For centuries, the construction industry has worked with the same materials and processes.
But now - with a rapidly rising global population, falling construction workforce, low productivity
and immense demand for housing and more sustainable building techniques - the pressure is on to
change.
From predictive design to 3D printing and even autonomous machines on site, this is
what the future could look like if we automated construction.
The rise of technology is a huge opportunity for the construction industry, enabling it
to overcome many of its challenges while broadening its appeal to young talent.
While automation has already entered construction in a number of ways, taking it much further
could be truly transformational - filling the gaps where skilled labour cannot be found,
freeing-up others to focus on more important work and improving efficiency while raising
quality.
At the design stage, architects and engineers are already using modelling tools that automate
work which would traditionally have been done manually.
Some are now using “predictive design” software - where artificial intelligence (AI)
designs buildings and infrastructure compliant with regulations and best practice.
While the cultural importance of architecture means that the design process is unlikely
to ever be fully automated, AI could soon play a major role in optimising designs - drawing
in best practice from learning across thousands of projects.
By simply entering details about site conditions and our desired outcomes, machines could design
the best possible house, hospital or school for that scenario, fully compliant with regulations.
This would build on the progress already being made in offsite manufacturing. With elements
of a building able to be mass-produced in automated factories - from small-scale components
up to entire modules - AI will be able to select building materials from a predetermined
kit-of-parts, parts that can be produced efficiently and sustainably at scale.
Automation is already beginning to transform construction sites themselves.
Building on the digital data developed in information models at the design stage, a
wide range of tasks can now be undertaken with greater accuracy by machines.
Technology like Topcon’s Machine Control combines GPS with construction plant and digital
models to partially automate tasks like earthworks.
With the machine using GPS to work out its location and highly accurate digital plans,
it can carry out excavation or grading in a faster, safer and more efficient way.
Works can even be adjusted through real-time updates.
Fully autonomous vehicles are beginning to emerge on sites too, currently carrying out
simple but labour-intensive tasks like inspections or material transportation.
In time, swarms of artificially intelligent autonomous vehicles - with shared consciousness
- could coordinate to plan and complete works in record time frames - transforming efficiency
and reducing costs, while limiting environmental impacts.
The emergence of semi and fully autonomous vehicles is part of a wider rise of robotics
across construction.
Mechanical arms are already being programmed to take over a range of repetitive and labour-intensive
tasks - such as moving materials, tying rebar, building masonry walls and even 3D printing structures.
At the cutting-edge, some robots are already taking on more life-like forms, including
Boston Dynamics’ Spot-Mini - which is being trialled in surveying and inspecting construction
sites - and the humanoid robot known as “HRP-5P” developed by Japan’s National Institute
of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST).
The future could well see these life-like machines taking over some of the most straight-forward
and labour elements of building. Not replacing job roles, but filling gaps where labour cannot
be found and helping to make a radical step-change in productivity.
Overhead, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or “drones” are also now taking to the
skies above sites - dramatically reducing the time taken to complete surveys and enabling
better informed site or building inspections.
If drones took on an even wider role, they could support swarm construction - like this
group who constructed a rope bridge at ETH Zurich in 2015 - the aerial 3D printing of
structures or even the transporting materials and people between locations.
As construction works progress, tools like Topcon’s GTL-1000 -which combines the setting-out
power of a robotic total station (RTS) with a high definition laser scanner – enable
project teams to collect powerful as-built data on their projects, unlocking more accurate
progress reporting and helping to dramatically reduce on site errors.
Once construction work is complete, part-automating the management of buildings and structures
could improve how they support our wellbeing and reduce running costs.
While robots and autonomous maintenance machines are now being trailed, we’re already seeing
some buildings sharing advanced information on how they are being used, the age of their
systems and their energy use - enabling them to be operated in a more efficient way.
If aggregated globally, this data can be used to inform designers at the start of the process
and the people and robots on site, improving the built environment that we all use everyday.
Though automation often sparks fears of job losses, it’s important to remember that
many of these developments were born out of an industry-wide skills shortage that many
apprenticeship schemes and career programmes are yet to solve.
If left unchecked, the shortage could lead to spiralling construction costs and a lack
of key buildings like homes or hospitals as the sector struggles to keep up with demand.
These advancements also create entirely new industries in themselves, with a need for
a re-trained human workforce.
In a world that is placing more demands on construction than ever before, and with our
progression on this planet now dependent on creating enough homes, caring for others and
limiting the environmental impact of our built environment, the automation of large parts
of construction is key to our future.
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