BIG data can be utilised as a tool to ‘predict the future’ of the construction industry, as long as the data are shared with other industries as well, an expert said.
University Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) senior lecturer of the Faculty of Built Environment & Surveying Dr. Zafira Nadia Maaz believes that the deployment of big data analytics could help in predicting trends, prices, scenarios and many other types of information that could benefit various industries in the long run, even the construction industry.
“Right now, the way we operate in the construction industry, everything is very much in silo. You’re doing your job, I am doing my job, although we are addressing the same thing, the same project,” she told local newswire Bernama in a recent interview at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Skudai.
“With big data, the biggest obstacle is obviously data sharing. If I am the only one sharing my data and you are not, it (big data) cannot happen, and this is the biggest obstacle faced by our industry and professional surveyors in adopting big data,” she added.
Zafira described the difficulties of deciding on the price of a certain project, as it is subjectable to different variables such as weather conditions, prices of materials, the economic conditions and so on.
However, with the help of big data analytics, industry players are able to analyse the data in order to see a pattern that could affect decision making by estimating project costs and the duration of the construction more accurately.
“For example, we can see how the economic recession affects prices and how weather conditions would affect the construction process,” Zafira explained.
Considering its potential, Zafira hopes that the adoption of big data for the construction industry will happen soon, especially with the Construction Industry Development Board’s (CIDB) move to come up with a five-year transformational plan for the industry.
“Let’s hope that big data would be part of the plan. Big data is actually a part of the Internet of Things (IoT) of digital construction,” she said.
Integrating advanced tech to the construction industry
Big data is not the only digital solution that could work in the construction industry. Even in 2018, the concept of IoT was expected to be a very promising aspect to integrate to the construction industry.
For example, IoT allows for intelligent prefabrication. Prefabricated building components can be more efficient and cost-effective to use compared to regular methods. It also creates less construction waste.
Apart from that, IoT also makes building information modelling (BIM) possible, where it can be used to depict the systems and structure of a building during the deign and construction phases. A change on one set of plans can automatically update all other connected plans.
Similarly, virtual reality (VR) can also play a part in the construction industry as it is able to help all parties involved.
VR helps to make a construction project much easier to clearly showcase and present, eliminating miscommunication between construction professionals, designers and their clients, be it from improving the drawing process to offering a virtual reality tour of a construction site or finished project.
The technology also makes it possible to explore sites in VR months, even years in advance, making it extremely useful for visualisation and a potentially invaluable time saver.
The safe manner in which VR can be used for construction projects also means that training procedures can be easily and effectively implemented.
One can only imagine all the technological possibilities that await the construction industry in the future. – Dec 31, 2020
