rate than the rest of the economy. A 2021 UK government report found that construction also had lower levels of productivity than other comparable industries. The industry is facing a pressing skills shortage, with 225,000 more workers required by 2027 just to meet demand for the coming pipeline of projects. An ageing workforce means that many employees will shortly leave the industry. Currently, 58% of companies are unable to find the skills they need. Construction is a high-risk sector. An overwhelming 82% of builders report experiencing work-related stress and depression. The sector has higher than average rates of personal injury and mortality. It also sees higher levels of financial risk relating to supply chains, overruns, legal conflict and disruption. The construction industry is also adapting to legislative change (such as the Building Safety Act which came into force in 2022) and the pressure to become more sustainable. Around 45% of total UK carbon emissions (27% from domestic buildings and 18% from non-domestic) come from built construction; 32% of landfill waste comes from the construction and demolition of buildings. How can technology help construction meet its challenges? Technology can help to provide solutions to many of the industry’s challenges. For example, more efficient machinery can improve productivity, making up for labour shortages and boosting profits. Improved efficiency also translates into reduced energy costs and carbon emissions. Take the example of exoskeletons. Derived from suits created for health patients suffering from paralysis, the suits add strength to the wearer’s body by supplementing the individual’s skeletal and muscular strength. This could be useful in conducting repetitive tasks that put strain on the joints, or in lifting heavy objects. Other forms of exoskeleton might provide support for workers to reduce fatigue on the arms when holding heavy tools, making jobs faster to complete. This innovation could reduce injury levels, boost productivity, and speed up progress on projects. At the same time, technology comes with its own challenges. Finding workers with the right skills to design, implement and operate new tech is not always easy, and companies will need to find funds for investment in equipment and training. What will the construction sites of the future look like? We could see some major changes in the years ahead – here are some predictions:  Fewer humans on site We could see robots being used to construct buildings with self-assembly elements. Drones overhead will monitor progress and scan the site. Over time, fewer humans will be needed to control a site, with fewer associated injuries, errors and exposure to toxic substances. Much more construction will be occurring ‘offsite’ Offsite construction can help reduce amount of noise, waste and machine usage on-site, cutting delivery times and delivering improved precision and safety. Offsite construction accounts for around 7% of UK construction, but this figure is set to grow rapidly in coming years. Wearable tech will be a feature of the building site Besides exoskeletons, construction workers will increasingly use smart clothing on site. This includes devices that attach to belts or hard hats that alert the employer if a worker falls, helmets that allow communication with the wearer, devices that give feedback on lifting posture, and more. Digital advances will incorporate the power of AI To augment the existing capability to create digital representations of objects together with scheduling of costs, AI could be used to identify problems and areas that can be improved. For example, AI can be used to analyse drone data to give real-time updates on stocks of material on a construction site. Data security will be even more important Wherever technology is used, vulnerability to cyber-attack increases. Ransomware attacks could impede progress on construction projects, so good data and information security will be all-important, especially with a complex system operated by multiple stakeholders. Newer, sustainable materials will be in use Trusted materials such as concrete and steel may start to be pushed out by new materials that have a lower carbon footprint, less environmental impact or are more versatile, such as 3D-printed mycelium, carbon-fibre reinforced concrete, or super-strong bioplastics. Recruitment will continue to be an issue The sector will need to reform and rebrand to attract candidates with in-demand skill sets, and education programmes will need to change to ensure graduates have the skills needed for the modern sector. For example, the recent introduction of T-levels have been designed to give students technical skills that better meet the needs of the industry. Regulation will need to be flexible enough to allow for change Regulatory frameworks will need to allow for greater use of technology and insurers and investors will need to be prepared to support innovation. For example, the Construction Playbook has a focus on innovation and how collaboration and risk management can reduce the risks involved in trying something new. How will standards help? Standards are essential to ensuring that the construction site of the future is as efficient, safe and sustainable as it can be. Standards that might be considered include: UK BIM Framework Solution Pack (includes all of the core enabling BIM standards) BS EN ISO 23386 – Building information modelling and other digital processes used in construction The PAS 2060 specification helps organizations to demonstrate carbon neutrality In recognition of the role of the construction sector in generating a major proportion of UK carbon emissions, BSI has developed PAS 2080, the world’s first specification for decarbonizing buildings and infrastructure systems. As set out in the BSI Sustainability Report, standard-led best practice can help organizations increase resilience in operations, cybersecurity, supply chains and financial management. Construction companies will be better prepared to adapt to future challenges if these sustainable principles are applied. BSI Knowledge offers a wealth of informative and insightful articles about construction, standards and many other topics. Why not explore this resource? Discover BSI Knowledge Over 100,000 internationally recognized standards are available for simple and flexible access with a BSI Knowledge subscription. Our tailored subscription service allows you to build your own custom collection of standards or opt for access to one of our pre-built modules, keeping you up to date with any changes. With support from a dedicated BSI account manager, our subscription service helps you achieve a more coherent and effective approach to best practice. Request to learn more.

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