While development and adoption of automation technologies has evolved more slowly in construction than in manufacturing, the time is now ripe for automated construction technologies to play a major role in helping to bring construction’s digital transformation into full bloom.
The continued evolution of the construction industry will rely on automation in its many forms, from automated digital design and analyses processes to the automated creation of construction documentation and, ultimately, the act of construction. Automation of construction processes, whether they are used for off-site prefabrication that mimics advanced manufacturing’s best practices or on-site construction robotics, will determine the construction industry’s success in fulfilling its 21st-century dual challenges: high demand for buildings and infrastructure and the necessity of sustainability across the entire lifecycle.