Some people might argue that the construction industry has been crying out for evolution for some time. New technologies, increased environmental pressures and society’s evolving expectations for service delivery are just some of the driving forces behind this pressure to change.
The Covid-19 crisis has accelerated the need for evolution. The pandemic has been a worrying time for many people, but now we are emerging from lockdown, for now at least, many industry players are looking to how we can create new working environments and embrace the positive changes the pandemic has necessitated.
The leaders of the McKinsey Engineering, Construction and Building Materials Practice Group have produced an excellent report on how construction can emerge stronger after coronavirus, which highlights industry-wide changes that we are likely to see. Here’s our take on how we believe priorities will change across the UK construction industry.
Staff welfare
All construction companies place huge importance on staff welfare. This will only become more important. Protecting staff from virus risks by creating a clean and safe site is going to remain a top priority. Happily, this is likely to boost staff morale, rather than hamper it.
Managing social distancing is going to continue to ask for innovative solutions, however. Maintaining distances is extremely difficult on site and Mayer Construction isn’t alone in constantly assessing each project individually to come up with a plan that works for every scenario.
Let’s get digital
On the subject of innovation, quite a few property and construction technologies have been creeping towards construction sites in recent years and now their adoption will increase. Face recognition technology will be used to allow people on site and monitor workers’ locations. Project management software will be used to streamline the number of people allowed on site. Virtual site walkthroughs will allow clients to take a tour of progress without having to visit.
All these technologies are geared towards making construction sites more efficient and to streamline the traffic of people at any one time. Chances are we might have to enter lockdown again; technology will help developers to ensure work can carry on.
Supply chains
This is, obviously, a global pandemic and has affected supply chains considerably. Businesses that were preparing for whatever Brexit scenario we are faced with will now also be preparing for disrupted suppliers and transportation.
A construction company is likely to work on new agreements with suppliers in the event of disruption, as well as stock piling critical equipment and materials. Storage will become more important, as will access to various types of transport. A developer might choose to widen its net to work with more suppliers, in the hope that one might be able to deliver if another is facing difficulty.
Pleasantly, we may well see suppliers and construction companies develop new relationships, to establish agreements that create an improved working relationship. This crisis has affected everyone; we’re in it together.
Environmental focus
When Covid-19 hit and society faced an extreme threat, we were forced to react and alter working practices overnight. Although we’ve known for years that climate change presents equally real threats to our way of life, change has been painfully slow. However, it seems that the world has finally woken up.
Increasingly we will operate in a culture where environmental factors top the list of decision-making criteria – due to both legislation and societal pressure. Carbon reduction targets are only going to get more stringent. The pandemic has shown that we can work in new ways, so we now need to make sure environmental awareness is included in that new way of thinking.