According to a report from Milwaukee-based advisory firm WIPFLI, the use of advanced technology in construction is “still in adolescence” despite many companies planning to integrate AI.
The company issued an updated report this week on the technology condition under construction. This relies on research findings collected from businesses of different sizes across the country. Companies in the industry are investing in AI in cloud-based platforms, cybersecurity and green building technologies, but the author finds that “it's struggling to optimize the tools many people already have.”
82% of respondents said they have an AI strategy, but most are at the “entry level” and use consumer-grade tools for their tasks rather than fully integrating technology into business operations and strategic decision-making, the report shows.
At the same time, 73% of respondents said they plan to invest in cybersecurity, reflecting growing industry concerns about data breaches. 80% of respondents said there was at least one such violation last year, with almost half saying there had been more than three cases.
“Even the biggest companies have a blind spot for high-tech adoption,” said Brad Werner, partner at WIPFLI and leader in the construction and real estate industry. “The real play now is expanding beyond pilots. We will change technology from engine sidecars to engines to drive faster decision-making across the company.”
The company conducted a national online survey in the spring, tapping on 308 construction and real estate leaders. A third of the representative companies earned less than $50 million in annual revenue, a third had between $50 million and $250 million, and the last third had over $250 million.
The largest companies tend to have a higher level of high-tech maturity, indicating that more resources are invested in applications such as AI and data analytics. However, as 66% of the smallest companies in the survey say they have an AI strategy, unestablished companies are exploring these technologies.
WIPFLI says its findings suggest that cybersecurity is “a concern and priority, but not a strength yet.” Construction companies say they are particularly vulnerable. This is at least in part due to the widespread use of mobile devices for financial transactions in the field, the authors point out that it is frequent, large wire transfers.
Spanning eight different security categories the survey asked, at least 70% of respondents said they were or had improved over the last year.
Find out more about the release and report.
